Department of Agriculture 33 



In other words, it appeared that, within reasonable hmita- 

 tions of course, the more fertile the soil, the more fertilizer 

 it paid to use. 



It is not best to trv to follow a calendar program in the 

 use of fertilizer, especially side applications. Probably the 

 most profitable use to which nitrate of soda can be put is in 

 "snapping" the young cotton out of a setback induced by 

 cold weather. Fifty or sixty pounds of nitrate of soda ap- 

 plied when the young cotton first shows signs of stunting 

 will pay handsomely. This use of nitrate of soda is extensive- 

 ly practiced in the more northern parts of the upland Cotton 

 Belt, and no doubt can be used to good advantage by the 

 Florida Sea Island grower, who must plant early, and there- 

 fore run some risk of having the young cotton stunted by 

 early April cold snaps. 



Spacing 



No inflexible rule can be laid down as to proper spacing. 

 There is, of course, a 'best" spacing, just as there is a "best" 

 fertilizer formula, but like the latter it will vary with the 

 soil type and with the season. Fortunately, incorrect spac- 

 ing makes little difi'erence in the yield, so long as it is ap- 

 proximately right. If sixteen inches in the drill gives the 

 best yield, any spacing between fourteen and twenty inches 

 will give almost as good yield. 



On the average grade of Norfolk sandy soil planted to Sea 

 Island cotton in Florida, sixteen inches in the drill in four 

 foot rows appears best. On heavier soils, the width of rows 

 should be increased to four and a half or five feet, and the 

 spacing in the drill increased to 20 to 24 inches. 



Topping 



Many Sea Island growers break the buds out of the plants, 

 after the cotton has reached the height desired, in order to 

 force earlier maturity of the bolls already set by the plants. 

 Experiments in topping conducted by the WPA in Madison 

 county in 1936 failed to show any advantage in this practice. 

 The untopped rows yielded as well as the topped rows. The 

 topped rows were, however, on sandy soil. Topping might 

 be some advantage on heavy soil where the plants tend to 

 grow too large, thus causing excessive rotting of the bot- 

 tom bolls. 



