The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1909-01-06
WILLIAMSON'S CORN METHOD.
southern Corn For the South"


For number of years after | be-
gan to farm | followed the old-time
method of putting the fertilizer all
under the corn, planting on a level or
higher, six by three feet, pushing the
plant from the start and making d
big stalk, but the ears were few, and
frequently small. l planted much
corn in the spring and bought much
more corn the next spring, until
finally I was driven to the conclusion
that corn could not be made on up
lands in this section, certainly not
by the old method, except at loss.
/ did not give up-nOWeVer, for /
knew that the farmer who did not
make his own corn never had sue
ceeded, and never would, so | began
to experiment. First | planted low
er, and the yield was better, but the
stalk was still too large; so | dis
continued altogether the application
of fertilizer before planting, and,
knowing that all crops should be fer
tilted as a side application, and APP
piled the more soluble nitrate of soda
later, being guided in this by the ex-
cellent results obtained from it's use
as a top dressing for oats. Still the
yield though regular, was not large,
and the smallness of the stalk itself
now suggested that they should be
planted thicker in the drill. This
was done the next year, with results
so satisfactory that | continued from
year to year to increase the num-
Der Of stalks and the fertilizer with
which to sustain them; also to apply
nitrate of soda at last blowing, and
to lay by early, sowing peas broad
cast. This method steadily increased
the yield, until year before last
$500, with corn eleven inches
apart in siX-foot rows, and $11 worth
of fertilizer to the acre, | made
eighty-four bushels average to the
acre, several of my best acres max
ing as much as 125 bushels.
Last year G905) | followed the
same method, planting the first week
in April seventy acres which had
produced the year before 1000
pounds of seed cotton per acre. This
land is sandy upland, somewhat roll
ing. Seasons were very unfavorable,
owing to the tremendous rains in
May and the dry and extremely hot
weather later. From June 18th to
July 18th, the time when it most
needed moisture, there was only five
eighths of an inch of rainfall here;
yet with $7.01, cost of fertilizer, my
yield was fifty-tWo bushels per acre.
Rows were six feet and corn sixteen
inches in drill.
With this method, on land that
will ordinarily produce 600 pounds
of seed cotton with 500 pounds of
fertilizer, fifty bushels of corn per
acre should be made by using 200
pounds of cotton seed meal, 200
pounds of acid phosphate and 400
pounds of kainit mixed, or their
equivalent in other fertilizer, and
1875 pounds of nitrate of soda, all to
be used as side application as di-
rected below
On land that will make a bale and
one-half of cotton per acre when
well fortified a hundred bushels of
corn should be produced by doubling
the amount of fertilizer ABOVE, except
that 300 pounds of nitrate OF soda
should be used.
In each case there should be left
on the land in corn stalks. peas, /
vines and roots from $12 to SIG
worth of fertilizing material per
acre, beside the great benefit to the
land from so large an amount OF !
vegetable matter. The place of this |
in the permanent improvement of
land can never be taken by CONNER
cial fertilizer, for it is absolutely +,
impossible to make lands rich as
long as they are lacking in vegeta-
BILE matter.
Land should be thoroughly and
deeply broken for corn, and this is |
the time in a system of rotation to !
deepen the soil. Cotton requires a !
more compact soil than corn, and
while deep soil is essential to its |
best development it will not pro-
duce as well on loose, open land. |
while corn does best on land thor
oughly broken. A deep soil Will not !
only produce more heavily than a |
shallow soil with good seasons, but
1t will stand more wet as we'll as
more dry weather.
In preparing for the corn crop
land should be broken broadcast dur |