Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1917-12-31
Forty Thousand Bales OF Cotton Make Sumers Main Crop

The secret of success in the grow
I ing OF any crop may be summed up in
these few words. Good, deep prepare
ton in the fall of the year, the incor-
porating of plenty of vegetable matter
in the soil by blowing in all grass
and rubbish and the turning under of
cover crops, such as peas, rye, clovers,
etc; rapid and shallow civilizations,
soon after rains, to save moisture for
the crop in times of drought and to
allow circulation of air through the
soil for supplying the roots with nee
essary breathing air and to liberate
available plant food; by judicious fer
tilizing with the proper fertilizers,
and by seed-selection to improve the
variety of cotton and to keep it pure
The land should be well broken,
preferably in the fall of the year, with
a two-horse pillow, followed by a sub
soil pillow, reaching at least from eight
to ten inches deep, or a disk pillow can
be used, breaking the land about the
same depth. This breaking should be
broadcast.
If the land sbroken in the fall of
the year, a cover crop of rye should
be sown. This rye will serve to keen
the land from washing and will gather
the available plant food, storing it
in its own body and thus preventing
it from being washed or leached
away. Just before planting time, the
rye should be turned under. This
would be about the first of March. A
good cover crop of rye turned under
is equal to a good coating of stable
manure. There are, however, but few
farmers who plant a winter cover
crop as they ought After the land
| has been broken as described above.
whether cover crop is used or NOT,
early in March the land should be pre-
pared for planting.
| This is usually done by fat-bed1ing
! out the land, as it is called, into rows
of the desired width and then forming
a small bed, by use of small plows, in
the water furrow, and then planting
on this, which leaves the cotton on a
level, or slightly below lever. The
best, cheapest and quickest way, per-
haps, would be to thoroughly harrow
the land then mark off the rows
equally distant apart and plant on a
level This would permit of the use
of a weeder to great satisfaction, and
besides. is much prettier.
The spacing of the rows depend
on the size of the stalk the land nat
rally produces and the amount and
kind of fertilizer to be used. Where
cotton will grow from Is to "a inches
high, the rows should be about {
feet apart; when it grows from 80 tc
SO inches high, 3 IL feet apart; whet
from 40 to As inches high, 4 feet apart
and when above this height the row!
should be feet apart If much sta
BILE manure or as much as 1000 pounds
OF high grade fertilizer is used, tn,
roms should be from A IL to5 fee
apart. Mr.. Dozier's rows We're fee
apart.
Proper fertilization is an importan
feature in the growing of cotton NJ
exact rule can be laid down for tht
fertilization of any crop at any place
but should be made an object of stu.
dy by each farmer every year in tht
growing of his crop.
Farmers, as a whole, are given t.
the habit of using what is called al
S-2-2, or 1922 guano, insteat
of a higher grade guano, which woulc
cost them less per pound of plant fooC
and would much better serve the needs
of the cotton plant, particularly il
I this section
Since there is a general use of the
S-2-2 and the 1872 fertilizers, ]
would like to suggest a fertilizer for
general use also that is better be-
cause it is cheaper per pound of plant
food and because the lands in our