CEREALS. 89 



CEREALS. 



PLYMOUTH. 



Statement of Sjjencer Leonard. 



Indian Corn. — The land on which my corn grew, one acre, 

 had been mowed five years without any top-dressina*, the yield 

 for the last two years being about three-fourths of a ton per 

 year. 



About Sept. 1st, 1872, it was ploughed seven or eight inches 

 deep, 65 bushels of leached ashes spread on the surface and 

 winter rye sowed. May 23d to 25th, 1873, 27 loads, of 30 

 bushels each, of manure from under my stable was spread, and, 

 with the rye , ploughed in about eight inches deep , and the ground 

 harrowed twice. One load of hen-manure and night-soil, mixed 

 with earth (one part manure and three parts earth), was put 

 in the hills, which were three feet four inches apart one way, and 

 about two feet the other, and smutty white, or hill corn planted 

 May 28th, four kernels in a hill ; a cultivator was run through it 

 three times, and it was twice hoed with hand hoes. The stalks 

 were cut in September. It being very dry at the time of plant- 

 ing, the corn came up unevenly and grew yery slowly the first 

 two months, earing out very near the ground. The ears were 

 abundant, grew to a large size and filled out well. The Su- 

 pervisor harvested two rods in difierent parts of the field, 

 October 22d, which yielded 55 7-8 lbs. of ears per rod, or 

 8,940 lbs. per acre, which at 85 lbs. to the bushel gives 105 

 15-85 bushels, the stover weighing 31- tons. Expenses : 

 ploughing, &c., $10; manure, $75; seed and planting, $5; 

 cultivation, $9 ; harvesting, $17 ; total, $116. 



The charges for labor in the foregoing statement of Mr. 

 Leonard are larger than those usually returned by competitors, 

 but they are probably none too large. The manure is charged 



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