58 MASSACHUSETTS AGRICULTURE. 



FRANKLIN-COUNTY SOCIETY. 



CORN. 



[Statement of George E. Taylor.] 



I came into possession of the farm where I now live in 

 1860. The meadow, a fine loam resting on gravel and clay, 

 had never been ploughed but once. Part had been planted 

 with corn, with poor success ; the remainder was broken 

 when I took possession. It was laid down to grass as soon 

 as convenient, all of it (three to four acres) producing heavy 

 grass, but not considered adapted to corn: then followed 

 occasionally a top-dressing ; but the crop diminished so much, 

 that I determined to try the plough. In September of 1877 

 I turned over one acre of this meadow. In May of 1878 

 spread on some twenty loads of stable manure, and harrowed ; 

 then furrowed three feet and a half apart, and dropped seven 

 loads of compost in the hill three feet apart ; hoed ; cleaned. 

 Notwithstanding frosts, early and late, together with tempest 

 of wind and rain, we harvested eighty bushels of corn, with 

 extra crops succeeding years. In October of 1879 turned 

 over a hundred and seventy rods treated in the same man- 

 ner, the tornado of Jul}^ 12 breaking one-third of the stalks ; 

 yet we gathered about ninety bushels of corn. In November 

 of 1879 turned over the remainder of this meadow, plant- 

 ing a hundred and eighty rods to corn, with the following 

 treatment : twent3^-five loads of stable manure spread on in 

 May, and harrowed with Randall's wheel-harrow ; furrowed 

 three feet and a half apart, five or six inches deep ; then 

 dropped, in hills three feet apart, seven loads of compost com- 

 posed of swamp-muck and horse-manure worked up by hogs; 

 on this was dropped a hundred pounds of plaster ; covered ; 

 and the corn planted two inches deep May 18. The corn 

 came up quickly, grew very fast, with a dark-green color, and 

 standing five stalks in the hill, which at second hoeing (June 

 16) was thinned to four stalks in the hill. June 1, 16, and 



