The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1915-04-22

Wehl " Akfle 4llAfcal
Any system Of agriculture which
does not include some leguminOus
crops viii ultimately lessen the pro
ductiyity Of the soil and make neces.
sary the purchase at considerable eK.
peuEe Of fertilizers containing nitro
gen On the other hand. the proper
use Of leguminous crops will maintain
or even increase productivity Al the
present time the oowpca Is probably
the most valuable legume for the cot
ton belt Il Is to the South what red
clover Is to the North and alfalfa TO
the West
Not only does the cOwpea benefit the
soil BY adding nitrogen to II, but IL
can be made to supply southern mar
kcts with much Of tho hay which is
now shipped In from the North and
West Thus II aids In the production
of live stock. without which u is i'm
possible TO secure the maximum re-
turns from any farm
These facts have been familiar to
progressive farmers for years. but the
high price OF seed In the past pre-
vented az widespread a use Of the
crop as was desirable. Improved ma
Chinery however. has now done much
to remove this difiioulty aud mas well
90 more IN the future When harvest.
ed for seed. the crop should be cut
with a mower or selfrake reaper when
half or more Of the pods are ripe
After IL has become thoroughly dry, II
may be thrashed with an ordinary
grain separator. with some modifica'
lions. With a twocylinder cowpea
thrasher or with onecylinder spe-
cial machine which number Of in-
genious devices make the most salts
factory Of all.
Exclusive Of the crops value In I'm.
proving the soil. cowpeas are most
useful as hay Good cowpea hay has a
high percentage Of diges,ible protein
nearly four times that Of timothy hay
and as feed 10 very nearly as
valuable as alfalfa OF wheat bran.
When Il includes fair number OF
ripe peas It has been found satisfae-
tory when fed alone to stock at work.
ana can be used very successfully as a
maintenance ration for horses, mules.
cattle. sheep and even hogs. When
corn and cottonsoed meal are high
priced. experiments indicate that COW
lea hay can be substituted to ad'
vantage In the production OF milk
and butter II appears that one and one
fourth pounds VI chopped pea hay Is
equivalent to pound OF wheat bran
and three pounds TO one OF cotton
seed meal Splendid results are also
obtained from feeding the seed, either
whole or in broken pieces. TO poultry.
though at the prices that have hither'
TO prevailed this is scarcely prae'
ticaule
La tho production Of cowpea hay
difficulty ia sometimes experienced IN
curing the large growth OF succulen'
vines. For this reason coWpeas are
frequently grown In mixtures prae'
tice which makes the curing much
easier. Sorghum is fayorite crop Tor
this purpose aud It's use usually results
In increasing the yield Of hay oonsid
eraby Millet. SOY beans and John
son grass are also used.
Al present. however. cOwpeas are
most frequently grown with corn
since the farmer secures In this way
A corn crop. sufficient seed Tor the
next season. and either a hay crop OF
a certain amount OF grazing for hi'
stock On many dairy farms the co"
,.s ia Grown with corn In order Il
make eusilage. for which Il has proved
excellent Though II Is sometimes al
yisable. the use Of cowpeas for pas
ture is not. as rule, the best lara
praotice Unless care is exercised
bloating, especially In bad weather
may result The small expense III
VOWED Is a powerful indueemen'' Sh'
uhen the hay is grown with corn
IA frequently graEed by hogs.
Detailed information In regard u
the planting and harvesting OF TN
crop IA contained In farmers bulletin
gs "Cowpeas" of the department 0
agriculture, which will be sent i ~,
oo reouest The bulletin also dis
cusses the merits OF the various va
rietiss. and suggests the use Of I'd
crop in some one Of the following IL
tatlons: