Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1913-08-30
DAILY HINTS ON
FARM TOPICS
By K. A. Kirkpatrick
SOWING TURNIPs.

Should q shower OF rain come
within q short time conditions will
be splendid to SOW turnips for fall
growth. Any of the nat varieties
will make splendid crop II sown
any time during the latter part OF
July or August. Turnip seed does
not cost . great deal, and 1t may
be scattered on pieces Of land which
would ordinarily grow upsin weeds.
The area Ia thus used to very good
advantage. Many farmers <hnd II de-
sirAble to SOW the seed In potato
patches to help keep down the weeds.
Many SOW It after digging the early
potatoes. Tho crop may be grown
to good advantage on any land
which has yielded an early crop.
Very often they ara grown whore
sweet corn has been taken on.
In preparing the land for iturnips,
the ground should be worked to q
depth OF three or four inches, and
put in splendid physical condition.
This should be done II possible just
after rain % that tho ground will
work up nicely and flne seed bed
will be produced.
Two or three pounds Of seed per
acre should Be used. It may be
broadcasted by hand. or It may be
put In with . garden drill. In iield
culture, broadcasting 10 usually prac-
tised just before Z rain. Tho rain
will cover the seed to 4 sufficient
depth. The plants come up In 4 few
days and noed no further attention
until time to harvest the crop. This
will DO at the time Of freexing wea-
thor.
Turnips may be used for stock
feed II the market conditions are
such that they may not be sold to
good advantage. 1t is said that
pound for pound they are abuot Ia
to Ia - valuable % silaye for sheep
or cattle. In feeding turnips to
milk cows they should always be
fed Just after the milking because
II fed before milking they often
taint the milk.
Potato blight.
The writer Is not In position to
say just what the loss from early
blight Of potatoes will be in tho coun-
try this year, but believe that It
ID safe to estimate q loss OF 30 per
cent Of the crop Of the early varia,
ties. visited one farm yesterday
where the man has out probably q
half acre, from which he will not
receive enough potatoes for one good
meal. Observation on patches along
the roads In the Island district show
that q large amount Of blight IL pre-
sent in nearly every plat. In max
ing inquiries, among some OF the
growers, md that where spraying
. haav1 - 4
green or lead arsenate the less blight
10 present. In some plantings which
have observed where spraying hal
been done there 10 scarcely any
blight present =
These things bear out the state.
mepts that have been made earlier
In this column. What 10 the prodil
70 man to put In . field Of potato
and allow them to grow almost full
growth and then have them taken on
by blight so that he gets only rs
to IL or no crop at all! The spray
Ing cost Is not excessive and Il
splendid insurance as has been poin-
ted out In previous articles In this
column. Even when one sprays with
Paris green or lead arsenate hi
keeps down tho insects and this ha.
2 beneficial effect upon the blight
Wherever insects are very prevalent
conditions are better for the blight
to develop. Let no party be 10 fool.
1sh as to think that this IL an excep.
tional year, and we will not have
blight again in the future. The best
ching to do is to lay out plans nov
TO secure = sprayF and spray tn.
potatoes another season. 1t IL thu
only way to play safe and cut ou'
one losing proposition on the farm