The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1902-07-12
PLANTER.
GRATIFYING SIGNS.
nroxed Farming Methods Coming
Into Vogue, But Too Much
Land is Cultivated.

emf in farming. Better work rs be-
y done on many farms. Greater
versity of crops and improved meth
bs are in evidence. The farmers are
Iadinp and thinking more than for
crly. Prosperity is taking the place
failure and adversely. There is a
CHER appreciation of the dignity
farm work. The farmers are hold
bo ND their heads among their fell
bv men. The entire atmosphere is
hanged. The exodus from the farms
falling off. There is ever a dispo-
ition to return to the farm on the
art of many who had moved to
own. Many who have been reared
n the cities are now looking to the
arm as a more desirable home than
he city. This is a contamination de-
voutly to be wished for.
We have recently visited sections
with which we have long been ia
bniliar. Twenty-Five years ago these
lands were worn and washed. and not
considered worth longer cultivation.
Thousands of acres were abandoned.
Gullies and briars and old-tield pines
had taken possession. Dilapidation
reigned supreme. But a great change
has been wrought. These fields have
been recleared. The gullies have dis
appeared. The briars and pines have
gone. Crops, better than ever grew
upon these lands, are now growing.
Restoration has done much of its
marvellous work.
But on every hand and everywhere
one thing stands clearly evident.
Each individual farmer is trying to
cultivate too much land. There is a
kind of craze for broad acres. Evil
dences of lack of thorough prepare
ton and thorough culture are abun-
dant. If you call attention to this,
the reply IS: eve have not had time
to do this work as it should have
been done" Every man is over
cropped. He is trying to get from
twenty acres what he could have got
ten from eight or ten with half of the
work and half of the expense. His
profits would have been more than
doubled.
We have seen many fields of wheat
where 20 acres would not yield
what might have been'gathered from
two acres properly prepared and
sown at the right time. Even with
the imperfect preparation the early
sown wheat is making fair crops. But
the late sown is almost universally n
failure. Where from thirty to forty
bushels per acre might have been
made they are getting from four to
six. If you inquire about this the
answer will generally be that this is
not a wheat year. But the fact still
remains that those who prepared
their land thoroughly and sowed at
the right time have satisfactory
crops of wheat.
Winter wheat in this southland is
IA biennial plant. 1t wants the last
half of one year in which to make
root development and the first half
of the next year in which to make
the grain. If it has not had TINA
to make sufficient roo development
in the fall, it is not apt to make sat
isfactory grain development in the
spring.
To make a success of wheat-grow-
ing the soil should be broken from
twelve to fifteen inches early in the
fall when the clay is dry. This should
be narrowed until it is fine, then
rolled down firm, and the wheat
sown the latter part of October. We
have never known a failure when this
plan has been followed.
The same criticism is just with re-
gard to all the crops. Too much
ground has been planted and the
preparation has been poor. Cut down
the acres and run up the profits,
This can be done. But if you can not
make up your mind to do this, then
there is one other thing which you
can do. You can get better tools
and work the land better with i'm
proved implements. A two-horse
pillow will break more land in n day
than a one-horse pillow, and do the
work a great deal better. A weeder
will go over three or four times the
land in a day hat a small harrow
will or o single horse pillow siding the
crop. At the same time the work
will be better done.
We take occasion to say these
things now, because sometimes mer
can be made to understand a poin
while the burden is upon them better
than any other time. Hence, if we
can impress this point while the diff
ficulty of getting labor and the ex
pense of cultivating large areas is