The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1917-02-22

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growers still plant by hand, opening
the row with single shovel ploW
and dropping the nuts at the desired
distance. The row is then covered by
means of a small cultivator with a
notched board fastened across the
back of the implement.
Cultivation of Peanuts.
The cultivation of the peanut
should begin soon after planting and
continue until the vines occupy the
ground. If the surface of the soil
gets hard before the plants break
through, it is a good plan to run a
weeder over the field to break the
crust AS soon as the rows can be
followed regular cultivation should
! begin. A two-horse riding cultivator
is employed to a large extent in the
old peanut-growing regions, although
one horse cultivators are used by
many farmers. A cultivator will give
better results than a sweep or plow.
The surface should be stirred as soon
as possible after rain in order to
prevent the baking of the soil.
After the peanuts begin to peg,
or form pods, they should not be dis
turbed or given further cultivation.
For the last cultivation it is a COM
mon practice to employ cultivator
that will roll the soil up under the
branches, to provide loose soil for the
pegs" to penetrate.
In the lower South, with late
frosts, the vines become yellow when
peanuts are mature. Peanuts should
be dug when the vines have the great
est number of mature pods.
| Peanuts are ordinarily plowed
from the ground with a one horse
plow, with mold board removed to
prevent throwing dirt over the vines.
The plow should be so regulated that
the peanut root can be cut off at any
desired depth. The machine potato
digger does very satisfactory work,
digging from eight to ten acres a day.
This machine removes the peanuts
from the ground and also shakes off
the soil, leaving the vines lying on
the surface. This machine is only
practicable where considerable
acreage is to be dug.
After the peanuts are dug gang
of workmen shake the vines free
from the soil and throw them in
small punches. When the machine
digger is used this shaking is un-
necessary as the machine frees the
peanuts from the soil. The vines are
left spread on the ground or in small
punches from three to four hours
and are then placed in small stacks
around a pole to cure.
The poles for the peanut stacks
should be three or four inches in
diameter and seven to eight feet long.
The poles are set in the ground IL to
1S inches and are well tamped.
Before starting the stack one or
two pieces of lath, scrap lumber or
sapling, about Is inches in length,
are nailed at right angles to the
stake eight inches from the ground
to prevent the peanuts coming in
contact with the soil. In starting to
build the stack a few vines are laid
across these pieces and the stack is
then built up by successive layers of
vines, the pods being kept well to
the centre against the stake and the
tops to the outside. The stems
should slope outward to shed water.
Occasionally a few vines should be
hung around the stake in order to
tie the stack together. BY this
method the pods will be near the cen
tre and around the stake, where
there is an upward circulation of air
and general protection. When the
stack has reached the desired height,
a bunch of vines are rolled together
and pressed down over the point OF
the stake to form a top, or a little
dry grass or a few weeds may be
used for this purpose.
1t is not advisable to use anything
for topping out the small stacks that
will prevent the circulation of air.
A heavy cover or a covering of green
or wet hay will invariably cause the
peanuts to spoil.
Curing in barns is not advisable
either when curing peanuts for mar
ket or where the entire plant is fed
to stock, as the crop will cure better
in small stacks than when stored in
bulk. After the nuts have been cured
in the stack from four to six weeks
those intended for feeding purposes
may be stored in barns or sheds.