The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1913-07-09

moist weather early in July VIII make
fair-sized potatoes. and cuttings MADE
late in July or carly August make the
best possible small potatoes for bod
ding the next spring. For this plant
ing, make the cuttings about yard
long and coil them around your hand.
and plant the whole coll In the hill
These will make lunches of little po-
tatoes at every joint, and these GER
tainly keep we'll and make the best
bedding potatoes for the next spring
They are largely grown in Southeast
Maryland and sold in spring In Balti-
more under the name of Deals Island
slips.
Scotch Knle.
You can sow now seed Tor the Green
curled Scotch kale and transplant the
plants like cabbages, and they will
make immense heads that Will he tine
for greens after frost comes. and you
can cut them through the winter in
any of the mlder sections of the State
as they will sprout from the stalk
Country Gentleman sugar corn planted
tho last of June and again the 10th
of July, will give YOU perfect roasting
ears and the depredations of the boil
worms will be over. 1t is almost i'm
possible to get perfect ears on gar
den corn early in the season on ac-
count OF these worms.
Pasture for Hogs.
OF course. in the peanut section the
hogs have good picking in the
fall in cleaning the peanut fields. and
also eating the cowpeas in the corn
field after the corn is of.
But later In tho fall and during
carly winter some green vegetation
will be found useful. and for this pur-
pose there is no better plant than tho
Dwarf Essex rape This is plant or
the turnip family with big tops and
leaves like rutabaga. Seed sown the
first of July Will make fine fall pas
ture, and another sowing the middle
of August will keep the hogs grnzing
till New Years or later. OF course it
needs good land and liberal fertiliza-
ton TO make big crop but II Will pay
We'll to use II. Then the Inst sowing
may be mixed with crimson clover
seed. and when the hogs have eaton
the rape they can be taken off and let
the clover come for spring pasture.
Then on another lot the seed of the
rape can be sown In March, and this
will follow the clover. a little fore
thought will enable any one to keep
something on the land for the hogs to
eat. and thus not only save corn. but
keep the hogs In more thrifty condi-
ton.
Manufacturing a Drought.
Right now and all through July there
are hundreds of Virginia farmers maxi
ing drought in their cornfelds. / was
last summer down in the Tdewnter
section, not fur below Richmond. and
saw field after field with the soil
IlURcu up 10 the corn ana drElnG out,
and the RIGGING had cut the corn roots
and shortened the crop. and now the
remaining roots were struggling in the
dry soil. while had the soil remained
level and only an inch or two stirred.
the moisture would have been held
down where the roots were and the
roots would have been strong and un-
injured. And men do this worse than
useless labor every year. losing corn
they might have made. and stopping
tlNa .,ttlt ,,s.tt
have stopped had they cultivated
Alright And doubtless they are doing
IT again this year. Bad cultivation
cuts off large part Of the corn. crop
In Virginia every year. I hammer away
at this because it is one Of the worst
features in our corn growing.
The Summer Fnllow.
Ana now. too. there are in some
Wheat-growinE sections farmers break
Ing tallow for wheat Now there is
no doubt that long summer fallow
VIII usually make a good crop of
wheat But the best wheat farmers
have abandoned the following practice
because II is too expensive TO work on
held without crop all summer or n
Ereat part OF 1t.
In my boyhool ] fived in n fine
wheht-growing section. The common
practice then was TO have a ncld of
fed clover for wheat This was ma
tured till middle OF July, and then
rowed TIL seeding time. The farmers
then, as now. did sow some wheat after
corn, and in looking over the fields in
winter would apologize for one field
SAYING that that was corn land wheat
and could not be expected to he as iino
as his falloWed field
Hut the farmers in this same sec
ton have learned that the fallow land
wheat WAS grown al too great cost.
and that the best fnllow preparation
halt IL
either OF corn or tobacco and that tn,
spring blowing for the hood crops is
all-sutiicent. ana that after the corn
OF tobacco has been cut. !, fine disking
of the surface only three or four inches
deep is better than late deep blowing
for wheat. And farmers in that same
s'ffi,'n. by a better rotation OF --ops
are making far larger wheat crops
than they ever made by the following
system
What Coupcns VIII Do.
suppose that ] Cow cowpeas three
years IN succession on a piece of land
VIII that Improve the land II use
10 tertilizerY' Growing three crops Of
peas in succession. and turning them
all under when mature, will greatly
increase the hurnus and nitrogen in
the soil. But If you take the crops OFF
the land there viii not only be no
Improvement but actual dminu-
tlon OF fertility, by robbing the soil Of
phosphorus and potash Peas viii fur
nish you nitrogen from the air and or
ganic matter 10 make the soil more
mellow. But you cannot cat your cake
and keep II. too. Then, merely grow
ing three crops OF peas in succession
means leaving the land bare in winter.
when IL should have n green growth
Of some kind on st The growing and
burying of three crops OF peas VIII
doubtless greatly help the land, but
ii is rather costly way 10 do H. Far
better to feed the peas with phosphate
and potash. and then feed the crop to
live stock. ana follow the peas with n
winter cover of clover, ana keep up a
rotation that VIII. while Increasing the
crops. be more economical than spend
Ing three years buryine good feed
crops. ] thoroughly believe in using
all the legume crops AZ feed for stock
except the crimson clover and that
rnakes the best possible preparation