The Lexington advertiser., 1915-04-02
Roy Ashley, Mize. Miss.


rience Of Roy Ashley. corn club mem
Der of MiZe, Miss, reads almost like
romance, and shows what can be done
and is being done with Mississippi $
prolific soil and balmy climate. Roy
was undeterred by criticism and dis
couraging remarks by those who had
followed the same old rut all their
lives, with the result that he won out
and opened the eyes of all about him.
He gives his experience in the follow
ing modest article:
| am a farmer boy and have lived on
a farm all my life. | have always
lived in the same community. ! am
only l5 years of age. In 1910 the su-
perintendent Of education of this COun-
ty organized Boys Corn Club. J
Joined it and turned under the turf in
the fall and sOWed rye on the land In
the spring ! put lot manure on the land
and broke it about 3 inches deep, The
people around here laughed at me, and
said would not make five bushels, but
when my corn began to grow they
changed their minds. ! surprised them
all the more when | gathered 1S bush
els on my acre, while the average yield
in this county was only II to lS bush
els per acre, this being about all Papa
made. Since the Corn Club has been
started in this county, Papa has tried
diversifcaton Of crops and followed
the demonstration instructions until
now his average yield is from 50 to 70
bushels per acre. Every year since |
first joined the Corn Club | have con
tinued to have an acre plot for myself
to put in corn. can beat Papa max
ing corn.
In the fall Of 1913 | joined the Corn
Club again. began the preparation
of my soil turned under the COW
pea stubble and broke my land 10 to
Il inches deep. | sowed oats and rye
on the land and narrowed it in with a
section harrow. The oats and rye came
up and ! used it for pasture for my
Jersey calf and two pigs. and it Kept
them in good fix all through the win
ter and gave them a better start in the
spring In the spring | turned the
sod under, narrowed it with the sec
tion harrow, and then bedded the land,
! | sowed lot manure in the drills and
filled the furrOw with an oak leaf COM
pound then | rebedded the land mix
| ing the humus with the soil, | then
let the soil stand untouched until May
! rebedded the land, put out 300 pounds
of commercial fertilizer in the drill. !
followed this with a spring tooth
harrow and this with the planter, My
corn came up well, but the spike worms
destroyed much Of it. When my corn
was about two weeks Old | narrowed it
crOssWise with a section harrow. | let
it stand for about two weeks, then |
narrowed the middIes down with a
spring tooth harrow, and this put en-
ough dirt to the corn, for it must be re-
membered that | planted in the water
| furroW. Then | thlnned my corn to an
average Of about II to 10 inches in
| the drill Then | let the corn stand
about a week when | narrowed it again
with a spring tooth harrow, and from
| then on until the first Of June ! har-
Irowed 1t with a SpringtOOth harrow.
| The land began to get dry, as It had
not rained for weeks. went two fur
rows to the row with a heel sweep, and
every time | went around my corn il
! looked like a shower had fallen. Then
on July 2 or 3 | laid my corn by with a
heel sweep, and put out 300 pounds
more Of commercial fertilizer around
my corn, and on the following day it
rained and my corn looked fine, but by
the way | had forgotten to say we had
a drouth lasting ten weeks, beginning
in May and lasting until July, and il
was interrupted only once by small
shower in ten long weeks. and you see
a rain was badly needed. While the
drouth was going on corn all around me
was burning up while mine was per
fectIy green and doing we'll
In October, when time came to gath
er corn, got three disinterested met
to gather my corn. ! went ahead ant
picked out the best grade for frs
grade seed, and ! made three grades
and had it gathered separately so
could have good seed | made lO6, 81
bushels on my acre while the average
Weld around me was only Is bushels
per acre. then had 35 bushels 0
first grade seed corn, AZ bushels Of sec
ond grade, and II bushels of thirt
grade, and Y bushels of nubbins
have sold all my corn, the first grad
at -. 90 per bushel, second grade a
81. IS. while | sold the third grade a
81. 90 per bushel, making $l6l5O plu
the nubbins.
am going to buy me a full bre,
Hereford bull with my corn money, ant
Papa is going to give me a helfer
| have cut my corn stalks, turne
them under, and now | have a goo