Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1916-01-12
Farm Work for January.

w ullc d dLuoIy 10 dOV nav
the greatest activity in farm work,
it is certainly month in which to
put everything about the farm IN
readiness for the big spring rush.
Fences are to be built and repaired,
gates are to be hung, stumps are to
be gotten out, terraces are to be
built, bitches are to be dug, along
with dozens of other jobs that the
hus,ling farmer will tackle now,
rather than put them off until later,
which too often means putting them
off until never"
Whether we shall rush plowing
every dry day during January is a
question that can be answered only
after a full consideration of local
conditions. AS a general PROPOSE
tion, however, it may be safely said
that under the best systems of farm
practice, all 1915 cotton land that is
to go in corn in 1915 is now in
crimson clover, which is to be
plowed under in April, the oats,
wheat and rye are already sowed
and "greening up'' the fields, leay..
ing only the corn and pea fields to
be considered. Where these are
not too rolling and have considera-
BILE litter on them, | would certainly
keep the plows going in them every
day the condition of the land will
permit.
And right now, early in the game,
let's make up our minds that moth
ing-absolutely nothing-tfat can
be plowed under or that can be used!
to stop a gulley. shall be burned.
This means, too, on most farms,
that we'll keep fire out of our fields
altogether, using anything from
straw and grass to logs foot in
diameter to help us. in our soil con-
servation and soil-building cam.
paign. 10 burn anything that will
make good humus, stop a wash, or
prevent one, is an economic crime,
and the man who continues to COM
NIT it deserves and may expect full
punishment in the form of poor
land, poor crops, and poverty for
himself and for his family. ,si
On many farms existing gullies
must be filled and the washing stop
ped, while at the same time provis-
ion must be made against uncontI
trolled water making any new
washes. How to GO about these
matters is, l believe, one of the very
biggest problems we have to .selves
and January, when other work is
less pressing. is perhaps tie best
month of all the year in which to.
tackle it. .. t,@
Terraces-the broad, cultivated
kind,-win cover crops to hold
the soil together, plenty of humas
and deep blowing are the approved
methods for keeping land from
washing. Some enthusiasts believe
that cover crops alone, or cover
crops and deep plowing, are unnec-
cessary. For the average rolling,
sandy land farm in the Cotton Belt,
l do not hesitate to say that these
non>terrace advocates are wrong,
and that I'll prove them so before
any competent jury. Of course it
may be that they have. never made
the acquaintance of the broad cult
vated terrace, Is or 90 feet wide,
with crops growing on it, and over
which mowers, binders, wagons,
tractors, or any other sort of farm.
machinery may pass with ease; and
that they only know the narrow ter
race or bank. This latter kind is
certainly scrub" among terraces,
and / don't blame them for not low
ing it more.
Under ordinary conditions the ter
race lines should be- laid off with a
fall of from four to six inches to the
hundred feet, with a vertical drop
between successive terraces of three
| or four feet. With one of the farm
levels advertised in The Progressive
Farmer, these lines can be laid off
very rapidly and accurately. 1t
should not be forgotten, either. that
accuracy in running these lines is of
extreme importance, as badly run
lines will mean terraces with says in
them and consequent breaks. As
the lines are run they should be
marked with bits of newspaper
weighted with a little earth. and