The Dillon herald. [volume] (Dillon, S.C.) 1894-????, 1910-06-23
Soy Beans and Cow Peas.

II
think that every farmer who has
live stock to feed should come In
touch with cow peas and soy beans,
as often one or the other can be
used to good advantage. Both plants
are rich In protein. and make excel
lent crops for supplementing carbon
aceous foodstuffs, such as corn.
Being plants Of rapid growth they
mt easily into variety of rotation
and can be used very often as emer-
| gency crops where few other things
would fit in. Both crops are excellent
SOIL improvers, having especial bene-
hcial effects upon the physical con-
| dition Of the soils that are heavy,
thus making them loose and mellow.
They draw upon the free nitrogen
OF the atmosphere for their own re-
Quirements. and store I'D considerable
quantities in their roots. and when
these decay this stored up nitrogen
becomes valuable to succeeding
crops
They are fine 20 precede such crops
as corn. which requires plenty of nj
troGen for its DEVELOPMENT. Being
i .,
having such beneficial effects upon
soil, they can be used to good advan-
tage as cover crops sown in July,
after small grain crops are har-
| vested
| With sufficient moisture they may
be used in this way as late as July
25. and make a good growth for
plowing under as manure IN the fall
or the following spring. The soy
bean and cow pea are excellent for
stock feeding purposes. Amy variety
OF COW pea and the ranker growing
soy bean, such as medium early vel
low and medium green. are excellent
crops for green feeding. or when
made into hay. Some prefer the
COW pea for this purpose on account
Of its finer stems.
When sown before July 1 on good
soil, two or three tons of cured hay
may be expected. When the cow pea
is we'll cured 1t possesses 4 food
value one-half higher than red clover
nay. The beans are rich in protein
and fat, and are fine mixed in a
ration of corn, especially for hog
feeding.
The soy bean and COW pea may be
successfully grown on almost any
soil of reasonable fertility. They re-
quire good drainage. and suffer
greatly from excessive wet. Trey
will DO best during periods OF dry
weather.
Prepare the soil Just as is the best
suited for corn. Plow deeply, and
make the seed-bed fine and mellow.
This Is essential. Do net sow too
early. The best time to :.ow is after
corn planting, when the soil has he
come thoroughly warm. Cover the
seed deeply Sow in drills and cul-
tivate like corn until the soy beans
bloom and the COW peas begin to
vine. Sow broadcast for hay. For
hay production the COW pea will give
best results, and should be cut when
! the pods begin to ripen; cure Just
like clover. Most any variety. such
as whippoorwlll. clay. ETC.. is good
For grain producing the soy bean
Is the most profitable Harvesting
should be done when the leaves have
all fallen, and most of the pods are
ripe. You can use an old-fashioned
self-rake reaper or 4 mower with
side delivery attachment. Cow peas
are best orchard cover crops. Sow
peas after July 1 and let the vines
die on the ground in the orchard
and In the spring plow the rotted
vines under. and that will not only
help to prevent the soil from wash
Ing. but will also improve the con-
cftion OF the soil.-C. A. UmoseIie.