COWPEAS 501 



611. Number of cuttings. Under favorable conditions, 

 cowpea plants will sprout again from the base indeed, 

 this will take place indefinitely in a greenhouse plant, but 

 the growth becomes greatly reduced. A second crop of 

 hay, or at least considerable pasturage, is sometimes se- 

 cured if good moisture conditions follow the first cutting, 

 as happens not uncommonly near the Gulf coast. Ordi- 

 narily, however, but a single cutting of the crop can be 

 made. 



612. Hay. Cowpeas should not be cut for hay until 

 the first pods are ripe, and the cutting may be delayed 

 until considerably later. After the pods begin to ripen, 

 the leaflets are more likely to fall off, especially if the 

 plants are attacked by leaf -spot or rust. Unless these 

 diseases are serious, the cutting can be delayed until 

 many of the pods are ripe. If these are promptly picked, 

 a continuous succession of pods will be formed. 



Cowpeas planted thickly, or even in three-foot rows, 

 support each other so that they can be cut with an ordinary 

 mower, to which it is desirable to add a bunching attach- 

 ment. A self -rake reaper is also excellent to harvest 

 cowpeas. The vining varieties like Clay, Black, and Red 

 Ripper are less easily handled than the more bunchy 

 varieties like Whippoorwill and New Era. 



Cowpeas have rather succulent leaves and thick stems, 

 so that they are not easily cured except in very favorable 

 weather. Also the large leaflets are inclined to mat 

 together. In hay making, it is common to use some type 

 of shock supporter, as this greatly aids the final stages of 

 curing. In curing, the especial points to guard against 

 are permitting the leaves to become too dry in the swath 

 before raking into windrows, as loss of leaves may result ; 

 and making the cocks too large, as the moist stems are 



