The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1917-05-07
WASHINGTON COUNTY FARM
BUREAU ASSOCIATION.
Report for Week Ending May $.

In view of the fact that this Office has
during the past week received many in
quiries regarding the planting and cul
| tivation of beans, feel that few notes
in regard to the crop, applicable to local
conditions, will be timely.
Beans.
J Time to Plant--Do not plant too early
Beans are very susceptible to frost The
first week In June will be plenty early
and do not plant them unless the ground
is thoroughly warm.
Fertilizing of our land will not
need manure to grow a good crop OF
beans. Even pasture or meadow land
| calls for only $50 pounds or so OF acid
phosphate, or 200 pounds of corn phos-
phate to the acre, put in with the corn
planter for this crop.
Preparation of Soil-Plow early and
deep. Keep narrowed every 10 days until
planting.
Variety to Plant-We cannot be par
ticular about this point this year. The
yellow-eye is standard bean, good
yielder and adapted to our conditions.
The pea beans are smaller yielders and
shatter worse in harvesting. The red
kidney will give large yields and are
also to be recommended.
Planting tSeed per acre and distance
apart Bean growers have many differ
ent methods of planting. Distance be-
tween rows varies from 20 inches to az
inches and from drilling four to five
inches in the rows to hills three and one
knIf
the variety of bean, the place OF plant
ing and the conditions OF cultivation.
The following rules are applicable to
our conditions. For planting in gardens
where cultivation will be done by hand,
rows can be put in 20 inches apart, and
beans four to six inches in hills, Is inches
apart.
For field planting, where horse cult
walton viii be used, the rows should be
32 to "a inches apart. The beans can be
planted in hills two feet apart with six
to nine beans per hill or they can be
drilled, one bean every four or five inches.
They are easier to harvest when plant |
ed in hills but the yield viii not quite
equal that from the drill planting. Plant |
ed as above in the field it will take a |
little less than two pecks Of pea beans |
and from two to three pecks of yellow |
eye or over per acre, depending upon the
distance between rows. II the rows are
not over "a inches apart it will be safe
10 figure on three pecks per acre, II less,
Il will, of course, take more seed.
Cultivstion-The good farmer will
know when to cultivate. Go over the
ield with harrow two or three days be
ore the plants come up. Keep the eulti
'ation often and shallow. Do not allow
he ground to get crusted, or weeds to
tart. Level culture is the most salts
actory. Do not cultivate when the dew
5 on or the beans are wet, as it will
pread disease
Let us do all that we can In this mat
er OF increasing food production. Do
lot be afraid of over-production and low
rices. This is test of our patriotism
nd we should use all means at our com
land to raise more food. Even if New
,ngland doubles her crops, she will pro-
uce only about one half of what her
eople eat. Every blow put in with the
oe is blow to help win the war. Dean
l.. Hills says, "the bread bullets of our
gricultural army are as important as
he lead bullets of our fighting army"
f. II. Abbott,
County Agent.