The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1913-08-02
WITH THE FARMERS
BY Prof w. F. MASSEY

that come first" The hard she'll
1 beetles are the mature insects that are
busy laying eggs to hatch the swarm
of the greedy larvae that eat the pota-
| toes. Ii not growing the potatoes on
| a large scale. probably the best thing
viii be to go over the plants daily and
shake the beetles OF into a pan o:
water on which some kerosene Is
! floated. The more completely YOU de-
stroy the old beetles the less there
Viii he OF tho eggs to hatch. Then.
t II your patch is large this will be
/ rather heavy work. and the best thing
will be TO spray With lead arsenate
( enc pound TO thirty gallons of water.
/ rhe old beetles eat very little. but they
/ do eat some. and many OIL them will
get poisoned. Then. OF course. keep
/ up the spraying, and on la;= potatoes
! II VIII be better 70 use Bordeaux
mixture to ward off the rot. and put
| the lead arsenatc in this.
Pruning Scuppernnng Grapes.
! Please tell me when TO prune and
how much to take out from my Soup
/ pernong vines. / suppose The shoots
coming out below the aroor should
/ be cut away. There are also little
clinchers that cling around the vine so
tightly as TO cut II OFF" The only
time to prune Scuppernong vines Is in
( November, as they bleed less then
than when pruncd later. The aim
{ should bt Ia train out the one and two
year canes for the Scuppernong bears
on two%ear- old wood. and cut out the
stunted old wood Prune off all suck :
ers below the arbor. and watch the
aerial root. as these are what make
the clinchers you mention. and when
any of these roots wraps around the
stern cut II out. But the Scuppernong
always makes n lot of roots above
| ground and these are all right when
they reach the ground, but you do not
want them to choke the stem. Then as
young vines throw up lots Of suckers,
they shoulc be chopped out and only
the one stem allowed 10 grow UP to
! the arbor.
saving Corn Fodder.
From Southampton County: II have
read great deal in various papers
about cutting and shocking corn. and
I il IS certainly the ideal plan, and the
plan | practiced when farming in
Albemarie. But | find that down here
in this humid climate II VIII not work
! successfully can save the fodder
I'll right. and after shrcdding it makes
excellent feed. But the corn every
| wear has been more or less injured in
the shock, though have made them
small and they have kept in good
shape.
The corn seems to be injured from
the cob not drying enough, though last
I wear let the fodder dry almost TO the
ears before cutting it, IL is certainly
the best way 10 handle the crop. but
/ fear that il cannot be done here.
j What can you suggest? You are
/ doubtless right for ! have been hear
! farmers IN the coast country OF North
4 Carolina and they say that in five
! years out OF sin the corn is damaged in
the shocks. still. am inclined 10
think that in most cases II is due TO
too early cutting. Let the corn stand
/ till the grain is we'll glazed and dented.
I and the shucks mature, and then make
/ the shocks rather small and open in
/ the centre. Cut al the time when most
4 farmers in your section are stripping
/ blades. the corn viii certainly get
damaged, for nine farmers out OF ten
! IN your section will be topping and
( stripping when the shucks on the ears
are green, and the ears sticking
, straight up. and when they do this
| they are cutting the corn yield short
/ enough 10 pay for all the fodder they
/ get. Try TO have the corn more MA
turc and see what the result Will be.
There is no doubt, however. that the
; climate OF the lower coast is against
/ the proper curing Of corn in shocks.
Crimson Glover on Wheat Stuhbic.
From Orange County: Il read with
much interest your articles in The
! Times-Dispatch and the Southern
I Planter have a field Of fifteen acres
that was in wheat this year. wish
20 SOW the land in crimson clover this
fall to turn under in the spring for
corn. Please tell me whether il would
/ be better to disk this wheat stubbie or
, turn il with mold board pillow. / am
/ thinking OF using Basic Stag as q fer
;iliZer for the clover. Will this be all
/ right?" II there is not much growth
! on the stubble, YOU can disk II and get
/. il into shape for the clover But IL
, viii be best not TO SOW the clover seed
till after the middle Of August. and in
I the meantime, If there Is a prospect
that the stubble VIII get rank growth
! OF rag weed ii had better be mown
over 10 check this. 1t would have been
| we'll, as soon as the wheat was har-
! vested. TO have plowed the land and
! sowed an early variety of cowpeas like
/ the New Era. Then YOU could have
disked these down and sowed the
clover seed in early September, or
ed the stubble If you disk the land
! now, you will have to do il again more
than once TO keep down the weed
growth, and it might be about as cheap
! 10 plow it in time TO harrow smooth
| for the sowing.
Poisoning the Soil.
! From Richmond: "ln a booklet. en-
! titled Practical Potato Culture. by
f. a. Rogers. of Brunswick. Me, the
author lays great stress upon the ar
senical poisoning OF Soils by the use OF
! Paris green, arsenate of lead and other
materials containing arsenic. and cites
the experience of Colorado fruit grow
| ers, who, he claims. have lost millions
by the killing of their orchards. and
! like cases in Massachusetts. This book
! let has had quite a wide distribution
! through the Pennsylvania Railroad
and no doubt you have had other
queries regarding it. Mr.. Rogers, be-
ing interested in the manufacture OF
bug death, a nonarsenical insecticide, IS
of course, biased, but he would hardly
! make his claims so strong unless the!
| could he backed by actual experience
What is your expe, fence" My expe-
rience is that men having certain
article to sell will use all sorts OF
means to make sales. and to scare peo-
IL zee not, Ill sic T.,