Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1913-04-18

q Sowing plenty Of seed
I. Cutting a. soon 40 np@
3. Shocking.
b. Stacking.
Uniform Land and TlllaoG.
Tho tillage Of land for oats 10 one
of the most neglected practices In 4
great many states. This IL true IN
Iowa. Two or three times over q
etalkAeld With . dull disk and harrow
20 considered By too many farmers
20 be Ill that IL necessary for oats.
The ridges hom the last years corn.
0eld are left 20 that thay arc ap.
parent IN through tho season, and
even the next year In the clover. The
water from rains runs down into the
Follows between these ridges IN the
paTiy part Of the season, causing the
ground to pack, and thus retard the
growth Of the plants. The few that
are able to survive ct yellow and
Dptndly. The whole piece = striped
IKE Q prison suit
Depth % TN.
/ The depth to which oat ground
should be titled varies With tho soil
and season. Corn stubble Vim usual
~ produce fair crop II prepared well
to depth Of two to two and half
inches. Our best drops, however, have
been raised upon land titled to- q
depth Of four inches. The seed should
not be put in more than one inch
below the surface.
The first item In the production Of
good oats 10 to prepare the Land to q
uniform surface and to q uniform
depth.
; Uniform Seed.
Results show that grading seed i'm
proves the crop. Well graded oats
will usually give termination test
above 80 per cent, but If they have at
any time heated in the bin. they
should be tested for vitality. This may
be done easily In q box Of dirt or
sand, set in among the house plants,
or in any light room that IL not a.
loved TO freeze.
There II another factor Of i'm
portance from the standpoint Of uni.
form seed, namely, smut. The fan
ming mill OF grader will not eliminate
oats smut from the iced oats.
Uniform Distribution Of Seed.
It il impossible to SOW oats evenly
by hand, or with an endgate seeder.
and it is impossible to cover to q
uniform depth after any kind Of q
broadcast seeder. Just how much
this non-uniformity will affect the
uniformity Of the plants lies largely
with the weather conditions. II there
IL an abundance Of rain the difference
caused BY depth IL reduced. The
spotted condition caused by uneven
distribution 10 never entirely over
come.
Cutting the Crop.
The average farmer cuts his oats
ct above the proper time; that 10 just
before the heads turn yellow. There
are two or three days just before ma
turity when the heads are white, but
are not entirely ripe. Oats cut at
this period viii ripen and cure In the
shock, giving . brighter color, and
are not 20 likely 20 "shatter" a. when
they are left until they get dead ripe.
How % Shock.
Opinions differ regarding the form
Of shock which It - best to use. This
win vary with the ripeness Of the
bundles. Round shocks should be Of
medium size. open enough &C the
base 20 that they win dry quickly and
capped 90 40 to expose the least pos.
sible amount Of the heads to the sun
and dew. The color Of the Grain de-
ponds largely upon these two points
An shocking.
Shock Threshlna. sszF.
Shook threshing 10 pernfeioua
practice. After man has gone to
tho trouble TO raise and harvest .
crop Of oats there 10 no excuse for his
damaging their ability b. put
ting them through the sweat" 81 the
bin. Oats can 10 stacked and thresh.
"a for practically the same money q
|sWhen they are hauled dir g tho
machine When oate ase IS ontssI
taok q - - :