56 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



shall have something to say about clover further on. I next tried 

 Canada field peas, at first in part of the orchard, and afterward, being, 

 greatly encouraged in all the orchard which by this time covered 20 

 acres. One of these years I planted peas in one section of the orchard, 

 and corn alongside the peas. 



I was much gratified to note the fact that the portion of the orchard 

 in peas, even where the trees were not hoed, made as good growth as 

 that in the corn, Avhich was cultivated and hoed and which also had a 

 moderate application of commercial fertilizer. I plowed under the en- 

 tire crop of peas, buying new seed each successive year. 



I sowed the new seed on the ground before plowing and thus with one 

 plowing I put in both the old crop and the new seed. I found this 

 method, plowing in the seed 4 inches deep, the best way, as the peas are 

 less likely to dry out in summer, beside this reason, I had no drill and 

 the peas are hard to cover up unless put in with either drill or plowing 

 under. By this method the orchard received a three fold benefit, ferti- 

 lizer, humus, and a cover crop, as the peas lay where they grew until 

 the following spring before being plowed under. 



About the only objection to the i)eas was that some years, in a long 

 continued drouth, the sand would become so hot as to scald the vines 

 as they had no other plant to climb upon, so I decided to tn^ vetch as 

 that legume was coming into prominence as a soil renewer. 



At first I tried vetch alone, and since that rye and vetch together, half 

 a bushel of each seed ])er acre. I was unfortunate in being imposed on by 

 my seedsman, Avho sent me vetch seed that was about one-half cockle. 

 I am trying to destroy that ]»est by })ul]ing it out while in blossom, a 

 very expensive and discouraging job. As usual I leave the rye and vetch 

 to grow to maturity and plow under the crop when the seed is ripe 

 enough to grow, except about 2 acres of the best of it, which I cut and 

 thresliCd for seed and now have nearly all my orchard seeded with rye and 

 vetch, about 30 acres of this seeding. Part of the new seeding was done 

 in standing corn and cultivated in about Sept. 1st. 



At date of this meeting it has made a splendid stand, and growth 

 enough to ensure a good crop next season. The soil in the older part 

 of the orchard has, by the practice as shown in this paper, become good 

 enough for clover and in my 8 acre portion of the orchard seeded with 

 clover a year ago last Septeniber, the clover is as rank and as fine 

 every way as on the best quality of land anywhere. August is by far 

 the best time to sow both rye and vetch, also clover, on sand. When 

 clover is sown in spring it often dries out and dies, and the young tender 

 plants are easily destroyed by the hot sand burning the leaves. My 

 method of putting in clover seed, also rye and vetch seed, is to sow 

 broadcast on the rough furrow and drag it in with spring tooth harrow, 

 then with spike tooth harrow and finish with tlie float. 



The float is one of the best tools in my orchard, home made. I do 

 not use a disc. For yeai-s I owned a half interest in a disc, and after 

 thorough trial for several years I have become disgusted with its failing 

 to come up to expectations. There is nothing that the disc will do on 

 sandy ground but Avhat a si)ring tooth harrow will do much better, and 

 the latter is easier on the team and costs only one-fourth as much in pur- 

 chase money and a hundred times easier to keep in order and repairs. 

 Of course sand never becomes lumpy. 



I have tried cow peas and soy beans and have come to the same con- 



