Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1911-07-21
THE VALUE OF BERMUDA GRASS


credible. therefore. that we should pay
IS TO $50 a ton for quantities OF mixed
hay and send several millions OF dollars
out of the south every year for food
stuffs of this character when we have
thousands upon thousands of acres of
land which will grow an excellent quail
ity OF Bermuda hay. Bermuda hay is
superior to timothy in many respects and
a larger yield Of digesuble plants
per acre may be secured from it's cul-
tivation than from timothy. The mere
fact that timothy is found extensively on
the market and is regarded as a first
class hay and largely cultivated and sold
on that account does not justify the
discrimination evidenced against Ber-
muda grass. Every farmer in the south
should make arrangements this year 10
increase the area of land devoted to
Bermuda for pasture and hay purposes.
Moreover, Ii Is one of the most profitable
investments he can possibly make. Ber-
muda grass is not desirable in a cotton
or corn field, but ID has distinct use
on every southern farm, and on this
account the systematic effort 10 destroy
ii and to prohibit its cultivation so often
observed is not in line with good prac-
tice and should be abandoned.
METHOD OF CANNING SWEET Po-
TAToEs.
7. F. NJ, Cuthbert Ca. writes:I am
interested as a beginner In canning
you give me good recipe.
A very good recipe for canning sweet
potatoes is the following:
Boil until the skins win peel off and
cut into pieces of convenient size for
packing In jars. Pack firmly. Fill jars
full without MASKING, add sugar or salt
TO taste. and I'LL jars entirely full with
cold. fresh water. Use new rubbers. put
tops In position and place in cooking
vessel. FIJI vessel with cold water to a
depth that VIII bring the water up an
inch or two on the outside of Jars. cover.
place on stove and heat to boiling point.
Boil Is minutes, seal tight and continue
boiling IS minutes. Remove jars, set
aside for "A hours, and on third day
cook as directed for second day.
DRAINING MARsHY PLACES IN A
FIELD.
D. r. W.. Chalker. Ca. writes: We
have tract of land of about 2so acres
sandy with clay subsoil, and TO look AT
1t you would think IT almost level. hut
there are three bad washes through IT
from one end to the other and the width
OF wagon road, and 1 noticed in one
place just after big rain there was
water ponded next to one OF the ter
races. Now this land is pretty well fer
raced and ! think indications point to
the need of one good deep ditch we'll kept.
All the land is In cultivation. Would like
10 have suggestions from you as to the
Lest plan to follow.
II you can secure a good fall an open
ditch viii answer every purpose for the
draining Of the pond of water referred to.
An open ditch with grass sides will not
De difficult 70 work over unless it is made
extremely deep. and the grass win pre-
vent strong flow of water incident to a
heavy rain from eroding the banks. Give
the banks a good slope, but do not at
tempt TO make them too steep, especially
as your top soil is OF a sandy character.
The clay subsoil will OF course hold its
shape better than the top soil. 1t is neces-
sary 10 get surplus water out of land
for too much water is just as bad as not
enough The roots OF plants can not
grow in water-logged soil; the air cannot
perform its function In the fermentation
processes which must go on in the soil
IN order to stimulate plant growth, Meth
er can the heat from the sun penetrate
the SOIL Where one undertakes to do
on an extensive scale tile should
be used These may be burned from CLAW
or made out of cement In either case
the surface should be unglazed so as to
permit OF the ready entrance of water.
In laying tile the ground should be laid
on BY an engineer to be sure that the
right levels are secured. and enough tile
put in 10 properly drain the soil in a wet
season Open bitches can be used to a
limited extent in draining -. all the
other substitutes for tia where the
drainage of cultivated areas becomes es-
sential are unsatisfactory and because Of
their short life. expensive.
PLANT FOOD IN A GIVEN FORMULA.
r. S. H., Smithville, Ga. writes: Please
tell me what the following mixture win
100 pounds rock phosphate; 900
pounds of is per cent acid: 300 pounds of
kainit and 100 pounds OF agricultural
lime2 WIZ the lime change the acid back
10 rock phosphate the first year, or not,
or win it affect II at all?
The only ingredients in the formula
you propose TO use which contain plant
food which becomes somewhat quickly
available in the soil are acid phosphate
and kafnit. In other words. your formula
would contain only about 80 pounds of
available phosphorie acide and Is pounds
OF potash. The lime contains no avail
able plant food, as we understand the
term. when applying IL to a complete
commercial fertilizer. The rock phos-
plate may contain from Is to q per cent
or more OF phosphoric acid. but 1t is not
in an available form. and only becomes
slowly available in the soil. The rapfdity
with which Il becomes available is de-
termined largely by the per cent of veg
etable matter the land contains. Agri-
cultural lime should not be mixed with
phosphate or kainit, as it will cause the
phosphoric acid to revert into an I'M
available form You do not state just
what you desire to use this formula for,
and therefore it is impossible TO advise
you intelligently how to proceed, but the
mixture proposed is not well adapted to
any crop with which we are familiar,
and its use in the combination suggested
would be inadvisable.
CATERPILLAR BY
SPRAYING
G. W. D., Dawson. Ga. writes; have
on my farm and would like
TO known how 20 exterminate them.