The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-03-14


buried under the finely broken soil will
continue to hold the frost long after it
has gone out of the loose soil. Those
who have yet to break their land will be
much delayed in the work, as for some
time after q thaw sets in it will be much
Too wet to pillow. Such a season as we
have had ought to be strong Indictment
to fall and winter blowing in the future
III this severe weather is followed by the
usual drying March winds. with the in
screasing power of the sun, it viii be a
,difficult mater to conserve the moisture
in the soil so as to permit of continuous
.plowing. If the unbroken land begins to
get too hard to plow, the only thing to be
done is to run over with a harrow, and
thus make a mulch of fine soil on the sur
face This will conserve the moisture
and allow blowing to go on long after it
would otherwise be too hard. The plowed
land ought also to be narrowed as soon
as possible to prevent too rapid drying
There is going to be none too much
moisture in the ground for the needs Of
"a hot summer, unless we should have
very wet spring The fall was very dry,
and the precipitation of rain and snow
during the winter has not been heavy.
Inc TWO great HeCeSSlIlISS lOF SuCCeSSlul
crop growth in the South are moisture in
the depths of the soil and perfect Guilt
walton of the land before the crop is
planted. Probably the most potent cause
of deficient crop yields throughout the
country is poor cultivation of the land be-
for seeding. "Tilage is manure as old
Jethro Tull so strongly insisted a century
ago it is also in the long run the
cheapest fertilizer that can be applied,
as its benefits ar not confined merely to
one crop. Pillow, harrowand roll repeat
eddy, even though in so doing you may
somewhat delay planting later than you
wish The subsequent much quicker and
more vigorous growth of the crop will
soon cause the delay to be made good,
and a rapid, vigorous growth of the new
ly planted crop will tell all through the
season. The feeding roots of the plant
will permeate the soil in all directions
and seize hold of the plant food and thus
ensure continuous growth
Oats should be seeded as quickly as
possible. Sow Rust proof 1t is too late
for Virginia grey winter An application
of 300 pounds to the acre of acid phos-
phate will greatly help the crop, and a
top dressing of rs pounds of nitrate of
soda applied after the crop has begun to
grow vigorously will often ensure a much
greater yield. Unless Canada peas and
oats can be seeded before the 18th of the
month in Eastern and Middle Virginia,
We would not advise seeding In the
Western and mountain sections, they may
be seeded up to the end of the month
with a fair prospect of success.
Grass and clover should be seeded dur
ed in grain crop, harrow the crop, then
SOW the grass and clover and roll or re-
harrow. In the early part of this article
We have mentioned the best varieties of
grass to SOW for different purposes.
Meadows intended to be mown for hay
should have all stones and trash gathered
off. 1t is a good plan to rake these fields
over with a hay rake or with a brush or
chain harrow, and thus clean of trash
which would otherwise rake up in the
hay. Stones are a prolific source of
breakages in moving machines, and
should be carefully gathered off in the
spring After cleaning off trash and
stones, roll with a heavy roller. This
will consolidate the soil around the roots
of the grass and ensure better and
more vigorous growth. If the lands need
helping with fertilizer, it should be APP
piled after raking and before rolling AS
a mixture for helping a meadow we have
never found anything better than bone
meal and nitrate of soda say, $50 pounds
of bone meal and 100 pounds of nitrate of
soda to the acre.
In the cotton sections no time should
be lost in getting the land broken and
under cultivation. We are much averse
to the planting of cotton in beds, except
upon wet land. Level planting and level
cultivation are as important for the cot
ton crop as for the corn crop, if the best
results are to be attained. Acid phos-
plate, kainit and cotton setd or cotton
seed meal can be safely applied to the
land a month in advance of the seeding
of the crop, and with advantage in the
benefit to be derived therefrom, as all
these fertilizers require time to become
available, and there is no fear their leach
| ing out of the soil. If nitrate of soda be
used to supply the nitrogen it should not
be applied until the crop is growing, as
it is Immediately soluble and available.
| The making and sowing of tobacco plant
beds has been very much delayed and in
many sections entirely prevented. They
should have immediate attention when
the weather moderates or plants will be
late. Burn well, and do not break deep,
but break as fine as possible, and fer
tilize literally, with high grade tobacco
seed fertilizer The variety to be seeded
must, of course, largely depend on the
section III which it is grown, but it would
seem safe to say that wherever Bright,
and the Sun cured types, like Orinoco and
Medley Pryor, can be grown, they should
be grown. Sun cured tobacco has sold
this season for prices scarcely ever heard
of before, and there is never season
when it does not sell we'll. The heavy
dark shipping types have not been in so
good demand but, of these, desirable
types have sold we'll Above all, avoid
growing One sucker. 1t is mean, poor
tobacco and never sells we'll.