CULTURE OF THE CROP 291 



use of the harrow during the interval will warm the soil and 

 thoroughly aerate it, and will allow the surface water to penetrate 

 enough to be out of the way. 



Planting. The time for planting cotton is after all danger of 

 frost is over. It is usually begun in April and is completed before 

 the middle of May. In the ridge or bed method of starting the 

 crop a furrow is opened in the middle of the bed and the seed is 

 planted with one-horse drills. Good planting machines open the 

 furrows, plant the seed, and cover it in one operation. The space 

 between rows in either the level culture or the bed system varies 

 from two and one-half to five feet, according to the size of plants 

 and the richness of the soil. The plants are seldom grown in hills 

 or in rows both ways, but this method is gradually coming into 

 more general practice. It is more common to drill the seed in the 

 row, and later thin the plants to a distance of one or two feet, 

 leaving a single plant in the space. The seed is covered with one 

 and one-half to two and one-half inches of soil, depending chiefly 

 upon the moisture and texture of the soil. 



Fertilizing. Cotton is not hard on the soil if the lint only is 

 sold from the farm. If the cottonseed is fed to farm animals, 

 and the manure well cared for and returned to the land, the soil 

 may be kept up by the use of green manures without the use 

 of commercial fertilizers. On farms where the manure is wasted, 

 or on farms from which the entire drop of seed and lint is sold, 

 it is necessary to use commercial fertilizers to maintain the 

 fertility of the soil. 



Where commercial fertilizers are used two hundred pounds of 

 acid phosphate per acre will be enough. This is applied to the 

 field about two weeks before planting time, or is sometimes 

 drilled during the operation of seeding. The fertilizer attachment 

 of the drill should distribute the chemical in such a way as to 

 prevent it from coming in contact with the seeds. On farms where 

 little or no green manure is turned under it is advisable to use 

 fertilizer containing organic 1 nitrogen, such as cottonseed meal, 

 or tankage. This may be applied with the acid phosphate. Pot- 

 ash as a fertilizer for cotton is not much used, except on light 

 soils. 



Culture of the Crop. The process of removing surplus cotton 

 plants from the rows is called chopping. This is done by hand 

 with heavy hoes. The most vigorous plants are left standing. 

 Weeds are removed from the row at the same time. Before the 



