THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



197 



Many farmers cense ploughing their corn at ihe 

 commencement of harvest. The consequence is 

 that the weeds run to seed, and ripen, vvliich not 

 only injures the crop, but unnecessarily exhausts 

 the ground (lor all vegetables exhaust much more 

 at th.e time olripening their seed than at any other 

 time,) and moreover furnishes a crop cf seed, lor 

 the ensuini; year. Corn should always be 

 ploughed, at least once, and, if very weedy, twice, 

 after harvest. The intervals between the plou<rh- 

 inir, after the hoeing operation is completed, 

 should not exceed from eight. to twelve days. It 

 is particularly important to stir the corn ground 

 after heavy rains, to prevent it from baidng. If 

 suffered to lie long afier heavy baking rains, when 

 the crop is in an advanced stage, the corn is 

 very apt to Jire when again ploughed. This is a 

 great and serious injury to the crop, and one from 

 which it never entirely recovers. It is very im- 

 portant, therefore, that it should be ploughed as 

 soon as praciicable, after each lieavy rain, taking 

 care not to commence ploughing where the 

 ground is loo v/et, that is, when there is so much 

 moisture in it as to make Ihe soil ^here, like hall 

 wet mortar. When it is sufficiently dry to crumble 

 into a fine mould, and not: belbre, should the 

 ploughs commence runnintr, after much rain has 

 iailen. To plough ground when very wet, is ex- 

 ceedingljMnjurious, and should always be avoid- 

 ed. Long continued rains will, occasionally, se- 

 verely task the patience oi" the farmer, when his 

 corn crop is suffering, but patience, on occasions of 

 this kind, is a virtue which will generally he well 

 rewarded, by an increased product of his corn 

 crop, besides preserving his land from injury by 

 ploughing it when too wet. 



Corn is frequently injured by cutting it too 

 green. This is done by many farmers under the 

 mistaken idea, that the fodder will be belter if the 

 corn is cut while the blades are green. The 

 reverse is inie. If cut while the blades are green, 

 and put in shock, the fi>dder will scarcely be fit lor 

 any kind of stock. Thus, by attempting to make 

 superior fodder, the farmer frequently raises boih 

 fodder and corn. The cutting of corn should not 

 be commenced until all the blades below, and 

 nearly all above the ear are dry. When onjy 

 two or three blades above the ear show any 

 remains of the green color; and when such is 

 the general state of the field, the operation of 

 cutting up corn should be commenced, (taking 

 care to begin with that part of the crop which is 

 most advanced,) and should be completed as 

 rapidly as possible, as the blades, after they be- 

 come dry, are liable to injury from dews and rain. 

 Hemp hooks are most convenient instruments for 

 cutting. It should be cut about a foot from the 

 ground, as it will stand much betier in shocks, 

 when the ear is brought nearer to the ground than 

 it would do if the corn were cut close to the earth. 

 There will also be less weight to handle in shock- 

 ing, hauling, ricking, feeding &c., while nothing 

 will be lost, that is fit for fodder. From fourteen 

 to sixteen hills square should be put in each 

 shock. The former will contain 196 hills, and 

 will give nearly fourteen shocks to the acre, sup- 

 posing the corn to be planted four feet apart, 

 each way. The latter will give lOf shocks nearly 

 per acre. [ prefer the former, if the corn be large, 

 and stands well in the hill, that is, three stalks in 

 each. But if it does not stand regular in the hill, or 



if the stalks be of moderate size, then sixteen hills 

 square will make the shocks of a better size. 



The saving of corn in the shock, without injury, 

 depends altogether uj)on the manner in which 

 the shocks are put up. If they are set up so as to 

 stand firmly, there is no danger ol'the corn injur- 

 ing: but if the operation is carelessly, or unskil- 

 fully performed, they are liable to twist round, and 

 settle down, so as to leave the top open. When 

 this hapens the rain will penetrate the shocks, 

 ruin the fodder, and greatly injure the corn. 

 Shocks should be thus constructed. The stalks 

 of lour hills (left standing for the purpose,) should 

 be inclined towards each other, and tied by their 

 tops, so as to fcirm a kind of cone over the centre 

 between the four hills. When this is done, while 

 some hands are cutting, those, who best understand 

 the process of shocking should gather the corn. 

 by armsful, and set it up around the four hills, 

 thus tied together, setting the first four armsful in 

 the intervals between the bent corn, bringing the 

 buts so near to each other as to make the stalka 

 occupy nearly a perpendicular position. In hke 

 manner the successive armsful should be set 

 regularly all around the four hills of corn, tied aa 

 above directed, still keeping the buts well pressed 

 together at the bottom, so that the pressure at the 

 top towards the centre, may not be so great as to 

 break down the stalks tied together. This should 

 be fiirther guarded against by placing equal 

 quantities of corn all around, so that the pressure 

 may be equal li-om all sides towards the centre. 

 The tops of the corn stalks being smaller than 

 the buts, they \vi[ naturally incline inwards, so 

 soon as the fbddir becomes dampened by rain or 

 dew ; but this inclination should not be very great, 

 otherwise the shocks will not so well turn the 

 rain; besides, as the corn may not be equally 

 distributed all around the shocks, the pressure 

 will be unequal towards the centre, and the efiect 

 of this inequality v/ill be greater in proportion as 

 the corn varies fiom a perpendicular position. 

 Care should also be taken to set up the corn, so as 

 not to give it an inclination to the right or left, or 

 a leaning sideways. If this be not attended to, 

 the shock in settling together — as it will when it 

 becomes damp by dew or rain — will be certain to 

 twist round, and cause the top of the shock to 

 open, and thus expose it to great injury from the 

 weather. This point is the most important thing 

 to be attended to, in shocking corn, an operation 

 upon which the complete preservation of the crop 

 depends. That part of the corn which is not 

 intended to be fed way with the fodder, must of 

 course, be shucked in the field. This should be 

 done while the fodder is damp, otherwise there 

 will be a considerable loss by its crumbling. As 

 fast as the corn is shucked, the fodder should 

 again be put in shock, and this cannot be well 

 done, when it is dry. Hence, after a damp spell, 

 or when the weather is warm and giving, is the 

 best time lor shucking corn out of the shocks, if 

 this operation is in progress during the feeding 

 season, a part of the fodder may be hauled at once, 

 to ihe feeding pen, and to a rick adjoining it, and 

 so far the trouble of re-shocking may be avoided. 



Some farmers do not pursue the practice of cut- 

 ting up their corn, and among these, two different 

 methods of saving their crops prevail. By some 

 it is contended that shucking the corn upon the 

 stalks, as they stand in the field, and hauling the 



