CASSAVA 119 



when it is impossible to further cultivate. If a 

 row of cowpeas be planted between the rows, the 

 fertility of the cassava land can be maintained. 



When the plants are mature, the tops are cut off 

 5 or 6 inches from the ground with a corn knife or 

 hoe and the roots then pulled out. In sandy soils 

 this can be done easily by hand, but in the stiffer, 

 tighter soils they may need first to be loosened by 

 means of a shovel. It is the usual custom to leave 

 the roots in the soil until used. If drawn out and 

 stored, their value is lessened. From 5 to 8 tons 

 are produced to the acre. In feeding experiments, 

 conducted at the Florida station, cassava has proven 

 the superior of corn, chufas or peanuts for fatten- 

 ing pigs, a pound of pork being produced with 

 cassava at a cost of about one cent, or at a price 

 about one-third that of other food stuffs. Starch 

 is the conspicuous constituent in cassava. It is 

 evident that best results are secured when some 

 nitrogenous food like clover or peas is fed in con- 

 nection with the cassava to more evenly balance 

 the ration. 



CHUFA. This plant is used slightly as a field 

 crop in the South and is in especially good favor as 

 a food for hogs. The parts that are valuable are 

 the underground tubers, which are known as nuts. 

 They are usually eaten raw, the hogs doing the har- 

 vesting. Sometimes they are baked. The tubers 

 are oblong, one-fourth to one inch in length, and 

 hard. For feeding purposes the crop ranks close 

 to corn and is considered superior to soy beans or 

 cowpeas. The yield is large, varying from 100 to 

 200 bushels an acre. The crop is propagated by 

 means of the tubers. These are usually planted 

 singly 2 inches deep, 10 to 15 inches apart in rows, 



