Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1916-03-08
Sugar Coma Ready
Cash, Profitable Crop

the fact that sweet corn is by no
means as hard on ones land as field
corn. This is due to the harvesting
of the crop before the ears have start
ed to harden 1t is this which draws
so heavily upon the soil phOsphates.
Being plucked green this drain is
spared wherever sweet corn is grown.
One grower who has handled this
crop a great many years believes this
one thing alone is worth at least two
dollars an acre to him. He figures it
would cost him this to replace what
crop of field corn takes from his
soil over and above the requirement
made upon it by sugar corn. When
oats follow the canning crop the yield
is invariable ten to fifteen bushels
an acre greater than when this crop
follows field corn. 1t is possible also
to grow sugar corn for two seasons
in succession and then secure as
heavy a crop of field corn the third
season as though it had followed only
one growing of sugar corn. In one
instance a field of eighty acres had
been grown almost continuously to
sugar corn for twenty years. On seed
ing to oats it ran seventy-six bushels
to the acre when the average of other
fields Whereabouts the same season was
fully twenty-one bushels less. The
farmers in Vermillion county have
come to appreciate this factor in soil
conservation and in increased yield
of oats owing to sugar corn cultiva-
ton, and the factories experience no
difficulty in securing farm acreages
necessary for their needs.
In the maintenance OF nitrogen the
sugar corn barons depend upon an
abundance of stable manure, clover,
vetch and to some extent soy beans.
A rotation of oats and clover is fol-
lowed. The vetch and soy beans are
used as green manure crops. The eX
perience with Russian vetch has been
particularly encouraging. 1t is sown
at the time of the last cultivation
about forty pounds to the acre being
used. Not much development is made
that season, but it comes through the
winter nicely and by the middle of
May has attained a particularly heavy
growth. This is first disced and then
turned under after which late plant
ings of sugar corn are made. In 1915
between $50 and 300 acres of vetch
were grown by one factory. Nothing
like it is known in this vicinity for
tightening up the heavy black soil
characteristic of this region. Soy beans
are now being experimental with in
somewhat similar way. No difficulty
Eas been met with on the score of in
oculation. Peas were grown some
what extensively in this vicinity years
ago. The bacteria from them evidently
remain to do the necessary work of
incubation with the vetch. Experts
now affirm that in most cases it is the
same bug" which does the work.
OF late years it has been found adj
visable to use lime in considerable
quantities on most of the company
lands. Continual cropping has given
the soil an acid tendency. From three
to five tons of ground rock are being
used to the acre with satisfactory re-
suits.
For humus the factories rely to some
extent on turning back the stalks to
the soil wherever they do not cut
them and use fodder. 1t has been
found that sugar corn fodder makes
an exceptionally good roughage for
the mules with which all the field work
is done. More of it is being fed each
year. Having some sugar in it the
animals clean up even the butts. And
the proportion of ''nubbins" is also
heavy, as about ten per cent of the
crop at time of Jerking" is too imma-
ture for harvesting But the best re-
suits in the way of adding humus to
the soil, aside from the use of green
manure crops as indicated-is secured
from the use of ensilage or factory
waste of green cobs and shucks. This
is all turned back to the soil and the
results are plainly evident-particu-
larly where the proportion of cobs is
considerable. This too, is fact which
intelligent farm growers in this vicin
ity appreciate. They are allowed one
ton of ensilage for their own use for
each acre of sugar corn which they
grow Tor the factory.
In regard to seed it has been found
best not to use seed from their own
paintings as constant practice. If
this is done the quality of the corn
is found to deteriorate. Accordingly
a certain amount of seed is purchased
from seed merchants, who have rec
ord for furnishing reliable stock. This
is planted and the resulting crop held
for seed the following year. In this
way there is not reversion of type to-
ward the eight-rowed variety from
which sweet corn has been developed.
Nowhere will one find more thor
oughly scientific farming than that
practiced by the sugar corn barons of
east central Illinois. The result of
their specialization on this crop is
evident in the surrounding country
where thrift and agricultural acumen
appear to abound. 1t is the open
boast-not without some foundation
tbat +ha thousands Of acres farmQd TO