The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1911-07-07
Clubbing Cotton Bears With Rutabag'
ga and Yellow Aberdeen TurnipS.

There is not an animal on the farm
but that is fond of turnips during
winter and spring; just at this time
there is scarcity OF other succulent
food. From North Carolina South
these winter turnips will keep well
left in the field all winter On account
of the dry fall three years ago our tur-
nips did not come up until October
and done their best growing in the
following January. In fact, the crop
was the smallest have ever seen un-
til good rains began to fall about the
last Of November. To keep we'll the
late paintings are usually the best and
sweetest. a good plan is to plant
some at intervals from first of August
until first of September. Some times,
middle of July paintings succeed well
but are generally hollow crown and
pithy. Safest plan is to house or bank
part of the crop and feed out of the
field during good weather and have the
stored crop Tor convenience during
bad weather. Boiled with corn, tur-
nips and tops make good food for
hogs; in the spring hogs will eat them
raw; so will poultry. I usually throw
out few whole turnips in poultry
yards ard hog lots all along the win
ter and spring months, but for COWS
and horses cut them with square bill
shovel.
Fixing the Ground for Turnips.
About nine-tenths Of failures in
growing turnip crops come from i'm
proper preparation before planting.
To begin with, If the land for tur-
nlps is not already rich and deep
soil, it is absolutely necessary to make
Il rich with a heavy dressing Of stock
manure and turned under deep as
possible. This deep turning, harrow
ing and rolling or smoothing down
with heavy smoother is Of first i'm
portance in stubble land or where
course manure has been spread over
the land before ploughing. If the
land intended for turnips is already
rich and alluvial, from four to eight
hundred pounds of high grade "Cotton
Seed Meal and Acid" fertilizer should
be disked broadcast after land has
been prepared as described above. 1t
also pays to disk IN from four to six
hundred pounds to acre of high grade
acid phosphate on lands where stock
manure has been used. This acid
phosphate should contain a high per
cent of potash or wood ashes. This
preparation and manuring the land
should be done at least two or three
weeks before planting sed and the
land narrowed aid rolled or smoo:hei
at least once every week. This fire.
Quent cultivation kills the weed and
grass seed and stores moisture.
Planting the Seed and Cultivation.
Like most crops the best cultiva-
ton of the turnip crop can be done
before the seed goes into the ground.
With proper preparation and fre-
quent narrowing and rolling or
smoothing the land before planting,
with the use of good seed, good stand
is assured.
Most any plan Of putting in the seed
will get a good stand in rainy wealth
er, but to insure good stand in dry
weather, mark off rows to to "a inches
from l 1-2 to 2 inches dep, drill in lib
eral amount of seed but not too thick,
cover seed by running a wheel bar
POW or other wheel over the seed just
far enough en- one side Of bottomt of
furrow to crush in sufficient dirt on
the seed. The object for putting seed
down in open furrow is to reach the
moisture.
For first cultivation there is nothing
that equals the common one-horse
spring tooth harrow ran astride the
row, with double tenders on. After |
plants get on the ruff leaf, thin out
TO one or two plants with hoe and
use common heel sweep between rows |
so soon as the plants get tall enough.
Keep at it, brushing through the
rows lightly until frost, at which time
half bushel of winter oats seed sown
to the acre before the plow
usually makes fine crop of oats.
Fighting cotton bears with your
tongue is about on par with trying to
dround duck by pouring water upon