46 ANNUAL REPORT. \ 
Soil. . S ig 
The Secretary. What kind of soil is best, sandy or clayey? 3 
Mr. Miller. Sandy soil has been regarded as the best for syrup, 
making it of a lighter color. Have tried it but was unable this 
year to make as good syrup as from clay soil. Would say that clay 
soil is better. 
Mr. Kenney. Land that will produce from 40 to 50 basheld of 
corn will produce good cane. 
Mr. Fox. I have found rich alluvial bottom and best for syrup, 
but for an article that will granulate I want the mullatto soil or 
yellowish clay. 
Messrs. Kenney and Miller, Our soil is generally black prairie 
soil underlaid with clay, which sometimes plows up. 
The Secretary. At what distance should it be planted and how 
many kernels in the hill? 
Mr. Miller. I plant three and one-half feet apart each way and 
get the best yield by planting six to eight kernels to a hill. 
Cultivation. 
The Secretary. What is the best method of cultivating? 
Mr. Kenney; I do the first cleaning with hoes, simply dressing 
out around the hills. I get the help to do this in time, whatever 
the cost. If the weeds once get ahead it is impossible to repair the 
injury. Next I go through lightly with a shovel plow and stir the 
ground often while the cane is young as in the cultivation of corn. 
Mr. Miller (in answer to a question.) I should be afraid to har- 
row unless the ground was very level. Otherwise the hills might 
be covered by it. 
Mr. Latham. A neighbor of mine has used a small ight harrow 
and thus saved the first hoeing. 
t 
Time to Harvest. 
The Secretary. How ripe should the cane be for best yield of | 
syrup and sugar? 
Mr. Kenney. Three years ago (1875) I made my first sugar from 
cane that was ripe, but there was not much of it; next year (1876) 
I had four acres which I let get dead ripe, and from this I could 
get no sugar. Two acres, however, were planted later, May 28th. 
This was cut up greener and granulated almost before the syrup 
was cold. It made about 600 pounds of sugar. The seed was not 
hardened when the cane wascut. This year (1877) I began August 
