The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1913-09-19
WITH THE FARMERS
By Prof. w. F. MASSEY

has. do not think that any ono could
tell the names of the varieties from
looking at the leaves. Tho seed of the
varieties of cowpeas are very generally
well marked. and with some ripe peas
| 1 would be able to give the name of the
variety.
Oats After Corn.
| I'VE are now getting ready to SOW
oats where we have had corn. Corn
| was planted on a heavy growth Of
crimson clover and rye. The rye was
so high when turned that 1t took much
| of the moisture from the land, and 1
| am confident that the corn crop sur
fered from il. Will 1t be necessary
| to use cottonseed meal or other form of
nitrogen on these oats or will potash
and phosphate be sufficient? 1t is al
most impossible to get the meal at this
time of the year. 1t would 90 you
| good to see the way my cotton is grow
| ing. / bought the farm three years
ago, and the first year 1 made four
bales of cotton on eighteen acres. Since
| that time l have been following your
instructions, and will be very much
surpriSer if l make less than a bale
an acre this year for it Is as high as
my shoulders and heavily frulted. and
is growing and fruiting right along"
This from constant correspondent
| who reads and studies, shows what
can be done on very poor farm Gull
|
! farm is near the upper line OF the cot
| ton section in Piedmont North Caro-
! lima. and was, n few years ago, when
visited 1t, poor prospect for II farm.
] The owner, business man i'll the near
| by city, has applied business methods
l. to tho improvement of his farm in
stead of expanding money rashly as
some city men do on n farm, and he
is making a good paying farm out of
/ n |
| pardon these remarks. 1 do not think
! that any heterogeneous manures Will be
| needed for the oats under the present
conditions. In fact as ! have often
said. the farmer who farms in n good
rotation of crops, grows and feeds
! legume forage, and applies the ma
nure to his lana, Will never need to
buy nitrogen in any form. Cottonseed
| meal applied to the oats Will give n
| heavier growth of straw, but ! doubt
| that there would be much increase in
/ grain over what you can get from
! liberal application OF acid phosphate
and some potash, for, while tho farm
! is in the Piedmont country. j happen
| TO know that 1t Is not the Piedmont
red clay, but a gray soil that needs
potash. -Four hundred pounds of acid
| phosphate and twenty pounds of mu-
| rate of potash an acre Will make good
oats on that land In It's present condi-
! ton. You have gotten the farm to the
point now where you can afford to
drop the use OF all purchased nitrogen
for any crop.
Filling the SIIo.
I'VE have two silos One we are
now filling with corn ut the proper
stage. For the other have been think
ing of letting the corn stand till ma
ture enough to pull the ears and place
them where they will cure, and then
cut the stalks for the silo. Will this
mako better feed than dry corn stover,
or will 1t pay better to cut the corn
now?' You can gather the ears when
we'll glazed and denied, and they will
cure in the husks. and the stalks can
he cut into the slo. if you run some
water on them as cut for at that stage
the stalks will be comparatively dry,
| and the cnsilaEe will ferment better II
some water is used. 1t will be better
feed than dry shredded corn slower
but. OF course. not as good silage as
corn and all cut at tho proper stage
Having the two silos and needing the
grain, it will be all right to make the
stover into ensilagc.
Keeping Sweet Potato Vines.
rs there any way to keep sweet
potato vines from one season to an
other?" You could make cuttings and
root them, and carry them over In a
greenhouse, like any other tender
plants. but there would be no object
in doing it. and it would cost far more
than the plants would be worth With
"a crop like sweet potatoes that are SO
easy to increase in the spring, ] can
not see any advantage to be gained in
carrying them over, which could only
be done In a heated greenhouse.
Glover for MISUNDERSTANDING Corn.
II am in the elevated Southwest
mountain section. Have a piece OF land
in crimson clover, which i wish to
grow to turn for Irish potatoes next
spring. Have been advised to top dress
the clover with ground limestone now
Would this damage the potatoes? 1t
is tho custom here to top the corn and
pull fodder. I have opposed this. and
cut and shock my corn. But some of
the best farmers say that, owing to
the frequent rains, il Is hard to gather
the corn from shocks and the shocks
do not dry out we'll Which is best
Would top dressing of lime on Il
pasture sown this spring DO of benefit
> this fall" AS you plant Irish potatoes
later than in the coast country. the
clover will be all right for them but
would not apply lime to the clover
now. for in sweetening the soil you
Will have far more danger from scab
in tho potatoes. Keep on cutting and
shocking corn 1t is the best way to
get the land clear for winter grain
In the coast country some object tina,
, the humidity of the climate is against
l it. and now the Same objection comes
from the mountains. The fact is that
the people who make the objection with
: you have hardly any of them tried the
shocking. Lime applied to grass land
Will help maintain n blue grass sod
and If the land needs lime it is as gooS
place TO put it as any. But always
brush 1t III with Il smoothing harrow
: J nave applied it with great success tc