MISCELLANEOUS CROPS 609 



Remedies. Two things must be accomplished to keep the field 

 clear of red rice : First, seed planted must be free from red rice, and 

 the utmost caution must be exercised to secure this ; second, red seed, 

 if accidentally planted, must be prevented from maturing in the field. 

 To this end it is exceedingly important to prevent a second crop of 

 red seed from maturing after the general harvest, which is almost 

 certain to occur if the field is left fallow till the following winter. 

 The land should be well drained at the time of the harvest, and within 

 a few weeks thereafter the stubble should be plowed under. In Octo- 

 ber the land should be thoroughly cultivated with a disk harrow and 

 sown to oats for winter pasture. If the harvest be early, the stubble 

 may be plowed under immediately and the field planted to vetches or 

 crimson clover for pasture. In pasturage care should be exercised not 

 to allow any stock on these fields in wet weather. It is quite custom- 

 ary to burn the stubble. This may destroy a few seeds and prevent 

 sprouts from maturing seed, but it destroys fertilizers and leaves the 

 land bare. Fall plowing and planting to forage crops is far more 

 advantageous. Plowing in the early spring and thorough cultivation 

 just before planting are helpful in reducing the red rice, but not suffi- 

 cient for complete eradication. 



While some of the methods mentioned for eradicating weeds and 

 red rice are helpful, none of them has proved completely successful 

 except summer fallowing with cowpeas or planting in corn. This 

 plan increases the fertility of the soil, so that more rice is produced in 

 a series of years than by uninterrupted cropping with rice. 



On new land, seed absolutely free from red rice should be used ; 

 then, with care, the land may be kept free from it. In case land is 

 already filled with it, if sufficiently well drained, cultivate to corn or 

 cotton a few years ; if not sufficiently well drained, summer fallow ; 

 if this can not be done, pasture to sheep or hogs. Every rice planter 

 should use great care, in selecting a new piece of ground upon which 

 to raise seed, to choose a plot without possible taint of red. The seed 

 should be examined closely to prevent the sowing of any red seed. 



Harvesting. Reaping machines are generally used in the 

 prairie districts of Louisiana and Texas, but in the other rice-produc- 

 ing sections such machines can be used only to a limited extent, if at 

 all. The principal obstacle to the use of large and heavy machinery 

 is that the ground is not sufficiently dry and firm at harvest time. In 

 some rases the smallness of the fields is also an obstacle. 



Where the use of reaping machines is impracticable, the sickle 

 is the implement commonly used in harvesting rice. The rice is cut 

 at 6 to 12 inches from the ground, and the cut grain is laid upon the 

 stubble to keep it off the wet soil and to allow the air to circulate 

 about it. After a day's curing, the grain is removed from the field, 

 care being taken not to bind it while it is wet with dew or rain. The 

 smaller the bundles the better will be the cure. 



' Care in shocking is also important. Thirty per cent of the crop 

 may be lost by improper shocking. The following directions will 

 aid : First, shock on dry ground ; second, brace the bundles carefully 



