The county record. [volume] (Kingstree, S.C.) 1885-1975, 1903-12-03
improving Posr Land.

tremely poor SO that it will hardly grow
anything beyond sedse grass and some
times a little Japanese clover. Lands
have reached this condition as the re-
suit of abuse and improper cultivation.
They are Of necessity an eyesore and a
menace to the prosperity Of the agri-
cultural community. Each year the
yawning gullies grow wider and
deeper, making the land more difficult
to reclaim, as well as endangering the
destruction of the richer bottom
lands. How to reclaim these lands
proftably is a problem Of momentous
Importance to many farmers. The old
method was to try and stop the gullies
by brush dams, by contour plowins
and hillside ditching. These methods
are both laborious and expensive and
do not tend to build UP the land As rap
idly as is desirable and besides the
cost is too great.
The first solution Of this problem
would seem to be in laying the lands
down to grass, but when the top soil
has all been washed away 1t Is rather
difficult matter to farm on the subsoil
unless it has been very carefully treat
ed, and even then plants as small and
delicate rs young grass find 1t diff
cult matter to readily establish them
selves. AS result people having this
character of land have abandoned the
attempt to lay It down to grass owing
to the numerous failures encountered,
and worse still becoming dlsgusted
with the attempt to render its cultiva-
ton profitable have thrown 1t out and
left nature to cover up with briars and
scrub forest growth.
AS grass can not be obtained sue
cessfully in the beginning and the sys-
TEN Of hoed crops generally grown Is
not satisfactory. some other means OF
reclaimins these lands must be found,
and while the method here outlined is
not q panacea for all the ills of those
having waste lands OIL their hands. still
its judicious application will generally
prove effective. enabling the farmer to
make these lands profitable and even
tually get them in condition to lay
down to grass. This system, too, mas
much wider application than the
reader at first might think, for this IS
not local problem by any means. and
many Of the crops mentioned can re
used for pasture over very wide ter
ritory.
The climate Of the whole Appalachian
region favors the production of cereals,
so that lands of even moderate fertil-
ity will in the beginning produce profit
ably if seeded to these crops. AS the
winters are mild the crops II seeded
early can be grazed for long period
during the fall; in some instances dur
ing the winter, and again in the spring
until the first of May or June. Cereals
in order to furnish the largest amount
of pasture should be seeded early; from
the s5th of August to the 1st OF Sep
tember. Rye is the most vigorous
growing of these crops, though winter
barley and oats can be used to adTan'
tace. some varieties Of barley and oats
making a very thick mass Of herbage
that effectively covers the ground and
prevents washing and furnishes a rich,
nutritious food for live stock. One oD-
lection is found to grazing these lands
during the winter and this is the care
lessness Of the owner in permitting live
stock TO run on them when wet. This
is a serious mistake and especially IS
II true in regions where red clay soils
prevail. as these lands are inclined TO
be tenacious in character and being re-
tentlye of water are easily puddled.
BY growing two or three cereals bet
ter succession. Of grazing can be had
during the fall and winter. which Is an
advantage. This also permits the WORK
of breaking and reseeding on Mt differ
ent seasons and thus makes better
division of the work.
In the early spring as soon as practi-
cable one section Of the cereal crop
that has been grazed down closely,
say. rye. should be broken up good
seed bed prepared, anu mixture VI
corn and cowpeas seeded broadcast.
BY the time the other cereals are eX-
haustcd, the last one being grazcd until
the first Of June, this crop will be ready
for pasture. AS soon as the second
area of cereals, say. the barley, is
crazed down, it should be broken up
and seeded to q mixture Of sorghum,
cowpeas and soy beans. This crop,
like the former. may be broadcasted.
but it is probably better to seed all
of them with the grain drill. permitting
every tube to SOW. This distributes
tlie grain more effectively, covers it
mich better, a very important consid-
era lion, and is more likely to result in
obtaining a uniform standing and in
the destruction of noxious weeds.
The third area Of cereals should be
broken about the first Of June, and
may then be seeded to velvet beans or
q mixture of cowpeas, sorghum and
velvet beans, or several other combina-
tious that will readily suggest them
Il wall c,1ttn1