1076 (4
2k
JVhai Farmers Want to Know
Dy W. F. MASSEY
tion of bone . dust .ok of ' acid phos
phate aijd resow with, a mixture of rlO
pounds of 'orchard grass, 5 pounds of
redtop ' and 10 pounds,6f Kentucky
blue grass an acrehelorcHafd grass
and redtop will come on at once and
make; a shelter- for the, slower i blue
T'THE PRptjRESsiVE.FARMEj
-grass which vyill finely make th
Then do irot imagine that 01
. field will remain pt0du ve tUr.e
-itableJf'nothingisdonefoH,
andyou can maintain !so7inSS
Sapling Clover
plants in open furrows in November, :
" ..Via" fiirrnwc rurtnincr acf .nnri 'wfst
WE HAVE about, eight acres of d the plants set ten inches apart.
W sapling cloyer frorn which we These will usually winter well and
cut a heavy crop in July,and the se- rhead iri early;spring, and they too
cond growth is now a foot high. gef the. mtrate of soda as soon as4
Should this be cut for cow 'feed, or the start in spring.'
will cutting damage the next season ; .
$500 More a Year for the Average South-
emrarmen:
BETTER METHODS OF LAND RENTAL FOR LANDOWNER AND tfkta
- .By PROF. W F. MASSEY. . "WANT-
crop
My experience with sapling clover
is that it seldom does much after one
year, and will hardly amount to much
next, season. Just as well cut it and
feed it.
Crimson Clover
'WOULD it. be .advisable to; sow
crimson clover as a cover crop
to turn under in spring north of the
northern belt shown in the map in
your Clover Special, especially in Al
bemarle County, Va. ?" x
There is no better winter cover
crop for any section from the south
ern tier- of. counties in Pennsylvania
southward, and no better : soil im
prover, especially; when iised in con- ;
11. it
. Lespedeza in the upper South nection witn tne summer , grown, ux
..i.-f . r... r.ii cowoeas and- sov beans. Crimson
raaKcs a nne summer anu lau uas" , . . . ' . .,
.ture, but cannot be relied on as a hay clover,is in ,very: general use in the ;
n Avr in tf, lnwr Qnnth Mnf ; OUUlflCril CUUIIUC5 VI jrcuilsyiVdilld.
. . Lespedeza for Hay and Pasture
T NOTICE that lespedeza is. highly
- A recommended in The Progressive
.Farmer. Is this crop better than; or
equal to crimson clover in a rota
tion?" 'v:-'
of the lands in the Piedmont country
are already well set' in lespedeza as
far north as the Rappahannock River,
and it will generally be. found abund
ant - on stubble fields after oats and
wheat. But it cannot be compared in
value with crimson clover, since it is
a summer-growing plant, and de-
.pendingentirely on peas and lespe
deza for the legume crops will leave
you without a winter cover, and for
this purpose there is no crop equal to
crimson clover for the South.
In all -the southern r half of York
County, Pa., J s aw n early every corn,
field green with this Clover, in win- ?
ter. The middle of that tier of couri-
ties east of the mountains seems to
be about the northern limit " of its
success."
Wants to Grow Fall Onions
T WISH to sow or plant a fall crop
J.
of onions that" will make big
bulbs; I Please tell me ; the kind to
Lesnedeza has now her.nme. so well plant," how to plant and cultivate."
attached to the soil in all the red clay You cannot grow ripe onions. .this
sections east of the Blue Ridge that season by plantirig now. ' Of course
it is seldom necessary to sow it. It they will grow and will keep on
t.- J i. 1L.1 ii mi L' ornwi'tKr raY flirnnorri tliA -winter
iias uuc auvauicigc iiiai it win gruw o---"o v.c,.. v..
in a shade. I have seen it growing Y can plant in September sets of
over ankle-high in a pine thicket in the Yellow Potato Onjon,:juid they
Davie County, N. C, and it seemed to will make fine ripe onions by the first
be making a better growth there of next June, and are the earliest ripe
than in the open field. I once sowed -onions you can grow. This onion is
lespedeza seed among the broom- always planted from sets, for it never,,
sedge " covering a ; rocky hillside in niakes seed, but. makes offsets. at the;
.Virginia, which was too full of fast root which are used for sets. Plant
rocks for- plowing, and it grew arid in very rich soil in rows 15 inches'-
ran out the broomsedge and made an apart and keep clean of y grass land
excellent pasture on that, hillside, and weeds till cold weather,and:then they
I have noticed in many places in will be helped by a mulch of manure
w m crnnnpr evetpm cn Inner nrn r- ' and Pnor! tpnint . ,
I ticed in the South and the crop it on the same terms. Then f -om !f
A lien have be"en.the ruin' of land profit? of the crops; of which the ti l
and tenant, and .should be; forever ant received one half, farm after
abolished. They have made the ten- was boughtrand tenants were readJW
ant the slave of the landlord and, the tound until7the owner finally had 56
merchant, and have ruined lands that - farms: Q J
will require "years of patient farming -270 acres each, and was assessed at a
to restore. IThe cropper would be. far million dollars for taxation. Tenants
better oft working for wages and sav- -lived on those farms for. thirty ears
ing his money .for the final purchase or more, and; many of tliem bought
of a home, and the landowner would 'amis of their, own and rented them
; make far more from his land by equip-;.pn the same terms while they remain--ping
it. with - decent, dwellings: and - ed on the rented .farms till their own
hariis whpre'men with mearis'noiiG'h "-farms had been brought im tr, o
to farm right could be induced to live. .Jar condition. When the owner died
A one-sided- rental plannedf only e was a multi-millionaire, and as he
for the immediate, benefit of. thilatod all
owner, and a, rental Jroiri year-to been made at farming, for every farm
year, giving the tenant no inducement ad been ; bought from the profits
to farm- in an improving way, wilt nwder 6tii;the: previously purchased
never result in the improvement of ones. This great estate has now been
the farms, nor in profit to twner or divided among the hirs, and the'
tenant. The ;terms of land rental -same system will be pursued by each.,
should be made fair to both sides, and A System Fir to Renter and Land
the duration of the tenancy; should - owner
depend on the way the tenant .farms TM' AM n . . ,
and develops the product capacity . rnLfulT? Ti -r mC!l
of the soil, L it hL beln proved that 7 ? caught the idea and
such rental system cabe-iade A"1.1"
nrnfitnKlA- tn thp Innflnwn the ten, "" ;,fUU "reu cumparauveiy
t v--V, .v. -
ant and the land.
Two Wise Landlords
"young left fifteen farms for his heirs
'to go on with, and which are now be
ing managed by his son and the sys- ,
tem still carried on. The tenants are
.western North Carolina where it has
. driven out the broomsedge. On very
strong bottom lands in the upper
South it may make a hay crop, but its
main value in this section is as a pas-
between the rows to be worked in. in
the spring. ,.,--
Grass Failing
ture plant: In all the lands where les- I nAVil asoaneia in tne upper
pedeza, commonly known as ' Japan Piedmont section ot Virginia
clover, has taken possession, it wiU which, has not been broken for twen-
grow among peas where these are .ty-five or thirty years. Until 1914 it
sowed, for, as I have said, it does not was a splendid blue grass rsod, tut
mind shade, Hence I would always then 1 noticed that the soil ;haL a
sow peas or soy beans or both mixed crust or mold: on it and; seerhed-ead
and not devote a whole geason4b;lesV.
pedeza, and would always have crim. This: season has been very, favorable,
son clover as a winter cover. ' but the grass has done very little. I '
thought -I Would try lime, and would
like tbf -know- how . much -to jiise an
acre." -. - ' ; -V4'. '-
T AM' going to sow half an" acre in . The rnain difficulty is - that, like
' 1 lettuce seed;" I will break it good- niany othersy you hve thought; that
and deep -arid "cover it with manure, .a sod could take care of itself, and
drilling the horse manure in 18-inch did not realize that in grazing that
rows; cover with'a' drafe "arid drill the sod for twenty-five or thirty years
seed and thin, to 10 inches apart. ThiK you have been exhausting the soil,
is on low muck land, rather moist but ' especially in; phosphorus, for every
not wet. Shall IfSow in beptember animal tnat maie its 'bones trom the
Growing Fall Lettuce
or late .August?" ?: :
' grass carried i off . the v phosphorus.-
For a-f all crop mr the open ground That you, cannot eat a cake and keep
' the seed should bel sbwed:;
nugusi. mine wcic mjwcu iuc iiniui wvp. vn"i6 wwps ui aujr oui i iium
the month. T findTthat it is best to land without returninsr artvfhini?. and
transplant rather than ' thin where keep the land fertile and productive.
. sowed. I set the plants in six-foot I know hill lands that have been in
beds ten inches apart each. way, and sod for- 75 years and pastured every
manure heavily with manure that has season, which will today make more
been piled and turned all summer till grass than they did fifty years ago.
: fine andrblack, for fresh manure will But these pastures have been top-
, not answer half as well. Then as the dressed every spring with raw bone
plants start to grow I sprinkle ni- meal, and today will fatten more than.
' trate- of. soda between the rows twice a steer" an acre, ; j
"to ' push;' them rapidly along. You -Your grass has. simply run out be-
could hardly get good heads outside cause of soil exhaustion. Liming the
from sowing seed in September, -1 sod will do very little:good; The best
use. for .this crop the Big Boston, thing.to do will be to break the land
m Then in September I sow seed of the deeply and harrow in not :less than a
Hanson and .wonaertui and set the ton of lime and give 'a liberal applica-
T CAN point, to Vat; least two: wise " M"'aQ on- nfle tenants are
l-i-Mvwt;A-CkV;?n a small flock of sheep
aires since theyGviUW f
and rerrtirlg: farms-'oM fd ewhf at' ant feedi em off for the
manent-;renUl,:Vawhosc?tenahti And !" fevery
made monev while" the fertility of "ere has been an effort to make the
the farms
increased through a wise contractus fmdu" f l Tl Y m? Z
to the method of farming. Arid this ants, who know hat they will reap
was in a section wherewheat iand 0,1
torn ar the main sale crons and' no anUreater crops, since their tenancy
torn are, the main sale cros. and.np ,d nd oii the. skn, and attention
cotton grown . . , ji 'they give to the farm. Some have
Thirty or forty -years ago a merr ' died on the farm arid left the tenancy
chant , in .- a . country town saw that t(j their sons and the family remains
much-of the land in his section waS , right there as though they owned the
not being well cultivated and that the placed
farmers who were - renting land did suc'h a system would bring wealth
not have a fair chance either for tp ian( . owners and tenants alike in
themselves or the landlord. He plan- the cott'0n country, and could be made
ned a method of. improving rotations there with the great Southern staple
with grain and clover and stock, :and even more profitable than in the
bought a farm, put the buildings all in wheat-growing country where it has
comfortable shape, and then offered been so successful.'
to rent.it to a good tenant who had But it involves the expenditure of
means and stock for carrying it on n6ney by the land owner in equip
according to his plan for. v improve- ping the farms with dwellings in
merit. ; He found a man who would which good farmers will live, and in
accept the contract, with the - agree-;' volves a fair 1 give-and-take, with a
4nent that he would never- be moved strict contract;" as to " the farming
sorJong 1 as he farmed in accordance methods 4 V ' ; ;
with the contract. ; , . - . . I i should have: added that in the
- The tenant was-required to furnish - rental mentioned the" landlord furn
the stock "arid labor arid pay iforhalf ishes' lime when needed arid the ten
the fertilizer used on the wheat crop, v ant spreads it. -The tenants fully un
the only place where i was to be derstand the importance of liming at
used. The landlord was to furnish -least once in- five or six years, ana
comfortable dwelling : and sufficient icriow thatwhatever is for the lm;
banr rooni; etc.' Thetenant-was ito provementot he ' soil will increase
3uvy a wiu.rrd iii ciuvcr every ineir prouis on iuc ... n
year ariday for'the seed. The Undr Farms in rtheTSouth divided into
lord burnished fencing material' rind - areas oFabout 250 acres of cul
'the tenant ;huilf the fences.-T-hedari svStem ,1
lord .furnished paint , and whitewash made a wonderful-source of Proht
and the tenant-applied the paint, to ihe land6wners .who have meansnd
the dwelling when needed and the their veuipment, and tenants cou
whitewash to the outbuildings. , The then take farms with the certainty u
tenant. paid no rent on any of the permanence and profit from the
stock he raised, and he owned all the provements, until they couia v
clever hay, corn stover and straw so farms .of their own. Such a sysr
iuug as t;c iea it on tne tarm and 'would encourage me uuj6 .
spread the manure on the corn land the tenants; and render a tend
annually. He had his'choice of farm- fife one of: hope, for the future,
, . . A. rill 1 1
T 1 -.i MAAAtID III i SLi ' '
j. t. . . . - .' . tit . ..i-M 4-n farm
hi a mrcc-year rotation or a nve- ne men witnout mca" -y j1iaiiy
year one the first; involving but one could work', for them and graau j
field sowed annually-in clover and accumulate, stoclc for renting in
the other, two fields in clover arid - same way 'and "finally. "become ia
grass. ' 1 - : . ' , . ' owners.- If is the-test way I kn0
The immediate success of. this first, for the gradual'independence i o .
farm' led to the .purchase of. anbther, renter'andlfortune to the. lanaow