The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-04-14
THE FARM AND THE GARDEN.
MATTERS OF INTEREST TO HOUSE
WIFE AND AGRICULTURIST.

Notes md Suggestions on the Years
Work-VaIue of Proper Flowing.
On the Growing of Cassava-SOme
Farm Pests-COrn and Seed Corn.
CantaIoupe Right.
The spring of 1902 will have to go
down on the record as abnormal
exceedingly so. Not so much on ac
count of cold, but almost entirely from
the frequent occurrence of heavy rains
So heavy as to produce freshets and
overfiows, thus preventing the planting
or even the preparation of lands that
ordinarily are plowed or planted by the
first Of April.
The complaint is general that the
first paintings of corn were a failure.
Many that had planted a second time
have got to plant a third time or have
no corn. Very little cotton land had
been properly prepared on the first of
April. OF course. it looks discourage
ing and many are depressed by it, but
it won't do to give up.
A number of times in the past TWEEN
ty-five years we have seen farming
conditions in this section just as I'M
now, and yet the farmers pulled
through very nicely-that is, they made
good average crops, and the aggregate
outcome was as good as usual. In one
or two instances we have known late
paintings to conduce to better results
SaaninQlV when rlantinUS
fully up to time.
We have known April corn to turn
out better than March-planted corn,
and we have seen May and even
June-planted cotton to produce as we'll
or better than that planted in April.
What is sometimes lost in the way
of delay in starting is made up by the
better condition OF the soil gained by
the additional blowing incident to re-
planting.
1t has happened, unfortunately, that
a great deal of blowing has been done
this season while the soil was very
wet, too wet for the good of the land.
Much good soil is injured, more or less,
every year from this cause, but this
damage has been magnified four times
this season, owing to constantly re-
curing heavy rains in February and
March.
Lana plOWeQ 100 wet III MdICA QOSS
not recover from the bad effects that
season. The clods turned up then be-
come baked and the very best culti-
walton afterwards will not get the soil
into a fine, pulverized condition until
heavy freezes again occur the follow
ing winter. Two hundred pounds of
fertilizer will not offset the actual
injury done to land from blowing it too
wet. A great many farmers have
against their better judgment done
this injury this season under the inn
preston that they must do the work
then or lose their planting altogether
They had better have waited six weeks
even than planted under such unfavor-
able conditions.
As stated there is broad limit in
the period of time for planting our
staple crops. For good crops of corn
can be made by planting in April and
May and good crops of cotton by
planting in June. We had rather
wait the extreme limit than to pillow
and plant when the soil is too wet
AS we have suggested frequently
both farmers and gardeners have to
contend with a very serious obstacle
nowadays in the shape of bad seeds.
seeds of poor terminating quality.
Even on the best prepared soil it is
very difficult oftentimes to secure
good stand of any kind of crop. Half
the time something is the matter with
the cotton seeds. They do not come up.
If they do the young plants die out
without apparent cause. The true
cause is not usually suspected. 1t is
so with the corn seed, the melon seed,
and many of the seeds of the garden.
AS an old farmer from the back
woods remarked not long ago. seeds
don't APPEAR to come up like they use
to, l can't get a stand of anything
anyway / can fix ii.
Something has got to be done to-
wards providing the farmer and gar
dener with better seeds. 1t does
seem that a farmer could save for
his own use at any rate first class
seeds of the crops that he plants from
year to year. 1t seems that he does
not realize the Importance of doing so.
He takes the first thing that comes to
hand and Shout not be surprised at
failure now and then.
The young Irish potatoes plants are
Just barely out of the ground in Mid
die Georgia and yet the terrible potato
beetle is an them preparing to lay eggs
and breed a thousand more in a few
weeks.
On one plant not up more than a
week are found pair of beetles and
in a few days egg-laying for producing
the second brood would begin.
II is very important to deAfroy this
first appearance of beetles. One female
killed OF this brood in April will fore
stall hundreds that would result in