The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1913-05-17

soiu " Inc sugar planters IN boNlSl-
ana. who valued them highly, but
found that they did not seed well
there.
began on the ins,ltuts platforms
and in the farm papers 10 talk and
write cowpeas as the greatest means
tor rapid Improvements III Southern
soils, and to my surprise there seemed
TO be n great interest aroused in them
in tho North and editors of farm
papers wrote to me asking for cuts OF
this pea and something in regard TO
II. I was then OF the opinion that its
culture could not extend north of the
southeastern counties OF Pennsylvania.
In fact. the editor of little paper
in the Cumberland Valley. in Penn
sylvania. tried to ridicule the Idea of
growing cowpcas in Pennsylvania and
said that they were useless there.
was more Interested in the Southern
farmers getting into the the proper
use OF the pea in rotation OF crops,
and paid little attention to the Penn
sylvania man.
Some years later 1 was asked by the
Pennsylvania State Board of AGricul-
ture 10 attend their annual meeting
at Harrisburg and make n talk about
the Southern cowpea. did so and
tried to take very conservative
view, and told them that as a hay crop
did not think Il would be availa BILE
except in tho Southern tier o. counties
in that State. But that I thought they
could be profltably used summer
pasture TO tide over n drought when
the grass failed.
But 1 was surprised when a dairy
man in that county, up near the Blue
Ridge. said that he was successfully
growing cowpeas for hay and had found
them hides pensihle IN his work
Then l had letter from a man In
Iowa. who said that he went there from
southern Missouri. and being accus-
toned TO black eye peas Mt his former
home. thought that he would try to
grow some in Iowa. He got a few
seed from Missouri and planted them
In his garden IN one long row. Only
one plant IN the lot matured seed,
and he saved those carefully and plant,
cd them the next season. and all ma
;ured and ne had n peck of seed.
The following season he planted two
rows alongside his corn field That
summer they had drought and hot
winds that almost ruined the corn,
& while the peas luXuriatcd in the heat
a neighbor called over ono Sunday
evening to condolc with him over the
showed him the peas. and he exclaimed
save all OF them, they will he the
salvation Of this country.
Then tho Missouri Experiment Sta
tion advised the farmers who were
feeding export stcrs to grow moro cow
one OF tho best feeds for finishing
them. and urged tho farmers TO grow
more peas and less timothy hay.
Then n man IN Michigan wrote me
that he had there what they called the
Michigan Tavortc pea that had been
developed there, and ne had saved
fifty bushels OF the seed peas and now
every number OF Wallacc's Farmer
published In Iowa has matter in re-
gard 20 growing cowpeas in Iowa
Just as Indian corn has come north
ward little by little as the plant gets
acclimated to new conditions and rip
ems seed SO the cowpea has progressed
northward I'LL now there arc varieties
that mature in all parts OF tho coun-
trv. and all around the little Cumber-
land Valley editor they are being
grown with success. and in the South
to-day there arc FULLY a hundred acres
OF peas grown where one Gas grown
twenty five years ago. No plant has
played a more important part in the
Improvement OF Southern agriculture
than the cowpca aided by tho winter
cover crop OF crimson clover.
farmer in the. Piedmont section Of
North Carolina wrote. me. Twenty
FIVE years ago'I could buy ali the
peas wanted here for * cents
hushel, and could buy land for less
than $40 an acre. Sow cowpeas are
$3.50 to So hushel and land away
for YOU have run us crazy rs yourself
on peas" Well am glad that It has
had this effect. hi. II is rather odd
that the more acreage OF n crop plant
ed the higher tho price OF the product
rises In fact. the demand has kept
ahead Of the supply. and tho growing
OF cowpeas for seed IS becoming an
important interest In the upper South,
for it has been shown that in the lower
South they must always depend on tho
upper South for seed peas and 20
great extcn, tho middle States VIII "
pend on the upper South
Then when any crop becomes import
ant the mechanical ingenuity OF tho
American people rises to the occasion,
that now we have a harvester that
gathers. threshes and fans the peas
as It is drawn down the rows by pair
OF mules, and does the work of twenty
hands picking thorn By hand
The editor of Wallacc's Farmer. in
Iowa, told one Of his readers that ne
had better pay $40 a ton for cowpea
hay rather than Sl3 a ton for timothy
hay. and that In his experience ne
had found cowpea hay fully rs GOOD
as alfalfa hay for feeding Ana We
can grow and cure cowpca hay on land
that would hardly grow alfalfa M all,
and get ii in few weeks instead OF
months. And the hay is easily cured,
as shall try to show at the proper
season.
Some Queries.
From Northern Virginia: when Is
the best stage for cutting crimson
clover for hay?" AS soon as the mower
heads are All well out DO not lot
the heads get elongated and brown
below, for. cut in that stage, 1t VIII
ne dangerous hay to feed TO horses,
as the dry hairs are apt 10 ball In
the intestnes and XIII tho horse. t
have seen number Of balls taken in
post mortem examination OF q horse
that we're as large as baseballs Of a
completely felted character. made mp
OF the clover head hair.
Crimson clover, like all OF tho
legumes. when cured into hay should
lie cured mainly in the cock, and put
into the barn before The leaves get
crisp. In this somewhat limp condi-
ton the clover will finish curing IN
the barn very nicely. let entirely