The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1913-05-14


and what fertilizers to use, etc, and
i tell them to read what Professor
1 Massey says / see wonderful results.
: Now, what time is best to turn under
"a heavy growth OF crimson clover for
corn and the most benefit 10 the land"
In your section YOU have plenty of
time to make corn crop after the
clover has rpened and died. The gem
SERIAL practice is to turn II under in
bloom, but several years ago neigh
bor of mine tried the letting II ripcn
and turned IL under then. and he made
the finest corn crop in the section.
Good crops can certainly he made by
turning il under green, but II is safer
then to apply some lime after the
plouEhing and harrow 1t in to prevent
> acidity In the soil. Turned under when
dead, the clover has done all that il
can do, and you get the full benefit OF
ii.
II have Ave acres in alfalfa OIL land
that six years ago would hardly have
sprouted the seed. lined 1t heavily,
but the last load ] had on the manure
spreader broke the chain. and | scat
tered il with shovcls from the spread :
er probably three or four tons an acre.
and tfut part is greener and taller
than the rest" You are right. and
there is no doubt that heavy lining
is needed for success with alfalfa in
ton in North Carolina they have been
growing alfalfa successfully for nifty
years or more, and have never lined
But their land evidently has plenty
of lime available In it. 1t is always
safer TO use lime very literally, or
ground limestone, for alfalfa.
Can | get Japan clover by merely
sowing the seed among broomsedge -
Doubtless YOU can, for ] have done
it i had steep hillside In Abe
marie County, on which were so many
fast rocks that II was not practicnblo
10 pillow II. | sent to Louisiana and
got some seed OF the I.cspedcza so
commonly called Japan clover. and
sowed II among the broom sedge and
the lot being convenient to the barn
] used ii as place to turn the COW
in hit weather rather than have them
driven mile back to the pastures
In one season the clover ran out the
broomsedgc and made Il good pasture
This Lespedeza has now spread almost
everywhere IN Virginia and makes n
valuable pasture on waste lands. We
have better leSumes TO take into the
farm rotation. but for summer pas
ture on outlying lands the I4espedeza
or Japan clover comes in very nicely.
stockman coming South from a
bluegrass section In Ohio. said tina,
he was surprised to find that he had
better pasture In the piedmont section
NJ North Carolina than In Ohio, because
the Lespedc2a grew so strongly in hot
weather, when the blue grass wa.
Drowned
from sawmil What crops are they
good for"
Hardwood ashes are good for any
crop grown. They contain potash lime
and small amount Of phosporic acid
They are more valuable when kcp,
dry, for when exposed TO the weather
the potash VIII leach ont. Spread ashes
~ rate OF ton an acre and they Will
give good results on any crop planted
Il Am in tho upper Piedmont sec
ton of Virginia and want to keen
my steep hills largely in grass 10 pre-
vent washing, and to furnish cood pas
ture. What grasses would YOU advise
me 10 USE"
When was farming the steep hills
Of Albemarle along the Ragged Noun
tains. | did as YOU propose to do That
is. tried to keep the hills in grass so
long AS the grass was good But | saw
all around me old fields which had not
been plowod for n generation. and
pastured all the time, till. nothing
having been done for the Improvement
of the grass, II had rum uut 10 poverty
grass. hens-nest grass, a. the darkle.
called H. And"on tkc cattle tracks
gullies had formed and Were nil the
keeping land in grass and pasturing
till tho grass runs out is rs sure "A
way 10 make rullies as amy. The soil
Gets compacted ana tho water cannot
sink into it, and naturally flows down
the cattle paths and starts gullies
This might be prevented and the
land kept in grass IL there was an
annual topdrcssins applied There are
( hills in Northern Maryland which have
been pasturod by beef cattle for fifty
years and the grass is still good. for
they apply bone dust 10 the land every
spring, and the sod has gotten so
dense that the cattle can hardly keen
the grass down.
But these hills have been ground by
The ancient glaciers. and do not wash
rs the Southern hills do. found that
the best plan was to break the sod for
ono year hoed CROP and subson !;
deeply while the grass Was still good
and then get II back in grass again
as soon as practicable. III this way
kept the soil supplied with humus-
making material. the hocd crop was
cultivated fiat and shallow and nc
mead Of water allowed TO gather, and
the rains sans Into the deeply broken
soil. and the grass every ;ime il wa
soHn was better and better Run
Your hills In grass for three or -four
i years, and practice a rotation that wii
keep them improving. When in corn
sow peas among the corn, cut tn,
corn and disk the peas down and scet
the land with fan grain and back te
grass again. Treated IN this way the
!. hills OF Piedmont Virginia VIII make
= heavy crops OF hay
e In seeding down used plenty o,
seed. / sowed q mixture OF Ten pound!
OF orchard grass FIVE pounds OF re,
top. and ten pounds Of Kentucky blu,
6 grass an acre when INTENDED Tor pas
ture, and when for hay mainly sowet
ten pounds Of timothy and ten pound
Of red top an acre, and in either cas-
s I sowed ten pounds OF red clover see,
3 in the spring
When ono always has t. good sod {
turn for corn he cannot only make
better crop OF corn. but he VIII y
getting into the soil the hUmus tina
our hills badly need on pa stur
where blue grass Is used IL Is q ZOO
practice To give the land drcssin
II OF lime occasionally, for blue grass
limestone soil grass. and 10 max
1t thrive on our red hills lining abou
once In SIX years IS essential ] use
the lime after breaking 500 for cor
ard narrowed 1t in and the land III