No. 6. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 697 



While we have very good machines for cultivating from two to six 

 rows to the round they are not suflficieni (o lay by a croiJ. Some 

 people think as soon as corn gets too tall that the machine brakes 

 or bends the stalks, \\(»ik should cease and the machine laid by. 



While this is the time il pays to cultivate, I think a man, a mule 

 or small horse and an up-lo-date-one-horse cultivator can earn more 

 dollai's in a single day than any other work on the farm. You may 

 say it takes too long or do not have the time. 1 will say it will pay 

 you great to neglect your harvest for a day or two to give your corn 

 a cultivation; also after harvest as long as you can get through, 

 which is only impossible when we have a storm that blows the corn 

 down and over the row. It pays to watch the corn after a storm 

 for a few days as it very often becomes erect again, when cultiva- 

 tion can go on. Von may say -a farmer does not have time to do all 

 this. I say a man following a diversified system of farming has the 

 time if he gets up and hustles. A horse and man who cannot culti- 

 vate 8 or 10 acres a day I do not consider very valuable, as I have 

 cultivated 10 acres in 10 or 11 hours many times with fair length of 

 rounds and reasonably clean soil. 



One man should be able to attend 50 acres of corn in a moderate 

 season; I mean if we do not have too much rain, necessitating the 

 work to be done betw^een showier s. This would give him six acres 

 per day, and the corn a cultivation about every eight days which is 

 sutficient on the average soil; and my word for it, "It will pay." 



After having given an outline of the kind of corn and how to 

 grow it, I will try and give you an idea of how to make the most 

 of it, partly by experience of my owm and partly by the experience 

 of others. The highest feeding value of the plant and ear is just 

 when it is in the glazing stage. This is the time to secure it, same 

 as you would sell stocks and bonds if we know when they are at their 

 highest point. It has been thoroughly demonstrated that the glaz- 

 ing stage is the zenith of the corn plant. 



Then why not use it. AVe cannot of course feed it all in Ihis 

 stage. The next best thing is to silo as much as one can use to 

 advantage. Next cut and shock the remainder, husk and secure 

 both fodder and corn with as little bleaching and leaching as possi- 

 ble. The corn and cob can be fed whole to a profit up to about 

 February Or March when the cob becomes too hard and should be 

 reduced by crushing or grinding by some system, as it has been 

 thoroughly demonstrated that the corn and cob meal will make as 

 many pounds of beef as corn meal alone, and if hogs follow the cat- 

 tle more dollars can be made out of the crushed corn and cob than 

 by corn meal. The fodder or stover should be reduced by a shred- 

 ing or cutting and crushing jn'ocess to make every bit of it available 

 for feed. I prefer the cutting to one-fourth in lengths and crushing 

 it. I think this puts it in the best possible feeding condition either 

 45 



