742 Grasses and Leguminous Crops in New York 



as the top of the bunch is dry. If this is not done the peas under- 

 neath will swell and burst the pods, and when they become dry 

 a great percentage will shell out and be left on the ground. When 

 stacked in the open it is necessary to protect the stacks by means 

 of canvas covers or with a layer of green gTaiss placed over the top. 



THRASHING 



The thrashing of the field pea is usually done with an ordinary 

 grain separator fitted up especially for the pea by the substitution 

 of blank concaves, leaving only one row of concave teeth below 

 the cylinder. Usually four concave teeth are sufficient to retard 

 the passage of the vines long enough for the cylinder to break the 

 pods and release the seeds. (Fig. 682.) By thus limiting the 

 number of concave teeth and greatly reducing the speed of the 

 cylinder it is possible to thrash the field pea without cracking any 

 considerable percentage of the seed. In regions where the field 

 pea is very largely grown, the thrashing machine is commonly 

 equipped with an adjustable pulley wheel made of wood, which 

 can be bolted to the regular cylinder pulley, thus making this 

 pulley large enough to decrease the speed of the cylinder to the 

 required numbeT of revolutions. Where the peas are intended 

 wholly for feeding purposes such precautions are not necessary, 

 since cracked seed is then not objectionable. 



Fig. 682. — Concave Plates with All but 

 Four Teeth Eemoved, Adjusted for 

 Thrashing Field Peas. 



