DATE AND METHOD OF PLANTING 17 



than in Illinois, in order to have the crop ready for 

 harvest at a time when dry weather is most likely 

 to prevail. 



If equipped with special broom-corn plates, the 

 ordinary corn planter may be used for planting the 

 seed. If the special plates are not available, the 

 holes in the plates used for planting corn may be 

 run full of melted lead and then bored out to the 

 proper size for distributing the broom-corn seed at 

 the proper rate. 



For standard broom-corn the rows should be 

 about 3J/2 feet apart and the plants in the rows 

 approximately 3 inches apart, while for the dwarf 

 type the rows should be 3 feet apart and the plants 

 in the rows about 2 inches apart. 



Broom-corn is sometimes planted in hills for con- 

 venience in hoeing and cultivating. In this case the 

 hills are spaced about 16 to 18 inches apart in the 

 rows, with five or six stalks of standard or eight 

 to ten stalks of the dwarf type to the hill. Three or 

 four pounds of good seed is sufficient to plant an 

 acre. This rate of planting will apply to fertile 

 corn soils. If the land is thin and lacking in fer- 

 tility, the plants should be farther apart in the 

 drills and a fewer number of stalks should be left 

 in the hills. 



Every effort should be made to secure an even 

 stand, in order that the crop shall be of uniform 

 quality, but the practice of planting a large excess 

 of seed is to be condemned, since the grower fre- 

 quently neglects to thin his plants to the proper 

 stand. In fact, the thinning process is a very labori- 



