The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1912-06-06
Farm, Topics


In addition TO what has ALREADY
been said about the use Of weeders
and harro~s IN palvertxing freshly
plowed soil TO make > ans. mellow
seed-bed. we desire to speak Of their
efficiency and economy In the early
cultivation OF farm crops. At this
busy stage OF farm work. any imple-
meut that wili help 10 get over the
fields rapidly. and successfully do the
work. Is considered a valuable addi-
ton to abe farm assets. This Is espee-
ciaIly true where laborers are scarce
and high priced. because very often
good machine. a pair Of horses and
capable man 10 drive will cultivate
from three 10 six times as much land
in d day as a man without such i'm
pjlements. Furthermore. cultivation
done 5ust when IL needs 10 De done is
worth several times as much as de-
layed cultivation, so the matter is one
Of rapidity. efficiency and finally one
OF profit and success.
In using weeders and harrows il
is not necessary TO wait for the young
plants TO show above ground before
running the implements The condi-
ton of the soil and not the growth
OF young plants should be the main
consideration. II conditions warrant
1t, run the implements before the
planted seed terminate, and continue
for from three to five times, or until
the crops is large enough TO be in
jured by the process. Perhaps the
best advice to be given concerning
/ these implements is this Get busy
with them early after rains. There
is not much to be gained by their
use after a crust is formed and a car
pet of green grass is showing over
| the fields. Some of the grass will be
rooted up but the balance will be Gull
tlvated so that it grows all the faster
These implements are not intended
to break land with. If rocks, chunks
or other weights have to be used on
/ them to make them do the work
properly, this shows that the farmer
did not properly break his and, or
that he has waited too long after a
rain to use the implements. If the
soil becomes very compact and seems
to need loosening to a depth of from
two to three inches, then use some
form of cultivator that will go deep
er than the implements under con-
slderation. However, caution should
! be observed here and these heavier
cultivators should not be used after
the corn IS ten to twelve inches high
and cotton is six to eight inches in
heighth. Remember that the roots
or these crops grow outward into the
soil three to four times us fast as
the stalks grow upward.
When a good rain or two has fall
en- start the weeders or harrows Just
as soon as the soil is firm enough to
hold up the weight of a horse with
out miring. To delay is to lose an
opportunity to kill grass etc, before
they have gotten a good hold in the
soil. Dislodging them while they
are terminating destroys them. This
stirring helps to make the surface
warmer because the loose mulch on
top retards evaporation. Evpora-
ton cools the surface. prove this
by wetting the hands but covering
one with cloth or other medium.
The exposed hand will soon be much
cooler than the other.) We thus,
also, save moisture which we are al
most sure to need during the dry, hot
growing period of the crop. 1t is
usually the grass that comes up with
the crop that gives most trouble and
expense to get out. If the imple-
ments named are run properly and at
the opportune time, the fingers or
spikes work in among or around the
young plants, thus destroying grass
that would probably have to be got
ten out later by expensive hand
hoeing. Save this expense by Guilt
waiting eight to ten acres per day with
a weeder or light harrow instead of
cultivating, as we used to do, one
acre per day with a pillow that re-
qulres from two to four trips per
row to do the work.