Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1911-04-13
FOR chicken SHOW CAN GROW CORN
Washington Experiment Station
Has Demonstrated This Fact.
THE PREPARATION OF GROUND
Deep Flowing in the Fall Best
Needs Plenty Of Moisture.

1t has been thoroughly demonstra-
ted by the experiment station at the
Washington State college, and a
great many farmers, that corn can be
raised proftably on much Of the
wheat land of eastern Oregon, eastern
Washington and northern Idaho,
during the year the land lies idle as
summer fallow. To make corn
successful crop, however, it must be
given a square deal" Wheat, oats
and barley principally the former)
have been our great staple, money
making crops. Because Of this these
crops naturally receive FIRST attention.
Corn is planted after the proper time
for sowing other spring grain. This
makes it very convenient to allow the
corn land to lie unplowed until time
to plant the seed, or until the other
spring work has been finished. The
loss Of soil moisture by evaporations
is very rapid in the spring from land
that has become packed by the win
ter rains. Unless the seed bed for
corn is properly prepared, two con-
ditions usually result which contri-
butte materially toward making the
crop unsuccessful.
G) When corn land is plowed
late, just before the crop is planted,
the soil usually has become SO dry
that it breaks up in clods and chunks.
A great deal Of work is then required
to put the seed bed in good condition.
Owing to the dryness Of the soil it is
frequently difficult to make the seed
germinate. sufficiently to give good
uniform stand.
CD Like other crops, corn re-
quires considerable water in order to
make profitable yields. When the
soil moisture that should be used by
the growing crop is permitted to evap-
crate from the surface of the ground
before the seed bed is prepared, we
should not expect maximum returns
Especially is this true in a region
whose dry season comes during the
summer months, j. e., at the time
corn makes its principal growth.
The seed bed for corn may be pre-
pared in at least three different ways:
First. Deep fall plowing is usu-
ally best. If the ground is covered
with heavy stubble it should first
be thoroughly cut and worked into
the surface soil with a sharp disk
harrow. The stubble will then be
covered better by the plow and
more thoroughly distributed in the
soil, very essential item is retaining
moisture and causing the stubble to
decay. Fall plowing loosens and
opens up the soil. This permits
much of the rain and snow water to
sink deeply into the ground that
would be lost as surface runofi were
f the surface soil compact. Loose, po
rous soil does not freeze SO hard as
compact soil. Fall plowing will otter
permit the ground to thaw out quick
ly enough to receive a great deal O
water from heavy snow that woule
be lost were the ground frozen deeply
q During the winter the rains settl,
fall plowed land to about the righ
a degree of firmness, so that enough
surface cultivation to destroy weed
and maintain loose mulch from
!. early in the spring until planting
: time completes the preparation of th
: seed bed.
!. Second. When it is not possibl
to plow corn land in the fall, sprin,
blowing may be very successful. !
the ground is covered with heav,
stubble it should first be cut with
4 sharp disk in the autumn, as ind
K Gated above. Where blowing is tn
5 first operation in the spring it shoul
! be done early--as early as the sol
is in good working condition. I
settle the soil, cause weed seed t
germinate, and check the loss {
5. water by evaporation, the harro'
e should follow the pillow closely an
= thoroughly. A loose mulch mus
$ be maintained and the weeds thol
IS oughly destroyed just before the see
!, is planted.
L Third. Another excellent way {
preparing land for corn is to disk j
the early spring sometime before tn
le blowing is done. This checks evapol
alton, mixes the stubble with til