The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1923-02-15
aoW TO GROW CANNING PEAS
And The Soil Best Suited to Their
Production in Garrett County

Lynn Heights by the Mount Airy
Canning Company during the COM
ing summer, the following article,
prepared for The Republican by Mr..
James A. fowler, the representative
Of the industry in Oakland, is timely
giving us it does directions as to the
growing of peas and the variety of
soil best adapted to their produc-
| tica:
There is a general impression that
growing peas requires much hard
labor. AS d matter Of fact, under
modern methods, the crop is planted,
! harvested, unloaded from the wagon
and threshed by machinery which
makes them neither a difficult nor
| expensive crop to grow. Cost rec
ords show that on the acre basis,
peas cost less than oats to produce.
Peas generally grow best in loans
and clays, bat they may be grown IN
most Garrett county soils if proper
| precautions are taken. Peas are
| cas,lY damaged by standing water.
| Land subject to overflow or deficient
| in surface drainage should be avoid
ed, but glade soils, after they are
well drained, are very satisfactory
for peas.
Peas require a deep, well prepared
+ seed bed. The ground should be
| worked to a depth of at least five
inches. Where sod land is used it
should be plowed in the fall if pos
slhle. This is particularly necessary
on heavy clays low in organic mat
Jcr. Good results may be obtained,
however, with very early spring
blowing Of goods on land, provided
some implement as q roller or
| plaaEer be used to get the soil well
tirmed. All blowing should be done
far enough ahead to allow the land
time to properly warm mp and
weather.
The seed bed should not be too
fine for there is danger Of land bak-
ing when heavy rains follow soon
after seeding. The soil should be Of
q GRUMPY, not powdery, texture.
The ground should be leycled so as
to do away with hoIlows and promi-
neat ridges. Stones, roots and trash
should be hauled off as they inter-
fere with the machinery at harvest
log time. Il the ground IS rather
clod4y it is a good plan 10 roll it
after the peas are well up.
In this climate the variety Of peas
that we will use should be seeded the
latter part Of April or the first of
May. As a rule, however, the sea-
son and not the calendar should be
the ~uide.
Pees should be sown at uniform
derth # they are to ripen evenly.
The grain drill is the best for seed
ing, since it covers all the seed at
about the same DEPTH. Four bush
els should be seeded to the acre, and
should be drilled two ways-two
bushels one way and two the other.
Set the drill to SOW to a depth Of
two to three inches, depnding some
what or the soil. On heavy clay
soils two inches is deep enough.
On soil slow in hUmus, a light top
dressing of manure is beneficial. Peas
being legume, require a lot of nj
trogen and cannot attain full devel-
opment unless there is a supply of
nitrogen fixing bacteria in the soil.
This may Be lacking entirely, there
is 10 way Of telling, so as a matter
Of insurance, incubation is very I'M
portant, in new land especially.
Two methods Of incubation are
used. One is by the use Of soil from
a field where bacteria were produced
in abundance. The other method is
by treating the seed with pure cul-
ture. Proper incubation is inpor-
tant, for it may mean the difference
Of success and failure. Since the
nitrogen fixing bacteria cannot live
in acid soil it is necessary to lime or
TO know that the soil is not ecid.
Peas are high in mineral matter,
so it VIII be necessary to use some
commercial fertilizer also. On clay
soil that has been lined and that has
a fair supply of hunus, about three
hundred pounds of sixteen per cent
acid phosphate per acre should be
used. On glade land and land high in
humus, an O-12-1O goods should be
used. The potash helps to stiffen the
vines and causes the peas to ripen
earlier
Peas are admirably adapted for
growing in rotation with small
grains, cultivated crops and hay or
pacture crops. An excellent four year
rotation is as follows: Small grain;
clover for hay and pasture; cultivat-
ed crops; peas. The pea stubble is
disced and fitted for grain (winter
wheat to rye) without blowing. The
growing of peas after cultivated
crop largely avoids trouble with grass
and weeds in the pea crop and in the
succeeding grain crop.
A second rotation which will be
good is: Glover; mixed hay; peas;
cultivated crops; small grain seeded
! to clover