The Henry County weekly. (McDonough, GA.) 18??-1934, February 05, 1909, Image 6
Modern Farm Methods As Applied in the South. Notes of Interest to Planter, Kruit Grower and Stockman What is the Coupon? The cowpea, which is known botan fcally as Vlgna Sinensis, belongs to the Leguminosae family, and is there fore closely akin to the clovers, vetches, beans, peas, etc. Its com mon name is a misnomer, due to local usage, for it is rather a bean than a pea. Its chief value centres in the possession of the peculiar traits char acteristic of the leguminosae family, one of these being the ability to gath er atmospheric nitrogen and store it in the leaves and grain. It accom plishes this through little nodules growing on the roots and in which certain forms of bacteria live, which have the power of assimilating atmos pheric nitrogen. Observe that in some sections and on certain fields the cowpea does not seem to thrive well. If some of the nlants are pulled up and the roots examined, a very few small nodules will be observed, and sometimes they are entirely ab sent. In a field of vigorous growing peas the nodules will be found to be numerous and large, showing the im pair,ant function they perform in the economy of the plant. On land where the cowpea does not do well when first sown, there are none of the bac teria which enable it to assimilate the needed atmospheric nitrogen, and so the growth is dwarfed. The difficulty may be overcome by coating the land well with farmyard manure, by the direct application of nitrogen, or by inoculating tbo soil by drawing sev eral loads of earth from a field on which cow cas have been successfully grown and scattering over the sur face, thus supplying the soil with the needed bacteria. This is an impor tant matter, for some persons have experienced a good deal of trouble when they first attempted the culti vation of the pea and have never un derstood the reason w r hy. The foregoing explains the farm er's interest in the cowpea, as it is, first, a cheap mpdium of supplying ni trogen to the soil through a green crop plowed under, and second, it fur nishes a hay particularly rich in pro tein to balance up the abundant roughness produced on the average farm. These are important matters, for applications of nitrogen, especially when associated with vegetable mat ter, are a marked benefit to nearly all soils. The farmer can rarely afford to make vhe heavy application of ni trogen because of the cheapness of his products and the high price of the fertilizer, which now sells for fifteen cents a pound. But he can afford to utilize the cowpea for that purpose because he gets atmospheric nitrogen for nothing through a wise provision of nature. ' In feeding any class of live stock the problem is to secure a balanced ration, that is, one in which the car bohydrates which produce fat, and the protein—which produces flesh or muscle, etc., will be in the right pro portion to give the largest growth or gain at the least outlay of animal en ergy and at a minimum cost of food. The rough forage crops, which are rich in carbohydrates or fat formers, are the easiest and cheapest to grow, while the protein producing crops have hitherto been the most difficult and expensive to produce. The more general cultivation of the cowpea will make it possible for the average farmer to have a large supply of hay r jis rich, pound for pound, in feeding ndtrients as alfalfa, and almost as valuable as wheat bran. Investiga tions have now shown that the hay Til ay be substituted successfully for a portion of the grain in a ration adapt ed for feeding either beef or dairy cattle, and so it is no wonder that the farmer's! interests should centre in the production and utilization "of this wonderful plant. Planting ami Cultivating Coupons. The cowpea is sown either broad cast or in drills. When intended for hay making it is best to seed in drills twenty-four inches apart, using one of the bush varieties, as they do not tangle so badly as the trailing or run ning varieties. When planted in drills they are easier to cultivate and can be cut to better advantage with the mower. Planting in drills also saves considerable seed, which, owing to the cost, is a matter of great im portance. In a dry season or on ground where weeds are particularl> bad, the drilled peas can be cultivated to advantage and will often make a very good crop, while broadcasted peas do practically nothing. When peas are drilled from one-half to one and a half bushels will be needed, de pending on the use to be made of the crop. Where seed is desired, use the larger amount, as it makes the plants bushy and they bear a larger number of pods. Where the peas are broad casted from one and a half to two and a half bushels of seed should be used. Cowpeas may he seeded with a one horse grain drill or with a two-horse corn planter, or better still, with an ordinary grain drill. Where a nine tube drill is used with eight-inch spaces between the hoes six of them should be stopped up temporarily, which will seed the peas in rows twenty-four inches apart. They should be covered two or three inches deep, depending on the amount of moisture in the soil. When the peas are planted in drills they should be run over once or twice with the weed er as soon as they come up to destroy incipient weed growth, to break the top crust and preserve a dust blanket to retain moisture. When they get a little older, either a one or two horse cultivator may be used to run through them once or twice to have moisture and destroy weeds. As soon as they begin to run they will cover the ground and shade It and need no fur ther attention. The advantages of having the peas in drills are so nu merous that broadcasting is gradually being abandoned for the more mod ern and superior method of cultiva tion.—A. M. Soule. White Clover in the Lawns. . A. J. C., Knoxville, Tenn., writes: How can I get rid of white clover mixed with grass in a lawn? About the only way to get rid of white clover mixed with blue grass would be to dig it out by hand. Many people sow a small amount of white clover with the blue grass because it makes the lawn attractive, particu larly if it is kept closely clipped. Un der these conditions the clover blos soms are produced on very short stems, and they give an attractive ap pearance and variety to the lawn that is *very pleasing to the eye. White clover seems to be indigenous to prac tically ail parts of the United States, and though it may not be sown in the lawn it will develop in some seasons when rainfall is plentiful. It is thus a difficult matter to eradicate white clover, hut in my observation and ex perience it has seldom if ever been an objectionable feature in a lawn, as it is not a particularly vigorous growing plant, and rarely develops sufficiently to crowd out a well established blue grass sod.—Professor A. M. Soule. racking of Apples in Tloxcs. One great advantage of packing apples in boxes is that close distinc tion in size and color are easily made. The number of apples in a box can be siiiys •‘Offset” Pack —3 y 2 Tiers Four Layers—B4 Apples. determined almost instantly by the buyer, practiced packers claim to distinguish size by different styles of pack. Familiarity with half a dozen styles \will enables grower to pack successfully all the common , arieties. With the straight pack, as The ~Diagonal” or Pack*. —-S% Tiers —Four Layers—BS Apples. illustrated, a box may contain 96, 112, 128 or 144 apples, depending upon their size and shape. In the offset pack the three apples do not quite fill the width of the box. The uext row is placed s© as to leave the space on the opposite side. A form of diagonal pack is shown, which is The “Straight” Pack—Four Tiers— -96 in Box. somewhat more economical of space. In all cases the object is to get an even placing of the fruit with the same size throughout. Nitrogen is Waiting. Over every acre you own there are thousands of pounds of pure nitrogen 1 waiting for you to take it and make a profit on the taking,—W. F. Massey. Your Cotton Crop Can Be Increased It costs no more to cultivate an acre that produces two bales of cotton than an acre which produces only one-quarter of a bale. Why not see what £ou can do with Virginia-Carolina Fertilizers Other men have been able to double and more than double their yield per acre with a liberal application of Virginia-Carolina Fertilizers. Messrs. Lucas & Jackson of Kelsey County, Tenn., used Vir ginia-Carolina Fertilizer on about 55 acres planted with cotton, and say: “We have the finest crop of cotton we ever saw, and all the people around here think the same. We actually counted 447 bolls on one stalk. Another stalk had by actual count 409 bolls, forms, sjuares and blossoms. On about 8 acres we expect to make about 2 bales to the acre, and an estimate of adjoining farms not so fer tilized and under other cultural methods, will yield only 1 bale to five acres.” An interesting picture of the cotton plants referred to will be found in the new 1909 Virginia-Carolina Farmers’ Year Book, copy of which may be had from your fertilizer dealer, or will be sent free, if you write our nearest sales office. Virginia-Carolina Chemical Co. Sales Offices Richmond, Va. Norfolk, Va. Columbia, S. C. Atlanta, Ga. Savannah, Ga. Memphis, Tenn. How Germany Builds a Navy Ey Sidney Graves Koon, M. M. E HILE preparations for the United States navy have been more or less buffeted about in committee and on the floors of the Senate and House of Representatives, we have had Win recent years a very conspicuous example of the benefi cial results accruing from a continuous and regular naval ship-building policy, such as that at present under way in the German empire. Beginning with 1898, the Germans have been acting on a definite program worked out for sev eral years in advance. It has been known far ahead of the time of beginning construction just how many vessels of the various classes were to be laid down each year, although later acts have much increased the numbers and sizes. The act of 1898 contemplated the acquisition of a navy including twenty battleships, eight coast defenders, twelve large and twenty nine small cruisers, besides six destroyers to be laid down annually. This to tal included a number of ships already in existence, and work was prosecuted on the others at the rate of two or three large ships each year. In 1900 a supplementary act increased the battleships to thirty-eight, the large cruisers to fourteen, and the small cruisers to thirty-eight. In 190 G the lage cruisers were increased to twenty, and the destroyers to be laid down each year were raised from six to twelve. In 1907 the active life of all vessels was declared decreased to twenty years, after which new construction would fill the place of each vessel so retired, without such construction being included in the regular list for additions to the navy.—Leslie’s Weekly. Halls of Congress. Senator Tillman insinuated that some Federal Judges were on the payrolls of corporations. The House Naval Committee was defeated in its efforts to replace ma rines on board warships. The urgent deficiency bill was passed and the postal savings bank bill was considered in the Senate. The President appointed a national council of arts, consisting of eminent architects, painters and sculptors, under whose direction national works will be planned and erected in the future. vs * Feminine Notes. The Moody Bible Institute, Chi cago, plans to erect a building en tirely for women students. Girls attending the Lakeview high school in Chicago receive lessons in the art of jumping from a moving car. Mrs. Eleanor Relyea, a clerk in the signal office of the War Department, will be the next social secretary ot the Waite House. Mrs. Philip Snowden, wife of the British mem mr of Parliament, has made a reputation for eloquence in the inieresv, ot the suffrage propa ganda. Sales Offices Durham, N. C. Charleston, S. C. Baltimore, Md. Columbus, Ga. Montgomery, Ala. Shreveport, La. R. 0. JACKSON, Attorney-at-Law, McDonough, ga. Office over Star Store. E. M. SHITH, , Attorney at Law, Me DOXOUGH, Ga. Office over Star Store, south Bide equare. All work carefully and promptly attended to. pSf“ Am premared to negotiate loan* •a real estate. Terms easy. mb PORATABLC AND STATIONARY ENGINES and boilers tew. Lath and Bhin*le Mill*. Injeotor*. Pempa and Fitting*, Wood Saws, Split ter*, ■halt*, KuUejr*. Belting, Gasoline Engine*. mOBJTOCK LOMBARD, Ewifiji Hwhlai and M* Works and Supply Stan, AU4UBTA, OA. Kennedy’s Laxative Cough Syrup Relieves Colds by working them out of the system through a copious and healthy action of the bowels. Relieves coughs by cleansing the mucous membranes of the threat, chest and bronchial tubes. “As pleasant to the taste as Maple Sugar” Children Like It* For BACKACHE-WEAK KIDNEYS Try DeWiit's Kidney and Bladder Pills-Sure and Safa Sl®#! bsQ 0 til fa MiaßaaßaciaaaaaßaaHaciiaaiaaaßraEarjaaxia cxrsas Coughs,Colds, CROUP, WhoopingCoiigh This remedy can always be depended upon and is pleasant to take. It contains r.o opium or other harmful drug and may be given as confi dently to a baby as to an adult Price 25 cents, large size 50 cents. The hero who “choked with emo tion’’ naturally got a strangle grip on the heroine.