356 THE FORAGE AND FIBER CROPS IN AMERICA 



each, 4, 4.5 and even 5 feet, with a space of not more than three 

 feet in the row, are recommended. 1 



With cotton, as with the cereals, the experiments indicate 

 that the plant has great power of adjustment, the total 

 yield of cotton per acre being often but slightly different when 

 two and even three times the number of plants are raised per 

 acre, the yield per plant being thus greatly modified on account 

 of the thickness of planting. The width apart of the cotton 

 is perhaps largely influenced by the fact that the chopping 

 hoe is seven inches wide and two strokes with the hoe would 

 leave a space of 12 to 14 inches between plants. 



450. Cultivation. Since the season of growth is some- 

 what longer and the cotton is always planted in drills, the 

 amount of inter-cultural tillage is somewhat greater than with 

 maize. It is customary to hoe one to three times, including 

 chopping out, which is thinning the plants with a hoe to one sr 

 more plants to a place. At the same time the space between the 

 rows is cultivated three to six times. A general rule is about 

 once in ten days until the limbs hide the ground. 



Usually no cultivation is given after cotton is planted until 

 the plants are four to six inches high, which will be two to 

 four weeks after planting, according to weather, soil conditions, 

 and seed. The rows are then "barred off," which consists of 

 throwing a small furrow away from the row with a one-horse 

 turning plow or with a scooter plow. This leaves the plants on 

 a narrow ridge The cotton is then chopped out, after which the 

 rows are "four furrowed," which consists in going twice around 

 each row and throwing the earth toward the plants. 



The more rapidly these operations follow each other the bet- 

 ter, especially on soils likely to suffer from drought. After this 

 the soil is best stirred with some form of surface cultivating tool, 

 which may vary from the single heel scrape, ranging from 



1 Alabama Sta. Bui. No. 107 (1899), p. 223; Georgia Sta. Bui. No. 66 (1903), 

 p. 125. 



