The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-07-31
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? THp ALABAMA POLYTECHNIC INST I from Warren New Hybrid and Warren Extra Early. The first and second mowings of Clay and Taylor were fall ures. but good hay was produced from Taylor mown when half or all the pods were ripe The number of days from
 sowing until the first ripe pods ap- peared was as follows: Warren Extra Early, 72: -poor-will 30; Taylor | 90; and Clay, 97 days. Clay is late | grower and did not prove to be very
 successful variety for hay.
 l In another comparison, vines of New Era, Black Eye and Warren Extra
 Early. after ripening a full crop Of
 peas. cured into good hay ready Tor 1 storage in two days. and Brown Eye | California Black Eye. Large Black Eye | and Whip poor-will, with a fair quan- | itty of matured pods, also made good hay; but several varieties in vigorous growth. and with only occasional ripe pods, when mown produced hay or very | inferior quality.
 the rows of corn they are frequently harvested by pulling the vines by hand and throwing them into small COCKS TOT curing. This method Is applicable only on small farms, and the usual and most practical method of harvesting Is with the moving machine. Varieties or l prostrate growth. however. are not very readily cut with the machine. and l in growing cowpeas for hay the habit of growth must be taken into consider l aticn, and varieties more or less up- right be selected in order to facilitate harvesting and curing. New Era' whippoorwill and Wonderful are sug- gested as being well suited to harvest ! ing with the mower.
 Vines having ceased to grow and ma ! tured enough for hay may be sufficient I ly cured for storing in thirty-stx or | forty eight hours of favorable weather 1 conditions. and if well cooked after
 lying day will endure several days Of rainy weather with but slight damage and cure into good hay. On the other hand, green and vigorously growing vines may not cure at all. The follow ing directions for making cowpea hay are given:
 '"rhe vines should be cut in the morn ing as soon as free from dew, and when 1 the indications are for favorable hay making weather. The length of time the vines should remain in the swath depends upon the quantity of vine, de- gree of maturity and the weather. A cloudless day, with high temperature. dry air and high wind will induce rapid conditions, hay cut in the morning should usually be windrowed or cooked in the afternoon. As soon as the more exposed leaves are well cured, but not dry enough to crumble, the hay should be teddered or, in the absence of a ted der. raked into windrows. Having re- mained in windrows until the upper may be rolled over, that the under DOT. tior may be exposed for a time. The hay is then thrown into cocks, where 1t remains until taken to the barn or stacked"
 It is advisable to turn over the cocks a few hours. before hauling, in order to expose them to ths sun and hasten cur ing ~<~
 F Methods of curing cowpea hay around poles are also described. The vines, when thoroughly wilted, are stacked about poles seven to nine feet long, driven into the ground, and remain there until we'll cured. When longer and stronger poles are used, crosspieces
 are nailed to them at right angles to each other, about ona foot above ground, and again several feet higher. and so on to the top of the pole. The green,
 but wilted, vines are placed about the
 poles and over the crosspieces to the
 top, where the stack is drawn to a point and capped. Curing is also ac- complished by piling the vines around simple framework of poles. leaving the stack hollow In the middle, and
 thus admitting a free circulation of air through the center. These methods of curing. however, involve much labor and expense. and are not always prac- ticable.
 According to suggestions by Prof
 W. F. Massey, of the North Carolina Experiment Station, cowpeas should be harvested for hay as soon as the first pods turn yellow, and the cutting should be done only in the morning under promising weather conditions. The vines should be tossed during the day by means of a tedder or by hand with fork and raked into windrows that same evening. These are turned and dried the next day and cooked. After the cocks have stood for a day and no further moisture can be wrung from the hay by twisting a handful of 1t with considerable force, 1t Is ready for the barn; but If moisture still ap- pears at the twist, the cocks are turn ed over and rebuilt to hasten the curing and the time when the hay will stand the test.
 The following methods of curing cow pea hay are given by w. R. Perkins, of the Mississippi Station:
 The cutting is done when the crop is fully mature, which Is about the time the pods began to ripen and the foliage begins to change color.
 The moving machine blade Is kept sharp and run as close to the ground as possible. If the peas are In rows the cutting can be done much cleaner and better with a very sharp hoe and at a very little additional cost.
 If the weather Is good, as Is usually the case when the crop Is ready, Au- gust or September. generally, the vines are raked up the same or following day and put into cocks of the size that two men can handle with a fork when cured. They are left in the cocks for four or five days, being turned over once or twice during the time, and then hauled to the barn or stack. In case they are put in a stack. a good covering of grass or hay Is necessary. in order to shed the water. The sides of the stack should be built straight up. to prevent the water spelling the outside hay.
 Putting in cock Is desirable. because the hay is then cured by the circula tion of air through it, and not In the direct sunlight, Any hay is better when cured in the shade
 If the weather is damp or rainy the hay is not raked at all till cured. when it is carried directly to the place where 1t Is to be stored. If 1t con tinues to rain several days after cut ting. do not touch the hay until ready to put up. and then be sure that 1t is dry when packed away. This Is a pre- caution that must be observed in stor- ing any kind of hay-do not put up when even moist with dew, or 1t will mold.
 The crop may sometimes be lost in a protracted wet spell. but can gener- ally be saved in such condition as to r