Mountain Home maverick. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1906-1911, 1909-12-02

free nitrogen Of the air into plant
food
The thick epidermis Of the leaves
prevents rapid evaporation from
their surface. the heavy foliage
shading the ground and checking the
loss of moisture by the direct action
of the sun and wind, at the same time
keeping the temperature Of the soil
at a low point through the hot
months better than if clean cultiva-
ton was used.
The cowpea is the more generally
grown, and different methods of Gull
tivation are practiced. The common
plan here in Illinois is to pillow the
land. and harrow it once or twice
and plant the seed with a wheat
drill or double row with a corn
planter Sometimes the seed is sown
broadcast on freshly plowed land and
narrowed in. But / have found that
there is always some of the seed
lost by this method in dry time.
1t has been my experience that
better results are obtained by a
thorough preparation of the seed bed,
then planting in rows about thirty
inches apart and cultivate shallow,
keeping the surfaces level, until they
shade the ground.
1t will be noticed that the diff
ference in yield is more marked on
poor land than on land well sup
piled with humus. Even then the
seed saved and the benefit to the
soil of good cultivation are worth
taking into consideration.
If this method of planting is
practiced, one bushel of seed will
be sufficient for four acres. The seed
should not be planted until the
ground is in condition to terminate
it without delay.
1t should be remembered that the
cowpea is from a warm climate and
the seed will decay sooner than corn
in a damp, cold soil. In ground that
has been settled by rain the roots Of
the plants are deprived more or less
of the benefits derived from the air
circulating through the surface soil.
The air should penetrate the soil.
1t is essential to the best develop
ment of the plant and to the life of
the bacteria which collects this free
nitrogen.
For this and other reasons land
that crusts or bakes after a rain
should be cultivated before the crust
forms and the surface kept loose.
find that the most profitable
results viii be obtained from the
crop by pasturing it with hogs or
sheep. The fertility removed by the
stock amounts to little; in fact. the
most valuable elements of fertility
for the orchard-potash and phos-
phoric acid-are nearly all left by
the stock mention potash and
phosporic acid as the most valu-
able-this find to be the base when
leguminus crops are grown for fer
tilizing the orchard
If the crop cannot be pastured
and the vines are likely to interfere
with harvesting a crop of fruit, it viii
be necessary to roll or break then
down, in which shape they make {
good winter mulch. Then the fol
lowing spring they can be ploweC
under or worked into the soil will
a disk harrow
The soy bean requires much The
same management as the cowpea
rs upright growth makes it p goos
crop to grow. where the vines o
the cowpea are Objectionable
will produce more seed, which i
richer in protein, fats and ash thai
the cowpea.
One objection 7 have to the so.
bean is, when ripe the seeds POI
out from the effects of the hot sun
! However, that matters little whei
+ used as a fertilizer Seed should no
r be planted deep, especially in we
p weather. For pasturing it is bette
to plant in rows. and not break dow
r the plants as when sown broad
cast.-Fruit Gr2wer.