The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-10-27
seeAias to Grasses.

Seeding to Grasses.
 Tn the. larger portion of the cot ton belt. September is usually the best time to seed down alfalfa. clover and the grasses. When excessively dry seed Will not germinate. or after ger minating be killed out by tho drouth If the eeason should be too far ad- vanced to re-seed. the work can. be deferred until spring; but in the South with conditions favorable, 1t is better to SOW in. the fall. In the Western and Northern States. where conditions are different. spring Is the best time for seeding: as when sown in the fall, winter freezes often destroy the young plants
 In the South the grasses and clovers suffer most from hot, dry weather of summer and 1t Is very desirable to get plants deeply rooted and we'll estab- lished before the heat of a dry summer comes. which cannot always be done with spring sowing; and then autumn | sowings are 50 advanced and grow off so rapidly in early spring that they get ahead of the weeds and crowd them out, while the latter in case of spring sowings keep even pace. with the grasses, and often crowd them out. Moreover, autumn sowings will give one, and often two, cuttings the en-
 
 not give more than one cutting and frequently give none. - The Southern farmer must provide against unfavorable climatic conditions by a thorough prepartion of the soil and have 1t heavily rnanured when necessary. A we'll fed, vigorous plant will live and flourish where a weak and puny one will wither and die of starvation; will withstand more cold in winter and heat fin summer. It is utterly useless to try to raise the more valuable grasses or clovers on poor soil.
 The finer perennial grsses in the South are disposed to die out !n mid-e"mmer when excessive heat and drouth pre- vail. They should be grown. therefore, on soil most retentive of moisture. such as limestone and clay soils Sandy loams are not adapted to perennial win 1 ter grasses, but should be seeded to grass such as the rescue, which, be- ginning It's growth in autumn. con-
 cludes 1t in spring before the excess i've heat and drouth of summer sets in. Crimson and burr clovers may be grown on sandy soils for the same I reason. a. | But whatever land Is intended for either kind of grass or clover. should 1 be put in thorough preparation and | liberally fertilized unless already in a
 suitable state of productiveness. Be- gin right on good soil. and a profitable yield may be expected. while fertility
 will he maintained and the farm inn
 proved The farmers of the South
 must give more attention to grasses
 and clovers and put more of their
 lands in meadows and pastures-cul-
 tivate fewer acres in cotton and raise
 more live stock. Half of the present
 acreage in cotton. judiciously treated
 and properly cultivated. could be mad a
 to yield a larger crop than that ob-
 tained from the whole under present
 methods and at much less labor and
 cost. There Is only a reasonable prof.
 1t in 10-cent cotton where the farmer
 at the same time produces all of his
 home supplies; and where he puts all | of his land in cotton and buys his sup plies from the proceeds of his crop
 though he may sell for 10 cents. he will be wearing out his land and becoming
 poorer every day the sun sets: where
 as, if he would only plant half of his
 land In cotton. and on the other half
 raise everything needed on the farm his cotton would be money crop and
 the larger part of 1t a profit while al the same time he would be resting and
 enriching his land by diversifying his crops. and his farm be made more val |; uable every year, and instead of being
 "carried by the merchant" would have surplus of money to loan the mercaant While the South can produce the cot ton to supply the worlds demand. she
 can also be made the most profitable , agricultural and live stock country or 1. earth Her agricultural products. grass
 crops and live stock industry once de- , veloped, will make her richer than the
 gold fields of all nations and consti- ute the means of wealth that will en- dure for all time-News Scrimitor. q