IiiE Bulletin. 67 



A good rotation is, perhaps, more important, where peanuts are to be a. part 

 of the system, tlian in most crops, because of tlie tendency to feed tlie vines 

 from tiie' land, thus renioviiif,' practically all the vegetable matter from tiie soil. 

 Soils constantly robbed in tliis manner, without some system of rotation to replace 

 this vegetable nnitter, would decrease in fertility. In a good three or fcnir-year 

 rotation, using cowpeas, clover and other legumes, leaving a good portion of 

 vegetable matter in the soil, peanuts need not impoverish the soil, even when 

 nuts and vines are removed. 



The preparation of the soil for peanuts should be thorough, as in other crops. 

 Time spent with plows and harrows to get the soil in a fine, pulverized condition 

 before the seed are planted always starts the crop to better advantage and makes 

 the subsequent cultivation much easier and less expensive. It lias been my ex- 

 perience that Hat planting and level cultivation is prefeiable, being less expensive 

 and yielding better results. Yet some of our good farmers dilVer with me here 

 and still plant on a ridge, and follow somewhat the method known as "ridge" 

 cultivation. The peanut is, compared with cotton and tobacco, an easy crop to 

 cultivate. The weeder, used often and at the pioper time, that is, before the 

 young grass and weeds get a start, is a very satisfactory implement to aid in 

 the cultivation of peanuts, and helps greatly towards eliminating the hoe. If 

 the ground is well prepared before jjlanting, and the cultivation is frequent, one 

 chopping is usually sullicient; but if the soil is not stirred often, so as to destroy 

 young weeds and grass while quite small, more than one chopping will be neces- 

 sary. One great advantage with the peanut plant is that being sliglitly covered 

 with dirt does not hurt the young plant, but in a few hours it pushes its way 

 out and grows as well as before. 



The peanut is a great lover of soil that has been well limed. To make the 

 larger varieties successfully a good quantity of lime is necessary, either naturally 

 in the soil or supplied by the grower. The quantity to apply to the acre depends 

 entirely upon the individual condition of the soil in question. As a rule the more 

 humus in tlie soil the more lime can be used profitably. Anywhere from 200 to 

 1,000 pounds to the acre may be used, depending upon the condition of the soil 

 in question. 



Totash and phosphates are also very beneficial to this crop. On land producing 

 a good-sized vine the use of nitrogen or ammonia will not be found profitable 

 in most cases. The matter of lime, potash and phosphates is of so much im- 

 portance tiiat it would be wise for those not having grown this crop (and for 

 many who have grown it also) to write; Dr. Kilgore, the State Chemist, and tell 

 him the nature of your soil and he will be able to give valuable information along 

 this line. 



Land plaster, or sulphate of lime, is applied to the crop at the rate of from 

 200 to 300 pounds to the acre, just as the plant gets started to fruiting or "peg- 

 ging," as the farmers say. This i)laster causes the peanuts to fill out well in 

 the hull or prevents "pops," as we call hulls without fruit in them. The chemists 

 tell us that the purpose of this plaster is to make quickly available the elements 

 the plant needs at this stage. 



The harvesting or "digging" of the crop is commenced when the larger number 

 of pods on the vines have reached maturity. There are several usual indications 

 of this stage. The lower leaves usually begin to shed, the leaf and limbs show 

 dark spots, showing that the plant has about completed its growth. The surest 

 test, however, is to pull up an average vine and examine the stems connecting 

 the fruit with the vine. If the stems on the most mature pods are dead and 

 have somewhat the appearance of a wet paper string the jjlant has reached its 

 maturity, and the sooner the crop is dug the larger per cent of the pods will 

 be saved. Sometimes growers allow them to "shed" some of the oldest pods in 

 order to have some for the hogs to consume, more than would be otherwise left 

 in the ground by the usual operation of digging. 



The operation of "digging," as usually understood by the grower, includes the 

 whole process of ploughing up, shaking out the dirt and stacking around poles 

 six or seven feet high above the ground. The tap-root of the ])lant is cut just 

 below the nuts by running under the plant with a one-horse turning plow with 

 the wing removed, the point being made longer towards the outer edge by fast- 

 ening a piece of steel, sharpened, so as to cut the tap-root. Some use what is 



