The Savannah morning news., 1902-06-30
Advantages of The Surface CuItivn-
ton of Corn Emphasized.

ton of Corn Emphasized.
It sometimes appears a difficult mat
ter to combat error when it once gets
deep-rooted in the minds of the people,
says a farmer in the Dallas News. 1t
requires such forbearance and courage
in an attempt to show the farmer the
advantages which would accrue to his
material interests by a better knowl-
edge of plant growth. Notwithstanding
the fact that every experimental sta
ton in Arkansas, Mississippi and Ag
ricultural and Mechanical College in
Texas have, after thorough scientific
tests, issued bulletins stating that sur
face culture of corn produces from five
u seven bushels more per acre than
deep culture, we find quite number in
different sections OF the state refusing
to accept such authority. 1t may be in
part owing to the fact that they have
so long practiced deep culture, and be-
come so we'll satisfied with the plan
that they are averse to practicing any
other. .
Francis Emerson of Mckinney, Tex,
a man who had ample means to graf
ify his ambition to be useful to the
farmers of Texas by his practical
tests on corn culture in Collins coun-
ty, Texas, did make a yield of $50
bushels per acre in 1895, ITO bushels in
1898 and IS bushels in 1901, the dryest
year in half century, by deep winter
breaking and surface culture. Yet
when he exhibited his tests to quite a
number of farmers in the different
stages of the growth of the corn Gin
spite of the truth of the old adage
seeing is believing'O quite a number
were so amazed at their own past igno-
rance of plant growth that they kept
mum, but went home and quit the old
ue ep-culture mode, and one of them
said he had increased his yield of corn
per acre in 1900 twenty bushels, and
by surface culture had raised plenty
of corn to supply his many small black
land farms all worked on the share
system by Industrious white tenant
farmers in 1901, when hundreds and
thousands of acres all over Texas did
not make a nubbin.
Why an intelligent farmer will adVo-
cate deep culture of corn when every
scientific and practical test has proven
that IL is wrong, must remain a mys-
terry, because it is an act which dis
regards the natural law of seIfishness
Scientific and practical Illustrations
nave demonstrated the fact that nv
deep breaking in winter and surface
culture OF corn the moisture is preserv-
W anu OOIStTNtQ 50 as TO prevent
evaporation, and none of the mvrtads
OF t1brcus roots of the corn plant are
rutnlessly broken and bled to death as
is done by deep culture. l therefore
90 not or would not rebreak land to
pc planted in corn in March or AnriI
MY plan is deep breaking in December
log OF in March, drill the corn in rows
i've feet apart and one grain two feet
apart In drill, surface culture from
sermlnauon to maturity, namely, one
acre 56l feet square. making seventy
two rows five feet apart in row-1sO in
row E'SSp hills at one ear to hill or
l20 ears to bushel 100 bushels.
When the North Texas farmer fully
realizes the possibilities Of doubling the
Yield of his corn under better svs-
tenn or tillage- that is, on the intense
pan rather than the extensive imper-
1ect mode generally practiced, then he
can raise hogs so cheap as to make a
corner on the pork products of the
world.