The leader., 1904-12-31
FARMER AND PLANTER.
THE ALDRIcH SYSTEM.
The Originator Describes the sys-
tenn to an InauirinE Brother
Farmer.

To Subscriber" You have twelve.
acres of land which were planted last
season in cotton and from your state-
ment that the yield was ten bales !
infer that the rows were at least four
feet apart. Now run stalk cutter
over the field, or beat down the cot
ton stalks and begin by running q
straight shovel plow in the alleys. Fol-
low in the same furrow with mar
row subsoiler Then with turn
plow six inches wide throw two fur
rows on. Then follow in these two
furrows with the subsoiler. So con-
tinue alternating with turn~plow and
subsoiler until you plow out the cot
ton stubs, and go twice where they
stood with the subsoiler. You are now
ready to plant corn in rows one and
two. In rows three and four, which
must be reserved for cotton, put the
compost, cottonseed, stable manure
and commercial fertilizers that you in
tend to apply to the crop. If the land
lies level the manure may be put in
these furrows and remain uncovered
till time to bed for planting. If un-
dulating, run double plow or har-
row over the manure to prevent wash
ing by spring rains. At the proper
time to plant corn drill rows one and
two at the rate OF as many hundred
make bushels per acre. In the case OF
Subscriber that would be three
thousand hills per acre, and cover
with cotton planter or board. When
the time comes to plant cotton plant
rows three and four and when the
plants are ready to be worked chop out
to stand and side with a straight
shovel plow not wider than two inches
Work the corntthe same way. The ball
ance of the cultivation do with sweeps
and dustboards At last plowing OF
corn apply two hundred to three hun
uIOu UOuAuD VI Al6h 5AoOO AAoOSANCN
bone per acre between corn rows and
broadcast a half bushel per acre of
running COW peas, plowing all in to-
gether, or this application for the
peas may be made carrier if more con-
venient to put the fertilizer sooner
Subscriber" says that he made ten
bales of cotton on his twelve acres this
year. If he will plant those twelve
acres as above directed next year he
will make, with the average rainfall,
360 bushels of corn and eight bales OF
cotton and good crop of peas, wl1ich
it for the twelve acres of land than
would ten bales of cotton, to say moth
ing of the vastly improved physical
condition of the land for succeeding
crop. The corn rows would have on
them a good coat of humus for the
next cotton crop, and the cotton rows
would contain the residue of the COM
post and commercial fertilizers for the
succeeding corn crop. 1t will be found
that every corn crop will show per-
centage of increase, and the same with
the cotton crop The humus furnished
by the pea crop will enable the cotton
to withstand drought much better and
the nitrogen supplied by the pea roots
will obviate the necessity of buying
that ingredient-the most expensive of
all-and allow of the expenditure of
that much money for phosphoric acid
and potash You will be compelled
either to sell corn every year or raise
more stock to consume it. If you sell
the corn it will be that much more
money to-the credit side of your bal
ance sheet If you raise stock to con-
sumo it there will be so much more of
| the best manure in the world to go
| back to the land and increase produc-
| ton.
The system is winner, and those
farmers who adopt it soonest will have
the bulge in prosperity over those who
wait to see how it works with their
reignbors. This is my fifth year With
it and what was at the outset theo-
ry with me is now condition.-Al-
| fred Aldrich, in Southern Cultivator.
|