The Wilmington morning star., 1946-06-10
Carolina. Farm Comment
By F. H. JETER

Between Micro and Kenly in
Johnston County, and about two
miles off Of Highway 301, is the
Glendale neighborhood. 1t is a sec
ton Of small but fertile farms; aid,
tobacco is tae principal cash crcp.
In the heart of this Glendale com
murity is the little 43-acre farm
belonging to Mr.. and Mrs. lsham
Il. Phillips. They have some Il
acres of open, cleared land on the
pace and they, too, grow tobacco
viii. corr and some other small
crops. At the edge of their back
yard is a large poultry laying
rol,se in which they formerly kept
BOZ nice laying tcns but instead of
hers. this building now houses ore
of the most unique farm shops that
you ever saw 1t is equipped with
homemade mechanical contriv-
ances of all kinds and from that re-
converted poultry house will flow
this year about 700 implements to
apply side applications of nitrate
of soda and fertilizer to the crops
of that community.
1t all began about three years
ago when Mr.. Phillips and a cousin,
Raymond Radford, began work on
an implement to put out side ap-
plications of fertilizer at the same
time that they used their tWo-row
riding cultivators around their to-
bacco crops. They devised a ma
chine, but it wouldn't work just as
they thought it should. The cousin
abadoned the idea, or at least he
would not push it further, so Mr..
Phillips paid him cash for his part
of the idea and then went to work
to improve the machine. He had no
equipment or tools except as he
says, "such as I need around here
to build what l want"
But he used the tools that he had
and he built a machine that works.
It was completed about this time
of the year in 1914. He used it all
of that wear to make side applica-
tions. There was no hand labor to
do this kind of work, and SO the
neighbors began to watch his op-
erations. Last spring, they demand
ed that he make machines fol-
their use. He told them that ne
would be glad to do SO if he could
get the steel. At any rate, he final
ly employed a man to help him;
converted the poultry house into
a work shop, and made ITS of the
implements for his negihbors. This
spring ne has made 500 up until
this time, and, he has orders on
hand that will run the number to
over 700 before the season is over.
Or. Phillips has had his idea pat
1hted and says the only trouble he
is having now is getting enough
steel for his operations.
1 went to see his machine n
afternoon last week. He showed
me all through his little shop, and,
then his brother-in-law, with whom
he farms, hitched up a mule and
demonstrated how the machine is
used with the one-horse pillow. 1
should add that Mr.. Phillips builds
two types. One is fitted for the
two-horse cultivator and the other
for a one-horse pillow. Both kinds
are sturdy, hand-built affairs that
will last until the final bit of
steel wears away The machine
consists of a hopper of sheet metal,
with an ingenious arrangement at
the bottom through which the ferti-
liber flows as it is knocked by a
steel arm hitting the spokes of the
cultivator wheel, This is adjustable
SO that the amount of fertilizer
desired may be distributed. A flexi-
BILE metal hose "a inches long puts
the fertilizer just where it IS need
ed at the side Of the plant roots
and this fertilizer is then mixed
with the soil and covered with the
c%ultivator plows.
The design used with the one
mule pillow is the same as that fol
the cultivator except that the distri.
eitor flow is governed by a prong