SEA ISLAND COTTON PLANTING. 133 



and purchase it from a reliable merchant, so as to be sure it is 

 genuine. 



It is true that cattle are easily kept here, living in winter 

 in cotton and clover fields, eating the unmatured bolls of the 

 former and stalks of the latter. In warm winters there is much 

 grass, and in summer, I believe, it is rather abundant through- 

 out all the south. 



Cotton is planted from March 20th to April 10th, upon high 

 beds, five feet apart one way, and from eight to twenty-four 

 inches apart the other. Corn is planted about the first of 

 April, upon the same kind of beds, from two to four feet apart. 

 Sweet potatoes are planted the latter part of March ; also upon 

 the same kind of beds as the cotton and corn. As soon as the 

 vines are sufficiently grown, say on the first of June, they com- 

 mence planting the " slip crop." This is done by taking the 

 vines from the seed beds, and laying along the top of other 

 beds, and covering a part of the vines with dirt, when they 

 immediately take root, and grow a better crop than from the 

 seed. The bed is made rich and mellow, but the land below 

 is kept as hard and firm as possible. The beds for cotton, 

 corn, and potatoes, are all made in the same manner and dis- 

 tance apart, and are reversed every other crop ; that is, changed 

 into the alleys of the preceding one ; but no rotation of crops 

 is practised. The average yield of potatoes is about 150 

 bushels to the acre. Cotton, (long staple,) 135 Ibs. Corn, 

 fifteen bushels of the southern white-flint variety : no other 

 will stand the depredations of the weevil. 



The amount of labor to grow and prepare for market a hun- 

 dred pounds of Sea Island cotton, is estimated at fifty days' 

 work ; that is, the small amount of labor which a negro does 

 at " task work." The first process of preparing land for cot- 

 ton, after manuring, is "listing;" that is, hoeing the grass off 

 the old beds into the alleys. A " task " of this work is one- 



