Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1910-05-04

biooltl COIH Is species OF SOr-
ghum grown especially for It's tops,
which are used in manufacturing
brooms. The crop is one about
which inquiry is frequently made by
farmers, and the following is writ
ten partly In answer to such ques-
tionS. 1t is not a great money crop,
not more SO than cotton ii equal to
1t, and requires more in the way Of
equipment for its handling, more
labor at harvest time, and more Skill
in preparing it for r'arket than does
the cotton crop. 1t is crop in
which the profits depend very largely
upon the quality OF the product Of
fered for sale, the price ranging from
cording to the quality. Five hun
dred pounds Of cured brush ,er
acre is considered Il fair yield.
The best quality OF broom corn
must be straight, Of good length,
fine texture and cured in such a
manner as to be good green color
W hen put on the market. There are
two kinds grown, one known as the
standard broom corn and the other
as dwarf. This latter is grown en-
tensivcly in the Central West.
In order to secure the quality OF
stalk mentioned above 1t is very i'm
portant to have well bred seed, and
II is almost impossible to buy such
seed in the open markets. One going
into the business Of growing the
crop should begin at once to select
seed with the view Of improving the
plants from year to year.
Any soil that will grow sorghum
will produce broom corn, and the
fertilizer applied need not differ from
that used on the corn crop when the
same quality Of land is cultivated
Since the object in view is a uniform
product in quality and time Of ma
turing, great care should be taken in
preparing the soil. 1t should be
well plowed and then narrowed and
reharrOwed until a fine seed bed is
secured.
Late planting is t on account Of
the fact that the young plants make
very slow growth when the wea-
ther is at all cool, and the crop will
come into head at a season when
there IS not liable to be much rain.
The seed should be fertilized with
planter that IS adjusted to drop a
few more seed than you want plants
(four to five pounds per acre. and
under such conditions OF soil and
season as will insure good and quick
termination. Cultivation similar to
what the corn crop requires Is all
that is necessary. Weeds and grass
should always be kept down and the
soil mulched with loose earth by fire.
hn 4
implement. On land that will pro-
duce thirty or forty bushels OF corn
per acre one stalk Of broom corn
should be left every four or i've in
chcs and thinner as the soil becomes
less productive. 1t Is important to
have full stand, as there is great
tendency to sucker when the plants
arc too thin on the land and the
brush from suckers is rarely OF any
value. and 1t not ready to harvest
with the remainder OF the crop.
The tops should be out eight in
chcS below the head when the bloom
is falling and before the seed are
tlled out, II the best quality OF brush
Is obtained. The brush is immediate-
ly hauled out and the seed stripped
off the same day. The seed strip
ping, on large scale, is done by
machinery that may be purchased
from manufacturers ImprOviSed me
thodS like the curry comb with long
teeth or a steel spiked comb attach
ed to frame or side OF a box an
swrrs very we'll where there IS only
a small quantity Of brush to be strip
ped
The curing. In order TO preserve
the green color, must be done under
a roof and away from the sunlight.
The tops from which the seed have
been removed are spread in LAYERS
three inches thick on latticcd racks
where there Is free circulation OF air.
When no juice can be squeezed ont
OF the stalks by twisting them the
curing Is complete and the brush
should be removed from the ~acks.
This Will require from four to six
weeks. 1t Is then bulked for a
period OF ten days or two weeks to
80 through sweat when 1t is ready
to be baled. The tops should be
car1tully sorted into different grades,
as mixed brush never sells we'll. The
baling is done with a horse power
press. The tops are Tapped together
in the middle OF the bale and the
butts stand out at each end. Bales
usually weigh about three hundred
pounds.
The crop requires very careful and
prompt work at every step and con-
siderable outlay in the way Of eOuip-
ment is necessary. If one has had
no experience in the growing Of
broom corn, it would be well to start
on small scale and learn many
things from experience about the
business that 1t Is imnossible to get
any other way. w. r. Perkins,
Director Agricultural Department.