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

]
! is rather feeble, and If sown in the
/ spring it is apt TO get smothcred out
/ by the crab grass
| Then do not imagine that YOU can
grow alfalfa on poor soil, and 1t will
/ never be the success on the sandy soils
/ OF tho coast region that 1T cnn be made
| on the more clayey loans OF the up
/ per country The average farmer who
| is not especially a Stockman can make
rich lot near the barn very useful
as means for getting hay for years.
But the great need of our Southern
uplands is humus or vegetable decay,
and we can improve them In this re-
spcct much faster by using the annual
/ leGumcs Hike COW peas and crimson
clover, rather than with the alfalfa,
good as II is
Over the greater part of the South
the most valuable hay crop liz the cow
pea. In the far South the velvet bean
| Will probably make n heavier crop, but
, the velvet bean does not mature north
of the lower southeast corner of North
Carolina. Soy beans make valuable
! feed but there is far more waste from
( hard stalks than with the cowpca.
Many farmers who value tho pea for
hay have gotten into the practice of
sowing with the peas either sorghum.
corn or millet. with the notion that
the mixture will be more easily cured
than peas alone. think this Is n mis-
take. We grow peas and other legume
crops for their high percentage Of
protein. and we can get plenty OF the
! carbonaceous feeds In the slower of
corn. the straw and other things like
the grass hays. and we want tho le-
gumc hay TO be as highly heterogeneous
as practicable.
Then. as I will endeavor To show at
the proper season, there is no real diff
! Guilty Is the curing OF cowpea hay. in
spite of the fact that there il II gen
eral impression that ii is hard to cure,
and all sorts OF troublesome con-
triVanccs have been used to spoil It,
have made hay from cowpeas for
many years, and never used any sort
of continuance TO cure It except what
/ | use for any other hay. and / have
always made good. sweet hay from
| peas
/ Just now the methods for growing
the crop are OF more Importance than
the curing. The common practice In
| sowing peas has been OF the most
careless character. The land is plowed
ana the peas sown and roughly har-
/ rowed In. The result is that some get
covered too deep while many do not
get covered at all. and there is n
/ poorer stand than If they were sown
properly. If you are going to SOW
peas, in the first place, bear in mind
I that they arc as tender az snap beans.
and the soil should be warm before
/ sowing and that means in the upper
south late May or early June. They
I can, OF course, be sown later or after
small grain crop. but | am writing
now Of the crop sown early and espc :
/ cially for hay-makine
thorough and deep plowinS is I'm
portnnt Then. while the peas can
get nitrogen from the air, they are
greedy consumers of phosphoric acid
~ deficient In most Southern soils
there should he all applications say OF
300 pounds of acid phosphate and
/ twenty five pounds Of nuriate OF
potash IN acre well narrowed in after
/ blowing the land. Then. having the
/ surface put in good ordor the best way
Z to put In the peas Is with wheat drill
7 set to sow two bushels OF wheat an
acre. This will not only put in the
. proper quantity. but will put the peas
! in AT uniform depth that they
VIII all terminate together and the
| stand will be far more perfect. and the
crop immensely better than where
! Sown broadcast
The next best plan, where the d,ill
/ Is not at hand. is TO harrow the land
In the same careful way, and make
| The surface smooth and even and SOW
! the peas broadcast ut rate of ono or one
and half bushels an dacrc, and thon
cover them with an Acme harrow run
! ming light. This, too, will make quito
a uniform covering and far better than
| running spike harrow over them.
] The blowing, as have said should
be deep and thorough. especially If
the pea crop is to he followed by
small grain in the fail. for then we
! do not need to rebrealS the stubble for
wheat or winter oats but TO disk II
and make the surface soil MS fine as
possible for three inches, but leave the
n MI. i,,tr
The objection have named to mixin =
! anything with the peas applies especial
~ to the practice OF sowing millet with
the peas. Tho millet VIII ripcn before ,he
peas are ready 10 cut. and the seed Of
/ inillet is 81 dangerous food FOR horses
as tho fine seed arc not chcwed and
are apt to cause an impRction in the
bowels. II will not he dangerous to
/ animals that chew the cud but any
| carbonaceous miXture lessons the feed
ing value OF the pea hay, and the
pure pea hay is far better than any
! mixture. And unless tho stand IL
| dense and uniform there will always
be a mixture of crab grass IN most
OF our soils, and on wheat stubblc the
late sowing of peas is often inter
ferrcd with by the growth of rag weed
If the rag weeds are not allowed 10
start in growth some before blowing
the stubble. with he young rae
start and there will be fewer rag
| weeds among them.
Seeding 10 Grnss I'm Spring.
There is a widespread opinion that
the spring oats crop Is n poor one to
US in seeding down the land 10 grass
i5ut in my experience I have never
made a failure from seed TO grass on
oats. OF course, by the time this ap-
pears tho spring oats Will ali he grow
ING. but in that case had an er-
perience that may be OF value to some
Many years ago ! had IL field that !
was too busy to do anything with in
the fall ana made n bargain with n
neighbor that IF he would SOW the
land IN rye he might have the entire
rye crop IL he would leave the land
seeded TO rcd clover. lie sowed the
rye and IN spring when the rye was
heading. noticed no clover. and called
my neighbours attention TO IT. He had,
/ III TACT. sown none al all. ] told him
mat there was poor chance for the
ci"rer then, but ! wanted 1t sown. He
Hheh so"ed 1t among the standing rye