The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1909-08-10
(The Cotton Journal.)

Well. how is cotton? How many
times have you heard this question,
and how many times hav you asked
it within the past month? The an
Late little grassy and don't
seem to be doing much However,
occasionally there is a different IN
sWer, which nearly always comes in a
more hopeful spirit.
Just the other day We heard the
usual question put to an energetic,
middle-aged farmer, whose appear
ance showed that thrift and pros
perity were not strangers tt him
well, my crop is in pretty good
shape replied the man Intercepted
1T is fairly clean now, and with just a
little more working weather it will
be good It is true it is small and q
little late. but I have a good stand,
ard is now just ready to make a
rapid growth"
We'll, you seem so cheerful and con-
fident Of your prospects, please tell us
how you have managed to get the crop
an such satisfactory condition. said
one of the party.
Don't understand me as saying
things are absolutely satisfactory
said Mr.. Prosperous Farmer; for that
is the name by which we will know
him. My crop is not as good as it
was this time last year, nor is it as
l would like to have right now. But
When we consider everything with
which we AVE nae to contend the
past spring, I am not dissatisfied
] did much toward making my crop
one, two, three, years since. Some
of you remember that big field OF
some two hundred acres, as it was
covered with spots of broom sedge.
small bushes and briars. with just a
few spots, two or three acres in ex-
tent, here and there on which the
former occupant had tried to raise
cotton. Well, it is on sixty acres OF
this field hat 1 have my crop this
year.
Three years since, or when I got
possession of the place, I divided it
up into three fields or sections. The
first year. on one of them I planted
cotton and made a rather poor crop
Ia little less than a half a bale to the
acre.. On another section / planted
corn, and on the other / did not try
to make any crop the first year, but
since that I have had the entire place,
excepting one or two little fields for
pasture, under cultivation.
Crop rotation, cotton, corn, oats or
other small grain, with peas for for
age, seed and for soil Improvement
just as often as possible, has been my
. course. There is now no waste land
on the place, the productiveness OF
every acre has been greatly increased
There are obstacles to this kind Of
farming, of course, but usually they
are not hard to overcome. 1t some
times happens that the crop can't gel
in the rotation just at the time plan.
ned for it, but this is not sufficient
cause for abandoning the system
Even if a crop should have to DROP
out entirely for one year., the setbacl
is only temporary. 1t may work ir
all right in the course Of anOther year
We always have to make some modi-
fication to suit peculiarities of season
and other emergencies.
Nov, as to what / have done tC
make my cotton crop for the yea
1909.
1T is on the same land that was ir
cotton in 1906, the first year l haC
possession of the place. That year
the blowing and everything else was
done as on nearly any other farm
Late in the following fall and early
in the spring the piece was plowed
with a twO-horse pillow and planted tC
corn, which received the very best
cultivation time and means would al
low. About the middle of June il
was laid by with a shallow cultivation
covering peas which had been sown
broadcast. The corn made a fair crop
but the peas did not do much. When
the corn was ready it was gathered
after which a bunch of some fifty
hogsSand shoats had the run Of the
field a few weeks.
In October the surface was pre-
pared and planted to oats. in the
open furrow. A good stand and q
fairly good crop followed.
After the oats were taken off a
part of the field was p1owed, while
the rest was cut up with a heavy har-
row and all planted to peas and sor-
ghum, from which a big crop Of hay
was cut in September. After this
was cured and taken off, blowing for
this years cotton crop was started.
Late in October the first burrows
were run with a disc pillow, which was
continued as opportunity would allow