34 COTTON PLANTER'S MANUAL. 



too early and land injured by being ploughed wet. My object 

 in ploughing, say three furrows, early, is to permit the foun- 

 dation of ridges to settle somewhat, as seed germinate freer, 

 and grow off better than upon light earth. I break out the 

 residue as late as planting time, so that the plant will start 

 before or with the grass and weeds. I prefer never more 

 than a bushel of seed, per acre because solitary stalks are 

 not injured by cold weather when scraped out, as when grown 

 in a hot-bed. 



I have been asked, how I plant seed when I buy. I reply, 

 I wet the seed thoroughly with salt and water, and some- 

 times use brine made by steeping stable manure in salt and 

 water for ten days before wanted, until fermentation has en- 

 sued. The seed are then dried off with ashes, or lime, or 

 plaster I prefer the two latter, as the seeds are white, and 

 the master can see that care in dropping is practised by hands. 

 These seeds are dropped at the required distance and are 

 covered with the foot, by brushing a little earth upon the 

 seeds and pressing them into the earth with the foot. I would 

 prefer a seed-planter, but could not make the one I tried, drop 

 regular. Five to ten seeds in a place is ample. I have drop- 

 ped only one, and two, and three ; when I did this myself, 

 I failed not in a stand. 



With a good ridge, clean of clods and litter, a hand can 

 scrape more ; the labor of planting carefully, and time seem 

 ingly lost in this, as well as of dropping seed, is fully regained 

 in the scraping. I have cultivated for ten years, nine to ten 

 acres of cotton, and eight to nine of corn, besides potatoes, 

 oats, &c. This could not have been done, but by doing all 

 work well. Time is saved by good ploughing and neat 

 planting. 



