The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1909-11-04
RECORD YIELD OF CORN.
Aiken Farmer Uses New Methods and
Gets Great Results.

Aiken Farmer Uses New Methods and
Gets Great Results.
This week Mr.. ]. T. Shuler, one OF
Aiken county's foremost farmers, har-
vested three acres of the finest corn
ever grown hereabouts, and per-
haps the equal of any grown in the
State. The three acres netted 34S1h
bushels, an average of 1s bushels
to the acre. In addition to the corn
harvested, $500 bundles of fodder
was stripped from the field, averaging
21h pounds each.
The land upon which this remark
able yield was gathered is not extra
ordinary land, but average rich up
land, and Mr.. Shuler ascribes the
magnificent yield entirely to the mode
OF cultivation and fertilization. Simi-
lar land last year made yield Of
about 25 bushels per acre. Mr.. Shu-
ler is 30 enthusiastic over the yield
this year that he intends to carry out
the principle on wider scale next
year, and perhaps plant the entire
crop, using the same methods and
fertilizer.
The land is now planted in peas and
a yield of about 20 bushels is expect
ed. The pea crop was considerably
cut off by dry weather. Considering
the fine yield of corn per acre on this
land, it beats cotton to death, even
at the present good prices, the clear
profits going well above the best
that could be expected from an aver
age yield of the f1eecy staple.
The following is detailed state
ment of the mode of cultivation and
fertilization employed in working
the field this year.
The land was broken during the
latter part of December with a two
horse turn-plough, broadcast. The
first part of February the land was
again broken, crossing the previous
burrows with the same heavy plough,
following with a deep two-horse sub
soil plough. During the first week in
March the land was laid off in rows,
five feet wide, and the middles were
broken out with large one-horse
plough, and the subsoiler was again
run behind this plough. The ridge
in the middle of the rows was broken
with heavy two-winged turn plough,
the subsoil plough again being run in
this furrow. The corn was planted
in this furrow IL inches apart, two
grains to the hill to insure good
stand, and it was covered with a
Grant guano distributor. The corn
was dropped by hand. Two hundred
pounds per acre of So 1-2:1 ammoni-
ated fertilizer was put down at the
planting through the distributor.
When the corn came up and was
ten days old it was thinned to one
stalk in the hill. For the first culti-
vation an ordinary cultivator was
used to pulverize the soil, running
around the corn. The middles were
now broken out very lightly. In ten
days time the corn was run around
with a disc cultivator; in ten days
from this 800 pounds of the same
fertilizer as previously used was put
down on one side Of the row. This
was followed in ten days with an
other application, 800 pounds being
put to the acre, on the side left un-
fertilized at the previous cultivation.
Two weeks after this the corn was
laid by and 200 pounds Of Peruvian
guano and nitrate of soda was put on
one side. After two weeks the same
application was put down on the
other side, laying that side by at the
same time.
The corn's first two plcughings
were deep, using straight shovels,
after that sweeps and small cultiva-
tors were used.
The variety of corn used on this
plat was Mason's Prolific. The value
of the fertilizer used is s22 ton for
SO 1898, and $36 ton for the top
dressing, a total valuation Of ferti-
lizer used per acre of SIG.
Eighty pounds Of the corn in the
shuck, by actual measurement and
weight shelled out 6S pounds Of corn,
and after removing the shucks there
remained 76 pounds on the cob, from
8 pounds in the shuck. The total
acreage averaged about three good
ears to the stalk.
The corn was put into crib, In
which last year the yield of twelve
acres of what was considered good
corn, was piled. The pile from three
acres makes as good a showing as the
yield from twelve did last year. A
statement of the cost follows:
Breaking the land for prep
aration ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. $500
Corn dropping. ng..--..-:---..-.---- l.0O
Putting down fertilizer and cul-
VdClOQ po.VV
Value of fertilizer used. 1900