The Nevada County picayune., 1921-03-03
BETTER FARMING HINTS NO. 21
 VELVET BEANS
By E. J. Watson.

ana anxiety, It may seem futile to the minds of many persons to discuss such prosaic subject as Velvet Beans". Whatever we may think about 1t, the chief problem of the Southern farmer, l and the farmers in this section particu- larly, is, and will always be, the prob lem of soil fertility. How can we re- store and maintain fertility? We have been placing too much reliance on com mercial fertilizers, or, in other words, purchasing our fertility, or plant food.
 We recognize the fact that commercial plant food, or feptilizers, fill as impor- tant place in modern farming but, they must not be the chief defiance. We should learn to produce, or grow, on our farms, large amount of the plant 1 food needed, instead of purchasing it from outside sources.
 We do not believe the Velvet Bean needs any introduction to the farmers of this section. Many of them are more or less familiar with it, but, none of Us seem to appreciate its importance and what it is capable of doing for us when given the opportunity.
 Of many of the summer leguminous plants adapted to the South, the Velvet bean easily outranks them all as soil renovating crop. The chief value of the Velvet bean is not as a hay crop, nor as a grazing crop, except incidentally, but, it's outstanding value lies in its great capacity to produce a large amount of humus forming material or organic matter and its ability to gather the nitrogen from the atmosphere and store it up in the nodules on the roots of the plant This nitrogen becomes available for succeeding crops, thereby effecting a direct saving in the pur- chase of this most needed and costly plant feed element. The large amount of organic matter produced by the Vel vet bean likewise has a beneficial ef- feet on the soil, and in the course of time becomes a source of valuable plant food
 There are many varieties of the Vel vet bean, adapted to different regions of the South. The Florida Velvet bean, wh. ch requires a very long growing season for its maturity, is not adapted to this region There are at least two early maturing varieties which makes very considerable growth of vine, and usually mature seed in this region, the Early Speckled, or ninety-day, and the Osceola. Either of these are adapt cd to this section. hose who nave tried these varieties. tell us they prefer inc OsceoIa, as it not only makes an abundant growth, but, batures good crop of seed before killing frost. The Eearly Speckles will also do this, hut the Osceola out yields it.
 There is no longer any doubt but that the best method of growing any variety of the Velvet bean in this re zion is to plant it between the rows of corn. or at least, to grow It With the corn, either between the rows ot corn. or in the drill with the corn, and as rule. the latter method is to D preferred.
 The Velvet bean is strictly hot weather plant, and it is useless to plant the seed until the coming of warm weather On the other hand, II shonid ha remembered that the Velvet bean resuires a rlatiyely long growing sea son for its complete development anu relatively long growing season for itS complete development and maturity and as the plant grows slowly in the becinning. it must be planted just as carly as conditions will permit.
 In the planting of Velvet beans in Il crop of corn there k at least two poAhtS to keep in mind. First the corn must have I sufficient start before the beans are planted so that II Will ho' pe 'Ne run and injured by the growth of the beans before the corn crop has time to reach maturity. Second, the planting of the bffeans must not be delayed too long, as the largest amount of growth and maturity of the beans will not De secured, and thus the farmer would not realize the greatest benefit from them. A good plan therefore would be to plant the corn early and give It d ' good start early in the season. Att things considered, the best time for planting the beans would be when the ! corn has reached height of about two feet. or say from the first to the middle of May.
 When the intention is to plant Velvet ebans with the corn, the latter should