The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1901-02-23
FARMER AND PLANTER.
BY WAY OF EXPERIMENT.
Planters Plan to Increase
Cotton Yield.

tanned for the present crop of cotton
will tempt many farmers to plant too
much cotton next year. But it they
will plant plentiful crop of every
thing else, ''kind Providence" may
again interfere and prevent our max
ing too much cotton. But be this as
may, it is to the interest of southern
farmers to decrease the cost by in
creasing the yield per acre. We shall
not argue this question, however, in
this place, but simply give the result
of an experiment we made manyyears
ago from which we learned some valu-
able lessons.
We selected five acrse on the high
est hilltop and the poorest land on
our farm. We broke this with a heavy
sulky plow followed by subsoil. We
succeeded in getting about thirteen
inches deep. This gave us about
twenty inches of loosened soil, and
went entirely through the hard pan.
After the winter rains and freezes
were past, we sowed 400 pounds COM
mercial fertilizer per acre broadcast.
This was one ton for the five acres.
We narrowed this with spring
toothed harrow, going about five
inches deep. After aboht ten days we
put on another ton, narrowed again
with the same harrow, going about
three inches and.a half deep. After
about one week we put on another
ton of the fertilizer and narrowed with
the Acme harrow about three inches
the first time, and crossing this about
two inches deep. We then laid off the
rows five feet apart, put on another
ton fertilizer in the drills; ran long
narrow rooter as deep as we could
and threw up fiat bed with half
turner. We then narrowed these beds
witr light fine-toothed harrow and
planted with homemade Texas bar
rel planter.
We stopped the holes with corn
cobs SO as to drop seed about every
20 to "a inches. We used improved
seed of our own selection which came
up bold and strong and were prop
erly thinned to two stalks in hill.
We had intended to put on another
ton of fertilizer in the middle of the
rows, but as we could not get the
kind we wished, we failed in this. Our
intention was to use ton per acre of
high grade commercial fertilizer, but
we had to contend ourselves with 1,600
pounds per acre. We used no compost
or stable manure or other manure of
any kind. Our plan was to test how
much commercial fertilizer it would
pay to use on one acre of cotton. We
had thus far expended about thirty
dollars per acre. There was nothing
now to do but to cultivate the crop,
and to gather it.
The cotton grew off SO rapidly that
the cultivation cost but little. This
was done with broad-heel scrapers set
to run very shallow. The cotton soon
shaded the center surface and the
grass gave up the fight.
NOW FOR THE RESULTS.
We never saw cotton grow SO. Meas
nring sticks placed beside the stalks
showed gain of two and half
inches per day at the height of the
growing period. The taking on of
'ruit was equally as encouraging; the
POLLS were large and set thickly upon
he limbs. The yield exceeded our ex-
.ectations. We got about two bales
md half per acre, and as cotton was
hen selling at nine cents, the profit
vas very satisfactory. 1t was not on
y the largest yield but the cheapest
cotton we ever raised. At an expense
II about two hundred and twenty
i've dollars all told, we had made
bout two hundred dollars worth of
otton and over three hundred BUSH
Is seed which were worth to us near
y dollar bushel; for nearly every
me who saw or heard of the cotton
wanted the seed. But the largest part
# the profit was in the improvement
# the land. That resulted principally |
rom the work that had been done.
While it is true that the crop of cot
on did not appropriate all the fertil-
ger that had been used and the next |
rop was somewhat benefited by what
sas left, that piece of land continued |
o make large yields of evry kind of |
rop, for many years. The lessons we
esire to draw from this experiment |
re, that thorough culture and high |
will pay, and do pay. That |
mall areas and large yields are more
rofitable than large areas and small
ields.
1t pays to make experiments. That
rop was mainly due to the deep plow-
,g. 1t would not have paid to use
hat much fertilizer on land plowed
hree or four inches deep. The deep
r the soil the more fertilizer can be
sed profitably. If the states east oil
ne Mississippi wish to compete with
exas in raising cotton they must |