The true Democrat. [volume] (Bayou Sara [La.]) 1892-1928, 1914-02-21


for the past two years have sold at
the average of soc. for seed. The big
Igest yieldI ever obtained on oats for
a single crop, however, was 5S1a bush
els. Last year grew nearly 100 acres
of oats, in which crop lespedeza is
always planted, and, besides, had 200
acres devoted solely to lespedeza.
"The custom | usually follow is to
raise half my lespedeza for seed and
half for hay. l consider it mistake
for a planter to try and make both
seed and hay off the same planting,
for instead Of then selling hay he has
little else than the straw, with most
of the leaves gone, and this hurts the
lespedeza hay market. My average
seed yield is bushels to the acre,
with $500 the average selling price
of recent years. The heaviest yield |
ever obtained was TN bushels On a
small plot. Right here it is worth
while to say that ordinarily the short
er the growth of the plant, the more
seed ia obtained. The height regulates
the hay yields, of course, and | find
that with good, average stands, IT.
inch cut will produce tons of hay to
the acrs, and a 27.inch cut gives
tons.
IF growing the crop for hay, it
should be mown in September, almost
any time during that month, but never
later than October 10th. L put my
mowers out at o'clock, after the dew
| is fairly OFF, and from 4 to 5 o'clock in
| the afternoon put In shocks, where it
| is allowed to remain in the fields for
48 hours; Ii it looks like rain it is best
to take In at the end of "a hours. When
put in the barns allow the hay to stay
there for Is days before baling, and
when growing any great quantity of
hay it is found that plenty of barn
space is needed.
After October 10th the seeds form
on lespedeza and the plant is not as
good then for hay, even though the
seed be not saved. When grown for
seed there is enough seed falling onto
the ground to re-seed for the following
years crop; and where cutting for hay
during the period recommended, the
second growth comes out quickly from
the stubble, forming seed sufficient for
re-seeding the next crop without any
replanting.
While | have stated that the aver
age selling value Of my lespedeza seed
stands at $500. with s bushels average
to the acre, figure that the gain is
even more than that, for | feed the
straw to my COWS, and estimate the
value that way at $500 ton. You see
what they eat comes back to me in the
form of manure and what straw they
waste is incorporated in the manure,
that has a farm value of not less than
$3.50 a ton.
Though I place my lespedeza hay
at no higher than 2 tons average to
the acre Tin extra good years averag-
ing as high as 3 tons), it has been |
found profitable crop. The average
selling price I. o. b. the local railroad |
station shows on my books at $1,000, !
but the past year it sold better, for
$500. And with the worth of lespe-
deza being more widely recognized
throughout the country, l believe we
can't produce enough of it to ever
bring the price down. Lespedeza, it |
must be remembered by all feeders of
stock, has as high feeding value as
alfalfa, and it is incomparably better !
than timothy hay, 13 pounds of lespe- |
deza being worth as much as 80 pounds
Of timothy. From my observation, it |
will grow we'll in any character of land
in Louisiana or Mississippi now pro-
ducing other field crops, provided it is
raised where water doesn't stand in |
the fields
"By using an H tractor. as do, |
two threshing machines for the oats
and the lespedeza, and with an ade-
quate number of mowers, manage to
handle my crops with intimidation |
Of loss from bad weather. The tractor |
is used to haul the manuhe spreaders
into the field for the distribution of the |
fertilizer, and through the discing of
the ground by gasoline power my en-
tire land preparation cost for planting
Of oats and lespedeza is figured at $3.50, |
with seed cost, in case of lespedeza, |
$3.50 an acre.
"a word, in closing, as to the sea-
sons influence. When planting lespe- |
deza to oats, as recommended, it is |
best to SOW during the month of May, |
hut should the weather then he unnro- |