The circle banner. [volume] (Circle, Mont.) 1914-1939, 1917-01-19


in the field until February or March
exposed to the winds and rains of win
ter, it is questionable whether its
feeding value is equal to the cost of
cutting and shocking.
Storing Ears Unhusked.
Jerking the ears and storing them
unhusked is a method of harvesting
employed in some sections, especially
in the South, where the argument usu-
ally given in its favor is that if the
protected from the grain weevil. The
destruction of corn by this insect is
one of the drawbacks to more extern
sive corn culture in the South. AS soon
as the corn becomes dry enough to
crib, weevils are frequently found
working under the husks on the kerr
nels of the ears, sometimes to the
number of 20 or more to the ear. 1t
is question whether the corn is more
seriously injured by transferring the
weevil with the unhusked ears to the
| crib than would result were the corn
husked in the field, causing the weevilsi
| to drop to the ground and thereby
| leaving most of them in the field. II
| The total amount of work required
| to jerk the corn and afterwards husk
| it is considerably greater than that re-
| quired to husk it directly from the
standing stalk, and the quantity of
forage obtained by gathering the husks
| is not sufficient to pay for the extra
| work. Much better forage could be
obtained more cheaply by other meth
DDS. If the husks are sold advantage
| ously for mattress making it is we'll
to perform the two operations Of jerk
i ing the ears and afterwards husking
them in a manner that will furnish
husks of good quality. The proper
ton of husk varies greatly among the
different kinds of corn, but it is suf1l-
cient to say that it requires fully one
half more room to store the ears I'M
husked than husked.
Binders.
The corn binder with bundle carrier
is satisfactorily used in cutting corn
of average or small size on land that
is not very steep or stumpy. On the
comparatively level prairie land of the
north central states the corn binder is
very generally used in cutting and
shocking corn. In light corn or on
level land two horses will suffice, but
for faster work or heavy corn the use
of three or four horses is much more
satisfactory. Three men, one to run
the binder and two to shock, and two
teams can cut and shock about seven
lions vary to such an extent regarding
the weight of the corn crop, the lay of
the land, ETC., that 1T is impossible to
give figures that will apply to all
cases. In sections where the corn
binder is successfully used the princi-
pal objections to its use are the cost
of Irvine which remains upon the fod-
der but short time, and the knocking
of of ears in the process of binding.
In almost all cases the quantity OF
corn knocked off by the binder is great
enough to warrant driving a wagon
over the field and gathering the ears
from the ground after the corn is cut
and shocked. This is necessary, be-
cause the presence Of the shocks in
the field prevents the turning in of
hogs or cattle to gather up the ears
off by the binder.
Huskers and Shredders.
The use Of shredding machines is
quite general in many corn-growing
sections. Sometimes the machines are
Used for shredding the slower after
he ears have been husked from the
shocks by hand, and in other cases
10th the husking and shredding are
lone by the machine. The shredding
# the slower puts it In a more COM
,act form for storing and a more con-
venient form for feeding and avoidn
he troublesome work Of handling ma
lure in which there are long coarse
.ornstalks. Shredded slower Is fed
With much less waste than slower In
ny other condition. It has been esti-
mated that shredded slower will 60 10
'er cent further In feeding cattle than
be whole stalks and considerably fur
her than when the stalks are put
through a feed cutter. As there arc
breeders of varying capacities, =
armer may purchase machine suited
, the quantity Of work to be per
3rmed, or a number of farmers In Z
may own machine Jointly.
fodder by the acre and
and husking by the buahef
70 common In many sections where
,ews operate huskers and shreddelo
u travel fro0 fhEsn = farm.