1889 



GLEANINGS IN BEE 'CULTURE. 



395 



HOW TO RAISE BUCKWHEAT. 



"IN the multitude of counselors there is 



WISDOM." 



N answer to our call for articles on buck- 

 wheat culture, the following have been 

 received up to date. In most localities 

 I presume it will reach our readers in 

 ample time to prepare the ground and 

 get in a crop. As communications are con- 

 stantly coming in, we shall have a continu- 

 ation of the matter in our next issue. 



BUCKWHEAT IN NEW JERSEY. 



Buckwheat, like rye, is a grain which will yield a 

 fair crop on poor ground, though of course a bet- 

 ter one on good ground. Still, it is not advisable to 

 manure it very highly, as it is very apt to " lodge." 

 I doubt if the increased yield of grain would pay 

 for the use of chemical fertilizers, while doubt- 

 less the lodging tendency would be increased. 

 With us it is generally sown on rough, stony, or out- 

 of-the-way fields, where a drill could not be used, 

 and for this reason it is usually sown broadcast, 

 using about three pecks of seed per acre. Buck- 

 wheat seems to do best on "new" ground— ground 

 recently cleared of wood; and it is especially val- 

 uable in taming or subduing such land. Old mead- 

 ows, and reclaimed lands generally, that are too 

 "sour" to produce crops of corn are sown with 

 buckwheat with this taming idea. 



A favorite rotation for re-seeding, with grass, 

 heavy clay lowlands, is buckwheat one year, oats 

 the next, and grass without grain following oats, 

 the same year. Buckwheat not being sown until 

 the fore part of July, this allows ample time for 

 getting heavy clay lowlands in shape for sowing. 

 I say the fore part of July, but it is almost a super- 

 stition here to sow buckwheat " the Fourth of July, 

 wet or dry." 



I never heard of buckwheat making two crops in 

 a single seasou here, but it is of ten sown early in 

 spring, to be plowed under, and the land sown to 

 buckwheat in July. 



Much diversity of opinion exists about plowing 

 buckwheat under, some claiming that it is a posi- 

 tive injury to the land. 1 think that trouble has 

 arisen out of the practice, only when the buck- 

 wheat was plowed under while in full blossom. 

 Avoid doing this, and you are all right. The 

 ground should be well prepared for buckwheat. 

 If it can be plowed some time before the grain is 

 to be sown, at seeding time, the buckwheat sown 

 on the plowed land, cross-plowed in and well har- 

 rowed, the chances for a good crop are enormously 

 increased. 



In harvesting, buckwheat is commonly cradled, 

 before frost if possible, and preferably in the 

 morning, while the dew is on, or on a damp day, as 

 the grain shatters easily. As it is hard to dry the 

 straw sufficiently for thrashing, it should be left in 

 swaths for three or four days, then raked in 

 bunches or gavels (again preferably while the dew 

 is on), and set on end, unbound. It should be 

 thrashed on a dry windy day, and should be clean- 

 ed from the chaff at once or it may heat. Even 

 the grain, if in large quantities, may require Shov- 

 eling over in the bins to prevent heating. In large 

 amounts, or if slightly damp, thrashing by ma- 

 chine is the easiest way; if quite dry, it is easily 

 thrashed by hand, two men thrashing it about as 



fast as two horses can haul it to the barn; or if the 

 barn-floor is reasonably large, the buckwheat may 

 be spread thickly on it in a circle, and horses driv- 

 en around over it. This latter method will give 

 the cleanest grain and smallest proportion of 

 cracked kernels. But use the machine every time 

 unless the buckwheat is dry- 



The straw is useless for litter, but it is the best 

 thing obtainable for the bottom of the barn-yard, 

 coming up from the ground so clean in the spring 

 that very little scraping is necessary. 



The new Japanese buckwheat, introduced here 

 some three years ago, is growing rapidly in favor. 

 It produces much more grain to the acre, and more 

 and better flour to the bushel, then any of the old 

 kinds. With no previous intimation, I detected 

 the superior flavor of the Japanese flour the first 

 morning we had cakes made from it. We had im- 

 mediately before been u-sing silverhull flour. 



Bees gathered very little honey here from com- 

 mon buckwheat last season, but they worked freely 

 on the Japanese. R. A. Learned. 



Newton, N. J., May, 1889. 



BUCKWHEAT IN CANADA. 



To prepare the' ground lor buckwheat, if stubble 

 land, plow in the fall, then in spring stir the 

 ground frequently, to make weed seeds germinate, 

 and to destroy them in turn when started. If the 

 field needs manure, and you have it to spare, put it 

 on and plow, say about ten days before sowing the 

 seed, and drag down again. This will cause an im- 

 mense lot of noxious seeds to germinate; drag 

 again to kill these and start more, and now the 

 process of putting in the seed will kill these. If 

 not underdrained, and if the soil is of a clay nature, 

 open water-furrows, and roll; and I feel pretty 

 sure you will feel happy every time you take a look 

 at that buckwheat field. A crop of any kind of 

 grain growing luxuriantly upon nice, clean, well- 

 pulverized soil, can not fail to give pleasure, and 

 make one think of God and his goodness. If a 

 piece of sod be fixed upon, I would plow it about 12 

 to 14 days before sowing, and drag frequently. A 

 roller should follow' the seed. A drill covers the 

 seed better than a drag can cover that sown by 

 hand. 



Some cut their buckwheat in the old way— with a 

 cradle; others use a reaper. I really don't think 

 there is much difference in the final results, if 

 hands be plentiful and hiring has to be done all 

 round. Buckwheat is now mostly thrashed with a 

 machine; however, all counted, with from one to 

 four acres it can be thrashed more economically, I 

 think, with flail or with horses. When the crop is 

 ready you can go right at it, and no waiting for a 

 machine until it rains again. 



To thrash with horses, you want two teams— one 

 with a couple of smart boys to draw to the barn. 

 Put on just enough for one flooring. The other 

 team, with a couple of good men, will thrash it and 

 shake the straw off while the boys get another load. 

 If you put on the wagon more than one flooring at 

 a load it will get damp from the sappy straw, and 

 thrash very tough. Proper care should be taken 

 to have the grain dry when grinding time comes. 



Some object to this crop because of its persisten- 

 cy in growing the following summer in the suc- 

 ceeding crop. Well, I always got over that difficul- 

 ty by sowing oats or planting corn on the stubble 

 land. We never sow it early in the spring, like oth- 



