Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1903-07-23
lmproved cover croppina.


That method of orcharding best al
tested by common sense and best sup
ported by experience combines culture
during the spring season with
vrowth of a cover crop during the
autumn months, says F. A. Waugh,
writing in the Country Gentleman. This
has met with great favor among the
careful and successful, in spite OF the
dificulties involved. The amounts Of
nitrogen secured in the growth of COW
meas. SOY beans or hairy yetch in an
orchard are sometimes truly remark
able. and no thoughtful man can Is
more this economical source OF plant
food. One of the greatest practical
dificulties in the handling of cover
crop has always been to get gooa
#'catch" when sowing. BY the middle
#of July there is likely to be season
Rof drouth and the weather is too warm
and dry for securing a good stand OF
clover, peas or vetch.
The improved method of cover crop
ping. already tested meets the re-
uuirements of the situation by allow
ing the season of cultivation and the
season of growing the cover crop to
overlap. Tie crop is sown consider
ably earlier in the summer, say in
Nav, the seed being drilled in rows.
When the young plants appear they
can be cultivated once tin some cases)
by running a light smoothing harrow
over the whole surface. This will re-
habilitate the soil with its dust mulch
one of the most important offices OF
cultivation will kill most of the
young weeds which are just appearing,
and will not harm the plants of GER
tain cover crops. Soy beans may be
treated in this way, and perhaps COW
peas, though clover would probably
! be pulled up by even the lightest
I smoothing harrow After this first har-
rowing the one-horse, tine-tooth Guilt
vator is put on. 1t is run between
\ the rows, furnishing the proper tillage
4 for the soil, and at the same time slim
Il ulating the growth of the cover crop.
IL the drills of the cover crop are put
L fairly close together, say three feet
apart. two or three cultiVatings VIII
bring the crop up to a size where 1t
. will occupy the ground. take care of
itself and make further cultivation I'M
II practicable. If the whole plan is prop
erly carried out this juncture will oc-
Il cur at the time when cultivation would
naturally be RENTED in order to allow
the ripening of the wood There is a
1 little more work required in this meth
cd of cover cropping than in the old
method of sowing the seed broadcast
at the time of the last cultivation;
hut the results are generally so much
better that they pay we'll for the eX-
ira trouble
This improved method has been
practiced for several years in some To-
|calities. In particular it has been
tried with COW peas in the south. One
sees them sown in drills almost rs
often as broadcast, and generally one
Or two civilizations are given after the
Xsowing of the peas. One of the most
Successful demonstrations, in a small
way. which came to Mr.. Waugh's at
tention, was given by j. Mel Stevens
bf Orwell, Vt Soy beans apparently
Responded best to this treatment ON
his soil, which is strong, rich,
Eoamy clay. The best test of the
method which Mr.. Waugh made him.
self was with hairy vetch. The seed
WAS sown in drills three feet apart, be-
tween the rows of young orchard,
Hume 80 Within a month, after three
Imore civilizations, the ground was
sIcompletely covered between the drill
rows with a perfect mat of heavy
Eetch tangle OF course this method
is better suited to young orchards than
10 older ones. but still it has wilder
tange of adaptation than would at
FIRST be supposed. Many persons think
That any cultivation in an old orchard
Ms impossible, but when once it has
been honestly tried, it is nearly always
found to succeed.