The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1910-07-17


fine demonstrating right at the old
home.
What Four Acres Are Doing.
Fist. he took four measured acres
for ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS worn out land,
mind you--and under tho Sandy dem.
onstration method. put 1t in corn, do.
Ing the fertilising. the blowing and
the cultivating according to tho strict
rules. The first year the corn crop
was almost doubled. the second year
from crimson clover. which had been
seeded the previous August when the
corn was laid by" mainly for
strengthening the land, much good
hay was CLEANED, and this, the third
year. splendid crop OF hay has Just
been cut and housed. 1t was not
weighed. but ! saw 1t when it was
being housed by an elevator operated
by mule power, and I am sure 1t runs
from three and a half to four tons to
the acre. and I am somewhat Judge
Of hay, too.
Next year without any more work
and but very slight expense this same
four acres will bring at least four
tons to tho acre and leave the land
In Just rs per cent. better condition
than It was three years ago, and ready
to grow any crop that can be planted.
have before told in the Industrial
Section the process by which sucb
results have been brought about in
other parts OF Virginia. but 1t may
be well enough for the information
OF others to tell Just how these four
acres were manipulated.
Demonstration and How Done.
In the first year the land was
plowed. disked and fertilized according
to the Sandy method and planted in
corn. When the corn was laid by"
crimson clover was put in, and that.
too. was properly fer;ilized. The clover
was cut off In June of last year. and
then after a little while the land was
plowed and disked and a ton Of lime
and 500 pounds of raw bone meal to
the acre thrown on. 1t was then al
lowed to remain as 1t was for three
weeks IN order to give the lime time
to get well into the land without de-
stroying the ammonia In the raw
bone meal. Then the seeding was
done. mixture OF timothy. herds
grass and sampling clover with a lit.
tie alfalfa TO inoculate the land being
sown. and all of the work was an
ished. The fertilizers above men
and this week from $40 to $50 worth
of hay was cut from each acre. and
next year as much more will be
CLEANED with very small additional
cost for a light top dressing OF ma
nure or something else as good, this
top dressing to be done. next spring.
Captain Snead. who admits that he
has been something OF 'mossback."
although much more progressive than
the majority OF that class. is now
converted hay-mak and twentieth
century farmer.
He declares that hay is the coming
money crop OF Virginia, second only
to King Corn, and perhaps leaving to-
bacco far behind.
twenty ve-acre field Of corn,
which have had the pleasure of look
ing upon, and which has been Guilt
waited by the new demonstration meth
DDS. now bids fair TO produce fifty to
sixty or more bushels to the acre, and.
mind you, the same land from ten
years back up to the introduction Of
ing famously we'll IL 1t produced
twenty to thirty bushels to the acre.
Other Big Crops.
Four acres of land improved by the
demonstration method and cultivated
by 1t Is now as pretty a field of oats
as l ever looked upon. and will VI
twice as many oats as the same land
ever before brought
In the meantime, this new method
(new in Virginta) of improving and
taking care of the lands as you go
along. has enlarged all other crops
usually made here, such as tobaHso,
wheat. potatoes, various vegetables,
berries and even fruits, and thus this
converted "mossback," now a twentieth
century farmer, silas been enabled to
raise more sheep. more cattle. more
chickens and more OF everything else
he tries to raise, and down here in
the famous Fork" an up-to-date ag-
riculturist can raise anything that
ever came out Of any Virginia soil
or ever fed on the products of the
soil.
The converted man has also come in
possession of another splendid TWEEN
tieth century idea. and that is that
1t pays to raise the very best OF
everything. The big flock of sheep
on the place. which are very profi-
table, are high-bred Shropshires. the
hogs are Berkshires and Poland
Chinas, the COWS aue white-faced
Herefords. the chickens are Rhode
Island reds and all are of then best
breeds and strains. and I have seen
Captain SneadG large orchards OF
as fine winesap apples as ever grew
in AIbemarle or any other county;
magnificent Keefer pears, and many
trees loaded with the finest of peaches,
to say nothing of various small fruits
and berries. aud all being cared for
and cultivated with as much pains as
the tobacco on the thousands Of hills.
or the hay on the demonstrations plot,
or the corn or the oats.
Other Up-to-Date Farmers.
1t is to be hoped that no reader will
imagine for moment that Captain
Snead is the only twentieth century