The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1914-06-23

! row spacing in others, so tnat no deH
mite conclusions could be reached.
The theory of wider planting has
it's limitations as well as that o.
closer planting. To reduce the mum
Der of plants by wider spacing in the
rows means that a longer period OF
time is required to produce a crop
This is true because large, luxuriant
plants do not begin to produce flowers
and bolls as early as plants of more
restricted growth. 1t may seem more
! logical to many that the plants max
ing the most rapid growth must pro-
duce the earliest and largest crop,
! but this Is not true Large luXuriant
plants are later in setting and ma
| turing a crop because the young
plants of Iuxuriant growth develop
lines producing no bolls at the ex-
pense of the lower fruiting branches
necessary to the production of an
early crop. The limbs of cotton
plant which produce no flowers or
bolls are called 'vegetative branches,
or wood limbs to distinguish them
from the fruiting branches.
The row rather than the individual
plant must be considered as the unit
under the system as recommended.
The form of the row demands first
attention and through improving it
come the advantages of the new
method. More plants are left in the
rows, and yet injurious crowding is
avoided. Plants that have numer-
GUS vegetative branches are more
crowded at ? or 3 feet than plants
with single stalks at 8 or 10 inches.
With the vegetative branches con-
trolled, the spacing is no longer a
question of feet, but of inches. Rows
spaced at 6 inches have usually given
better results than those at II inches
or any greater distance.
| BY avoiding the development of the
large wood limbs the rows are kept
narrower and more hedgelike, so that
the fruiting branches receive sun
| light throughout the season. This
provides much more favorable cOndi-
lions for the ripening of the crop.
When the vegetative branches are al
! lowed to shut off the light by growing
Iup between the rows, most Of the
hollis on the lower fruiting branches
fail to reach normal maturity. Fields
of large luxuriant plants often pro
duce very small crops because only
the upright growing ends of the
stalks and vegetative branches have
access to the light. This undesirable
condition is avoided by restricting
the development of the vegetative
branches in the earlier stages OF
growth.
The numbered vegetative branches
is also Influenced by temperature and
soil conditions. If the weather re-
mains cool. or if the soil is very dry
not many vegetative branches will de-
velop, even when the young plants
are widely separated. But if the
conditions favor a luxuriant develop
ment of the young plants, early thin
ming will result in the development
of a large number of vegetative
branches. and the subsequent crowd
ing will be great. Even in the alb
sence of any disease or insect pests
the crop may be ruined by crowdine
alone.
Suppress Vegetative Branches.
Suppress vegetative branches i;
the advice of the department to farm
ers desiring to experiment with tht
new system. Practical experiment.
must be undertaken by those desir
ing to understand the method; mere
" reading about the experiments o.
Others is not sufficient.
How long the thinning should o'
DELAYED to suppress the vegetativ'
branches and how close the plants
should be left in the rows are quer
tfons that the skillful farmer should