THE CANADA FIELD PEA 177 



Seeding is done after the weather is warm about corn-plant- 

 ing time or later. When drilled in rows for cultivation about three 

 pecks of seed per acre is used when a grain drill is used, or when 

 sown broadcast, five to eight pecks are required. The seed should 

 be well covered to a depth of one-half to two inches. 



The crop may be cut for hay as soon as one-third of the pods 

 have turned brown. It is usually cut with a mower, partly cured 

 in the swath, and then raked and piled to complete the curing 

 process before stacking. 



Cow peas are often planted with corn or are drilled between 

 the rows of cultivated crops in midsummer. They may be broad- 

 casted with sorghum, millet, kafir, and other crops for forage. 

 They will improve the quality and yield of feed and will gather 

 nitrogen for the soil. 



THE SOY BEAN (Fig. 126) is also of Asiatic origin, and is a 

 hot weather crop. In appearance it differs from the cow pea in 

 having very short pods with usually only two or three seeds. The 

 plant is densely hairy throughout. It is less used for forage partly 

 for this reason, and partly because the leaves drop off badly be- 

 fore the seed is ripe. The seed is chiefly of three colors, black, 

 yellow and green. Varieties are distinguished chiefly in this way. 



In addition to its use for forage and for the improvement of 

 soils it is coming to be grown more for the seed, which ripens more 

 uniformly than in the cow pea. The entire seed may be ground 

 and used for stock feed or the oil may be pressed out and used as 

 salad oil and for numerous other purposes. The oil cake is used 

 as stock feed. 



THE CANADA FIELD PEA resembles the common garden pea 

 and is well suited to growth in cool sections in the extreme North, 

 as well as in the South. It is a climbing plant and should be grown 

 with grain to aid in harvesting the crop. In northern latitudes 

 it may be planted with early spring grain, as with oats and barley 

 intended for stock feed. In southern latitudes it may be grown 

 with winter oats and will endure the mild winter. 



Such a mixed crop, if cut for hay when in the blossom stage, 

 compares favorably with red clover hay in dairy feeding. If the 

 seed is allowed to mature the grain and peas may be thrashed to- 

 gether. The mixture may be separated if desired, but is usually 

 ground together for use in feeding swine, sheep, dairy cows and 

 poultry. The straw is much relished by stock. 



As pasture during the green growing stage, this mixture is 

 12 



