The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1907-09-28
GOVERNMENT TESTS COW PEAS
Average Vitality Of Last Years Seed
About go Per Cent.

yeStng the pea crop, Dul Pio'cu 60
tremely damaging to the quality OF
the seed that was harvested. The
softening and molding of the SEEDS
caused by the damp weather pro.
duced tremendous fall in their ger
minating percentages, so that though
farmers have been paying SO and
$3.50 bushel for cowpea seed, which
in ordinary seasons could be had for
half that price, they have found the
quality of the seed so poor that the
stand they have attained this year Is
thin and unsatisfactory. The Atlanta
Constitutions contained a few days
ago the following review OF results
obtained by the government in seed
test made of cowpeas from the south |
| eastern states:
The seed laboratory of the bureau
of plant industry of the United states
department of agriculture has recent
ly collected samples of cowpea SEED
! from the states of North Carolina,
South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Ala
bama, Mississippi, Louisiana. Arkan-
| SdS anu 1tuuCSoCCs " tiS
S,7O6 packages, and these samples
have been carefully tested for vitality
The results obtained have been start
ling.
While good grade of seed should
show a termination of from 80 to 80
per cent, the seed from four states
only-Arkansas, Tennessee, LOUISIANA
and Florida-showed an average ger
mination of as much as GO per cent
and only four varieties OF cowpeas
contained as many as 60 live seeds in
each 10O-the Iron Taylor, Whip
porwill and New Era varieties In
the remaining five states from which
samples were secured and with the
. ten or more staple varieties OF cow
meas not named above, the average
. percentage of termination reached
/. from 40 to SO per cent only.
In these tests the Iron variety.
] which stood first, showed a general
average of 1872 per cent while the
Unknown variety averaged but 52 per
Y cent. the Brown-eye less than 90 per
) cent and The Black only 53.6 per cent
r After the Iron variety the next best
u record was made by the Taylor va
T riety. with 6S.S per cent, and after
4 that the Whipporwill, with an average
n termination of 66.7 per cent. Mex
y come the New Era variety, with
i general average of 64.2 per cent, while
e the fifth on the list, the Clay variety
II dropped to 5S.7 per cent in these
tests. and the Black-eye and the Rel
y Ripper showed SIS and 56.9 per cent
. respectively.
n According to the figures obtained Il
n connection with the tests mentioned
is the Whipporwill is the most popula
Il variety with the Clay second, and tn
m unknown third.
Z, The testing can easily be done D.
means of two dinner plates and
W strip of canton flannel. One hundre
le seeds should be counted out from tn
" package Of seed which it is propose
~ to SOW taking the seeds just as the
r. come without making any selection
lg These seeds should be placed on on
he end of the wet flannel and laid in on
BY of the plates, while the other end
the cloth and other plate should
nlaced over them. On the thlr'
fourth and fifth days the number
gu seeds which have sprouted should I
ne counted and in this simple way tn
:, percentage of seeds which wou
IN sprout if sown in the ground can |
~ definitely ascertained.
,,v For the maintenance of fertili
-. and the restoration of soils the CO..
he pea is the greatest acquisition OF u
he age. there being practically no col
IN petition in this respect between 1t az
ua alfalfa. SAYS Farm and Fireside.
M Is with another member of the
ny gume family, clover, that we mu
his compare the cowpea as fertilize
it and in this comparison it is well al
,ur to hold its own.
me That which gives peculiar val
ov to the pea is the remarkably she
W. period in which it natures al
lal- forms a hulk of vegetable macer
, a turn under. Clover as we all hao
in requires fifteen months to compile
uid it's growth; the cowpea only tnr'
ave Glover. too, is particular about
1t kind of soil, and will not start rel
do lily on poor land. While the p
It'll makes a larger growth on rich Sc
vet the ground seldom gets too pc
to sprout peas. On the contrary II
soil is not best for them; they ma
yer a great growth of vine at the
ion pense of seed, while on thin sc
irst they stand erect and are loaded W
eat. peas.
ky, In an intensive system OF farm