The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-03-26
National Guard Association.

Columbia, S. c.. March 25.-The sixth
annual convention of the Interstate Ne
tional Guard association was called to
order this morning. Charles Dick, senator
from Ohio and president of the associa-
ton, presided. The delegates were well
coined to the state in a brief address by
Governor Martin F. Ansel. Adjt. Gen.
John c. Boyd. Mayor 4. II. Gibbes also
made an address of welcome. The morn
ing session was occupied with the read
ing of papers by the various delegates,
while the afternoon session was largely
taken up by. routine matters.
for here the whole shock turns black
and mouldy in few days after being
cut and shocked, and Is unfit for feed for
any stock. Even a goat will not eat it
unless starved to 1t. / am very well
aware of the fact that this position is
not at all in accord with the teachings
of theorists who do much of their corn
growing in some of our cities. | remember
a lesson taught me when l was a small
boy by my father, which was this: MY
son, when you want advice about any
business, go to the man who has made Il
success in the business"
Now that | live in Missouri, when a
man comes to advise me on any agricul-
tural or horticultural lines. | say. Show
me-" Not that l claim to know all there
is to know about these things, that is
not the idea at all, for | am trader,
and If any man can show better corn than
l have to show, grown cheaper than mine
was grown, l am ready at once to swap
ideas with him. So l am going right here
to give the reader my plan for growing
corn fodder, and II you have cheaper
and better plan, come right up and we
will trade. When | want corn fodder l
plant Stowells Evergreen or Mammoth
Sugar corn expressly for fodder, and
find that the fodder of one acre of this Is
worth as much or more than three acres
of fodder where our main crops are cut
and shocked. Where the sugar corn is
properly managed, stock of all kinds, even
the hogs, will eat every particle of the
stalk so that there is no stalk left trod-
den in with the manure to make ii prac-
tically manageable. Besides this the
fodder can be so much more eheaply
handled. The better plan is to cut, bind
and shock the fodder, and later put 1t I'M
der cover. And here is another great adj
vantage as so much more feed value can
be stored in The same space than we could
possibly store of field corn. Then we do
not have to shuck the sugar corn before
storage. as is the case with field corn.
Their are many sections where the
sugar corn may not succeed. In such
cases, if any. We can SOW field corn IN
drills three feet apart and thick in the
drill. cut and bind this with the corn
binder and shock and store 1t the same
way do recommended for the sugar corn.
There are many ways by which we can
procure our hay and forage cheaper than
we can by cutting and shocking our field
crops of corn For further information
regarding hay and fodder crops the read
er should send a postal card today for
my bulletin on forage crops.
Rotation of Crops.
Here lies the solution of the whole
problem of soil fertility. Farmers in this
country, even In the great corn belt. are
wearing out their lands at rapid rate.
and the strange thing about it is that
they seem so unmndful of this fact.
During the months of October and No
vember 1906, | was engaged in conduct
ing farmers meetings in one of the best
sctions of our great corn belt, and TO
say that l was surprised at conditions
found in this section only expresses 1t
mildly | made ii a rule to go out into
the corr fields, where l found acres that
would not or did not produce In season
of 1906 ten bushels of a poor grade OF
corn per acre.
| found fields as well set to burrs as
any | ever saw anywhere. Farmers were
hauling In their corn to market. ex-
amined many loads OF corn and found
every load examined with good per-
centage of rotten corn and nubbins. Yet
when | talked to farmers about these
conditions some would tell me that the
seasons have changed. Why. they would
say that they used to produce forty to
sixty bushels of corn per acre. and now
the same land is not producing half this
amount Down in the southern states.
where the continuous farming of cotton
has worn the lands out, farmers tell me
the same story-that the seasons are not
what Il ey once were. When ! first came
here l could grow bale of cotton easily
on an acre--now 1t takes from three to
4, acres to make q bale. The seasons
are wrong. some way. But it Is not the
season that is wrong-it is the practice
of continuous cropping to the one crop.
The orly practical way for relief from
this IS to establish well regulated ro-
tation of crops with clovers clovers and
live stock in tbs rotation.
In A five years rotation not more than
three crops of corn should be grown. and
these crops well managed will give more
good sound corn than the five crops
where q crop is crown each of the five
years.
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