The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1902-05-13
Established 1871.
rrhc Southern Planter J

il.. NtbbIltIiL Il ie'litNl-J >
a4a cold. dry. unreasonable weather,
.. .1fah we had to write in our April
... -iU persists up to the date Of this
,...f.g l20th AprD, and as a result we
s.... ono of the latest springs for many
. Practically nothing mas yet com
r....I to Grow, and we have daily TO
+. tam ro tales Of woe from farmers who
t.... fal up all last seasons abundant
INV aud forage crops, and have nothing
+. the fields TO which to turn their stock.
...-r.rrs are as bare over most of the
-..t4 as i'm mdwinter; and worse, they
.. ,...t so lacking in moisture, that even
,..u s.arn weather nothing can grow
4r..ry until we have good soaking rains.
For The past six weeks the government
,..,,,r.r- show that we had altogether in
.E.f.f. Virginia not more than about
-tr..a inches OF rain, and that during the
.r.,.fUial sEoWery month of April we
l..... only had about two inches of rain
su Ita same section, and Of this two
thirds fill ON one day in the first week
at The month"; These conditions largely
....I. also to the other Atlnatic Coast
-+...s and over all the country, except
<.. York state and part of New Eng
land therc has been q marked deficiency
fn temperature since the commencement
a. the wear. and consequent backward
.l.. ian the season. The condition of the
.f...t crop of the country strongly eyi-
..nr,s this. On the first OF April the
AVERAGE condition was only 1871 per cent,
rs compared with 91.7 for 1901. and a ten
WEAR average of SD. Six Southern
States. with a combined wheat acreage
exceeding the wheat acreage of Indiana
and Illinois. or twice that of Ohio show
aa average condition OF only 65.3 per
cent California and Nebraska are the
only tyo States in the country having a
condition Of the wheat crop in excess OF
rEa. Of the average OF the whole country
year ago. The winter oat crop through
0.r The South is in a like bad condition;
III t.et ii IS practically almost a failure,
having been winter-kiiled almost every
where. and much of it is already plowed
.a as is the ease with much wheat all
os.l the country. The spring seeding of
oats has been completed, but growth has
-.aa very slow and unsatisfactory, and
much fear that the prospect for
good stand and yield is small. This con-
ali1u of the fall and spring -sOWn crops,
taken IN connection with the corn crop
failure of last year. indicates that if we
ar. to make an adequate compensatory
crop OF corn, q very much larger area
viii have to be planted in that crop, and
that much better preparation and cultt-
gat.0u viii have TO be given than IS usu-
ally The case. Much land is already
rIo".5 and waiting to be planted, but
There is no inducement to plant in such
dry. Old soil as exists. Better far to
Hvr The land extra preparation with the
harrow and roller than to plant until
He nave rain and warm, seasonabie
#aauner, Where in the more Southern
States corn has been planted, we hear
Ha b complaint as TO stands. This must
necessarily he so until the land is
warmed up. and corn that does not start
off WeU rarely makes q satisfactory
Weld. In our last issue, We wrote fully
.a ae question of the preparation OF the
t.t for the corn crop, and pointed out
.E r-atEe Importance OF good prcpara-
Hoo Of the land as compared with the
aHglralou Of fertilizers. this issue
"- would direct the attention of our
'#..rs. and would again emphasize what
W" .aen said. that more depends upon
." perfect preparation Of the land be-
lore the planting of the crop than upon
'AE .erUllzer which can be applied. 1t
rarely indeed that the application OF
."ElIlzer TO the corn crop results in
actual profit. 1t may, and often does, in
'Iau." The yield, but seldom in sufficient
proportion TO pay for the fertilizer.
.ealy the only profitable fertilizer
.H' can be- used on the corn crop is
"41 d manure applied during the win
.1 ad carly spring months, and this al
-".l in.aria3iy gives good results.