THE GENESEE FAEMER. 



207 



APPLYING AETIFICIAL MAMURE TO COKN. 



Editors Genesee FAEiosR :— I was much inter- 

 ested in the account of your corn experiments ; but 

 in reference to some of tlie manures at least, I do 

 not tliink they were rightly appUed to get at the 

 truth of their comparative value. In putting the 

 rnimure in the hill, we may do good or we may do 

 injury. We may do good in a cold, heavy soil, by 

 an application in the hill of any manure that will 

 give an extra early s;:art to the corn, thus enabling 

 the sod to bring out a large crop to maturity before 

 frost; yet that stimulation in the first start would 

 not prove the real strength or value of the manure. 

 Then in the application of such manures in the hill, 

 tlie roots at the first start get a large portion of it| 

 but very soon the roots run far away from the ma- 

 nure,— leaving, mayhap, the most of the strength 

 (rf the manure to some other purpose than bringing 

 out a corn crop : so we fail again to prove the real 

 sti-ength or value of the manure. Then in a light, 

 sandy soil, we may do injury by starting the corn 

 too fast, so that the soil is not able to keep up the 

 rapid growth ; it then, as formers sav, scalds, turn- 

 ing' yellow around the bottom, very likely as high 

 up as the ears : the consequence is the crop is worse 

 than it would have been witliout manure. This 

 case would be a very unsatisfoctory proof tliat the 

 manure, in itself considered, was worse than noth- 

 mg\ It would only prove want of proper applica- 

 tion. ^^ 



But my present intention was to give my mode 

 —and I thmk it a very good one— of applying arti- 

 ficial manures on light or sandy soils. First plant 

 your corn as usual, then, as soon as it is large 

 ^ough to see the row weU, start the plow in it, 

 throwing the soil from the hi'l, and going as near 

 as possible to the corn without disturbmg it. This 

 IS our mode of tending corn in this section, .without 

 any reference to applying manure, and is a very 

 good one. The ground has a fair chance to get 

 warm at the roots of the corn, which is much ad- 

 vantage, especially on heavy soils : you can begin 

 much earlier, so as to keep grass and weeds down. 

 J hen on light, sandy soils, the roots are thrown 

 down deeper, running under this furrow, so tliat 

 when hot burning sims come the roots do not lie 

 near tlie surface of the ground to burn up, neither 

 are they so much destroyed by the plow in afl<?r 

 ciilture. Now when you are ready to start the 

 plow tlie second time, say 10th or 15th June, apply 

 yonr manure in these furrows the whole length 

 horn hill to hill, on both sides of the row. If a 

 %ht soil, the furrows should bo pretty deep, be- 

 ftiuse the deeper your manure the deeper the roots 

 wiL be and more out of tlie way of plow and 

 drouth. Then as fast as you apply tlie manure, 

 throw the sod with the plow from the middles over 

 It. In a short time the roots will run by thousands 

 to tlic?e furrows of manure, just the same as pigs 

 to a well filled trough; for it is just as natural fSr 

 tiie roots to seek food, as a new bom calf or lamb 

 By this mode you have a fair chance for the corn 

 to get aU the strength of the manure, and on ali<^ht 

 soil the manure is serviceable just at the right time, 

 ttiat is to bring out a crop ; for much artificial ma^ 

 nure is applied at a loss, from the fact that it is 

 ai.plie<l at the wrong time, or not enough in quan- 

 tity to bring the crop to perfection. One season, 

 m putting some hen manure on after this mode, 



much of it was in large lumps ; in cross-plowing 

 afterward, many of these lumps were plowed up, 

 from not having been put in deep enough, and they 

 were almost filled with corn roots, right in the solid 

 hen manure. AVhile on either side the corn scalded 

 badly, where the hen manure and guano were ar- 

 phed It kept green to the ground. The guano paid 

 at 62i cents per bushel for corn ; the hen manure I 

 kept no account of, as to cost or quantity. The 

 guano was applied at the rate of 400 lbs. per acre. 



Holmdel, K. J., May, ISSa j. c. TAYLOE. ' 



HOED CEOPS- CLEAN CULTURE. 



Ed3. Farivier:— Allow me to urge a few reasons 

 on our brother farmers, for mcreased attention to 

 the clean culture of hoed crops. At this hurrying 

 sea.son of the year, when so m.anv things demand 

 thought and muscle, we are pretty apt to omit 

 dpmg all that which may be neglected, from not 

 giving due consideration to it^ importance. We 

 may do well as far as we go, but the failure m going 

 (juite/<zr enough hinders materially our getting the 

 tull benefit of the labor, manure, seed, &c., alrea^- 

 expended. *' 



Some ftirmers " weary in well doing" before they 

 arrive at hoeing. They toil hard to prepare a field 

 for corn or roots; manuring freely and plowin? 

 well, getting tlie land in capitd order. We feel like 

 saying, "Keep on, you're doing well," for a good 

 crop seems in fair prospect. But it is rather late 

 plantmg, so they get a gang of hands — men and 

 boys — and plant in a "hurry-skurry" sort of a 

 way — rows irregular, the seed covered very deep 

 where the soil is meUow, and with sods, lumps and 

 stones where it is hard, so that the looker-on should 

 cry, ''Hold on, you're doing a bad job." And such 

 they find it when they try to cultivate ; it has come 

 up very unevenly and with irregular rows— mam- 

 hdls proving a total failure. Too busy to re-planl 

 loss IS suffered which a little more care might very 

 profitably as well as easdy have prevented. 



Haying and harvest will soon be upon us, and of 

 late years they seem to come right in "hoeing 

 time, but we would remind those who would rai^ 

 com or roots, and so far have done everything ia 

 good style, to weary not, but patiently continue 

 their labors. We must remember that "growin'^ 

 weather" is as fovorable to tlie growth of weeds as 

 of valuable plants, and that on no account should 

 we neglect to give clean culture to our hoed crops. 

 Let us keep tlie cultivator going among them, Lf no 

 more, so as to keep the soil light and clean, even if 

 we have to hire an extra hand in the hay-field.— 

 We are apt to forget how much cultivation has' ti, 

 do with the early growth of corn — with its "o-c-t- 

 ting a start," so as to be able to feed itself from'the 

 food supplied in the soil. This is also true of pota- 

 toes—and we may add, beans, since our hist ye^'> 

 experience in being hurried away into haying and 

 harvest before finishing the hoeing of the wholt 

 crop. Had we hired it done, at two dollors per 

 day, we should have made money in the ii'crea.*ed 

 protluct, as shown by the clean cultured over the 

 viiiiAj part. And what farmer cannot look back 

 and se^3 when he "missed it," in not being more 

 thorough, even though it seemed as if he "coiOdn't 

 afford it," at the time? 



_ Let us urge the matter stiU. A few days mftn- 

 tshinff vp the culture of our hoed crops — wMch 



