Milford chronicle., 1931-06-05
ITALIAN RYE SOON
TO Be HARVESTED
Thirty Or More Bushels
To The Acre Is Expected
From Local Farm

One hundred acres of Italian Rye
now growing on the farm of Robert
=. Davis, Esq, of Milford, is pic
ture once seen, will be long remem-
bered by all agriculturists. The farm
is under the management of Harry
B. Greenly, and he also has two
other crops of the same Italian Rye
growing i'll Cedar Neck, about four
miles east from Milford.
The 100 acres on the Davis farm,
stands rank and dense on all parts
of the entire acreage, and last week
when the writer i'm company with
MIR. Davis visited it, the top heads
on the rank straw were fully six
feet above the ground. The heads
were just ready to bloom on the
seed plats which ranged from three
to four inches long, which would in
dictate an average yield per acre
from that crop, of thirty or more
bushels to the acre.
Mr.. Greenly is expecting to har-
vest 5000 bushels from the three
crops he has in Cedar Neck.
This is the same breed of Rye
which was introduced into Delaware
by the late Joseph Z. Holland, who
had farmers grow crops for him eX-
clusively of this rye, and which he
sold to growers and seedsmen. The
yield has been always large, while
the price was about that of wheat
several years ago.
Mr.. Greenly uses machinery eX-
clusively in all his farm work in
producing crops. Tractors, gang
plOws, harvesting equipment for la
Dor saving, forms a striking feature
about the premises.
The Gravel Hill farm has been in
the Davis family for more than 100
years, and, so years ago, it was one
of the best kept, and most prOduc-
tive farms in Cedar Neck district
adjoining the City of Milford. OF
late years it has been owned by
Robert p. Davis, Esq, who not haV-
ing devoted much attention to farm
ing, the buildings were left to the
care of tenants who were without
pride in either their work, or of a
fine farm in a neighborhOOd where
many good farmers was the rule;
so decay and neglect has had a
marked effect on this once handsome
old farm.
The picture as seen from the
front porch of the old home, last |
week, was one of natures many
beautiful agrarian sights often seen !
in Delaware. The strong wind made !
a billowing sea of green waves for |
a half mile in several directions. 1t |
is worth riding down into Cedar |
Neck, over its modern roads and by !
the we'll farmed fields which line the |
entire route; and, it is certain also,
that Robert P. Davis will feel like
starting the old farm back into the
ways of prosperity it enjoyed for
many years under the direction of
successful farm owner and man
ager of forty years ago.
In addition to the grain harvest
ed, there is a special value in rye !
straw, when it is saved at threshing |
time, with the view of selling for
packing purposes; at least there
was once a very ready market for
rye straw before the day of paper
cartons and other forms of use. But
with a crop or rye straw like this
to plow under, it equals in value
the cost of commercial fertilizers
used for fertility and crop produc-
ton.
AMr. Greenly a few years ago went
to Georgia to make his home, but
he returned and now he joins in
singing the song, Delaware, Oh
My Delaware" with feelings deeper
than he ever entertained before de-
parture.
With 5000 bushels of Italian Rye
soon to be harvested Mr.. Greenly
believes with John Howard Payne,
who in his wonderful poem said,
Home, Home Sweet Home, Be 1t
Ever So Humble, There Is No Place
Like ,Home"-if it is in Sussex
county, Delaware, and less than five
miles of the City of Milford.