The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1911-03-21
COTTON PLANTING VS..
NJ

can in profit with cotlo.
~where the farmer really farms wen
and there Is not crop in this couht.s
that has kept men poorer n H1aue
the land poorer, than cotton grown IL
the old planting methods year aItei
wear on the same land with a iltIie
dribble Of fertilizer in the !nrro"s-
But I'm the thousands of letters tina
come to me annually from men cuiti-
waiting the Southern soils, the puroen
of the majority is what 1ert,i4zer anu
how much per acre to make cotton
on land that has been in cotton every
wear for many years, and which is
literally dead soil cal the bacteffa
that would help the farmer have been
starved out with the burning up OF the
organic decay IN the SD through
years of constant exposure to the sun
in summer and rains IN winter.
And yet, there is no crop h a fits
in better with an improving rotation
of crops than cotton does, and the ro-
tation that keeps the Ian increasing
III humus-making materials. and in
creases the cotton, at the same time
makes the auxiliary 0 increase IN
abundance, and enables the nan who
farms to get money out of other things
besides cotton. and 1T times when the
a~ll-co,ton man would have to Dor
row money.
Still, there is no crop on which a
liberal application Of commercial fer
tilizers pays better than on cotton,
n the more highly We improve the
soil by getting organic decay into 1t.
the more literally we can use the
commercial fertilizer with profit. But
We will need to buy only the phos-
phOric acid, and in some soils potash,
for the man who farms will never
need to buy nitrogen, as he can get
That free Of cost in larger amounts
than he could buy it.
And yet the all-cotton men pay mil
lions Of dollars every year for nitro
gen in small after selling
4 larger amount in selling the seed
The sole dependence On commercial
fertilizers to get cotton from the same
land year after year makes the cot
ton crop a costly one and the price
must be high to enable this sort OF
planting to pay any profit.
On land where by good rctative
farming the humus-making materials
ave been restored. the liberal use O.
phosphoric ed and potash can b.
made profitable because of the mos.
ture-retaining character Of this or.
Santc decay, which by dissolving the
plant food enables the crops to ger
It. when On a dead. poor soil in /:
very dry season the failure to get tn
fertilizer dissolved often makes the
application Salueless.
l am daily asked about the value
OF slde-dressing cotton with fertilize,
during its growth. If you have onl,
put a little fertilizer in the furrow, il
VIII pay to use a si~de-dressing. as
'hat VIII get the fertilizer where h
plant roots can get 1t at fruiting time
But IL you use a liberal amount O.
phosphoric acid n potash. both il
the furrow and broadcast at plantins
Tune, l cas- not See any advantage il
a embarrassing. eXcep where the cot
ton has a pale color and does no
grow off we'll 1t may pay to use som
nitrate OF soda. Bue where the farme
feedS MS cotton seed meal that he ha,
gotten in exchange for seed. ant
grows plenty of pea hay, or in tn,
iar South, leSpedeza hay, and ha,
plenty Of corn slower. he will seldom
lind any need for extra application
OF the costly nitrate. This is especial,
true IL ne contrlVes to have crimson
clover on his land every winter wher,
there is no small grain crop growing
In one instance that came under m,
observation, one crop of crimson clio
Yer. the first ever sown on the land
made q difference of 500 pound q
seed cotton over stalk land alongsid
with the same fertilization with con,
merc'al fertilizers, the stalk land max
ing 500 pounds and the clover 10,
pounds an acre. This was ONLY IN,
start, and it the rotation is kept uu
ana every cotton crop has the Grim
son clover. it will not need the com
plete fertilizer that the stalk Ian,
must nave. While l am strongly O
the opinion that most Of the legnm
crops a better when used for fee,
ana the manure saved, the crimso,
clover crop is n that l would alway
use as a crop direct. for it +;
hard to cure as hay. and can b
turned under safely in the coo sprin
weather. n makes a wonderful diff
terence in any hOed crop on which
is used. | have never Vet seen a fe,
OF corn fired where a crimson Glove
crop was turned under for it. bu
with commercial fertilizers on cor
planted on poor land, there will al
ways be firing nearly up to the ear:
! know farmers who maxi cotton a
2 cost of ) to 4 cents a pound. RI,
they do it through the perD3anen