The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1923-02-08
SOY BEANS GIVE
BETTER RETURNS
THAN COWPEAS
Mammoth Yellow Soy Beans Make
Heavy Growth of Vines and Pods,
and Are Far Preferable to COwpeas.
To Be Planted With Corn.
(By Il. b. FERRIS

(By Il. b. Ferris)
1t has been my experience that
soy beans give better returns in this
section than cOwpeas. Our results
with cowpeas go to show that while
they may make luXuriant foliage,
they seldom fruit we'll, while many
of the varieties are subject to nema-
tOdes on the roots and often die with
out as much as making vines. In
tests made here last year with ten
varieties of cowpeas, none of them
fruited sufficiently well to be worth
picking, although two paintings
were made. the first on April % and
the last on June %.
The Brabham was the most vigOr-
Gus of these varieties followed by
Victor and Conch. all of which seem
ed more or less resistant to nema-
todes. The California black Eye
was the most seriously affected of
all with this root trouble, its relative
hardness being only Is as compared
TO 100 for Brabham. % for Victor
and 90 for COnch.
We have been growing Mammoth
L
and find them always hardy, gen
orally making a heavy growth of
vines and pods and far preferable to
cowpeas if planted in rows and given
some cultivation. They have not
been found so good as cowpeas for
broadcasing or for planting in corn
at the last cultivation. However. my
experience here has been that it is
a bad practice to pant any legume
with corn except in individual rows
and early enough to give them some
cultivation. We prefer to plant such
legumes, whether they be cowpeas,
soy beans or velvet beans in every
third row with the corn and about
two weeks later BY thickening up
the corn in the drill about as many
stalks may in this way be left on
the land as if every row were planted
to corn and there will be little re-
ducti0n i'm yield due to the presence
of the additional crop.
We have found this trouble with
Mammoth Yellow soy beans they are
poor germinatOrs and it is very hard
to get good stands when planted.
They also pop out badly when ma
ture and unless gathered promptly
when ripe are largely lost, especial
ly if the weather is wet the fields
cannot be promptly graZed off by
hogs. If these beans are planted
deep enough to terminate in dry
weather. rain after planting will
pack the land to where a very large
per cent of them will break their
necks in pushing through the ground.
On the contrary. if planted shallow
enough to terminate in wet weather,
an unexpected drought may cause
them to give equally as poor stands.
I'm experimental work here with
these beans, in order to get stand,
we find it necessary to lay off a
very shallow drill with garden plOw
and to cover the seed with the same
implement, leaving a V shape cover
ing which will not bake in case of
rain, or become too dry in case OF
drought. Will say that the usual
trouble is due to rain rather than
drought.
We think we have found in Lare-
do and Otootan soy beans two va
rieties that are greatly superior to
the Mammoth Yellow in the case
with which they terminate and
come up to sands, in the ability to
hold the fruit when mature, as well
as, i'm the fact that the vines and
stems are less coarse and the quality
of hay made from them correspond
ingly better. Ny advice would be
to use one or the other of these last
mentioned varieties.
The Biloxi is a variety that was
originated in South Mississippi and
does we'll in certain sections. They
are the rankest growers of them all,
but here have never fruited well. MY
impression is that they fruit better
nearer the coast.
Planting of soy beans may begin
when danger of frost is over or about
with the planting Of cotton, and may
continue up to the middle of June
with any Of the varieties, and up to
the middle of August with. the earli-
est0maturing kinds. OF the varieties
named above, / would class them as
to earliness as follows: Laredo, Mann
moth Yellow, Cootan, and Biloxi.
AS to the methods of fertilizing,
soy beans, are legumes and have the
power of getting nitrogen from the
air. They may need potash and, II
So this has to be supplied, but unless
convinced to the contrary | would
assume that the soil contained suf-
ficient potash to, meet their require
ments. The soil In this section us
ually needs PHOSPHORUS and we are
suggesting the use of 40 pounds OF
acid phosphate to the acre. Il, one
intends growing these beans in guam
tity. few rows of potash might be
tried in addition to PHOSPHORUS to
see if it shows to be OF suffielent
merit to warrant its use. On the
poorest lands that have not hereto
fore grown ,legume, the use OF %