The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1909-08-27
PEANUT CULTURE IN FLORIDA

n sometimes happens through the
nature Of some crop or lack OF help at
ne proper time that a farmer finds
he can make a late fall crop to pay
him. n be could make up his mind
What crop would be most suitable.
Now a crop af peanuts comes in at
that time to oil up a gap very salts
faciorily.
I have often planted a crop of the
Spanish variety Of peanuts in August
which made a better crop than the
spring planted one. In fact, a fall
planting Of this crop is the most desir-
able In every way. for the spring crop
ripens when the prevailing condition
of tie weather is wet, when the crop
comes 20 maturity. it being sprouting
Immediately. Now soil conditions as
generally prevailing when the fall
planted crop comes to maturity are
dry. which admits Of successful har-
vesting Of the crop without much loss.
IN the general rotation of crops,
peanuts should follow small grains or
beans Of any kind. and have had sew
eral successful crops by planting
them In the water furrow of the corn
rows after the corn was shocked, by
bedding up the middles very low, fer
tillzing well and planting on the bed.
But whichever may be adopted or
whatever the rotation may be, the
soil must be well and deeply plowed
and q good seed bed made. This,
next 20 the quality and quantity of
fertilizer used, is the most important
thing about the making of he crop.
The quality of the fertilizer used
and the method of application are the
main points In successful crop produc-
ton Of any kind. Peanuts are nitro
zen CATERERS, and store quite lot of
this most useful element in their
roots. but they cannot do this until
the vines ges well on 10 maturity, so
that we must have nitrogen in the
fertilizer TO give the crop a start.
Some farmers contend that all we
wan it's pnosphoric acid, but potash
cuts a more important figure in the
success or non-success of a peanut
crop than either nitrogen or phosphor-
ic acid. for potash is the cap sEeaf
that finishes OF to perfection what
the other elements began, and unless
there Is enough OF il 10 go around the
cap sheaf will be OF u very inferior
quality and small production. A good
fertilizer that could be called a well
balanced ration would analyze 8 per
cent. nitrogen, per cent phospncric |
acid, and a. least per cent potash. |
To get this, the farmer will have to !
do his own mixing, which is the. COM
ing method among our most progress
sive farmers. For this purpose to get
a ton of this mixture to analyze as
above, he would require 200 pounds |
high grade cotton seed meal, S00I
pounds il per cent phosphoric acid, |
and about 500 pounds mHriate of pot
ash. This mixture thoroughly COM
pounded and applied broadcast at the
rate Of 500 pounds per acre will prove
a good investment in the making Of
peanut crop.
The further cultivation of the crop
should be shallow. The land must
be kept clean and hills planted three
feet apart viii soon meet in the row.
When blooms set the hills should be
gone over and f1attened out Nfch the
back Of hoe and some soil thrown
on the crown of the plant This pro-
cess tends TO increase the production
IN that IL secures soil for the small
spikes that form after the bloom and
seeks the soil to make the nut in, for
II the plants are thrifty and vigorous
some of the higher blooms on the
plant win prove unproductive if not
treated in this way
When it comes to harvesting the
crop the whole plant should be pulled
mp by the roots, thrown into wind
rows to wilt and the second day stack
ed against a pole in the field In this
way the nut and vine cure out thor
oughly in a few weeks.
Take it all in all. there are very
few crops on the southern farm that
pay better than the peanut crop,
whether planted in the spring as a
main crop, or in midsummer as a
catch crop. but thorough preparation
and plenty Of fertilizer of the proper
grade is necessary to secure success