354 DRY LAND FARMING 



at which the seed is sown gives ample time to prepare 

 the land thus. As millet draws heavily on the moisture 

 in the soil, it will not make a satisfactory growth on 

 weedy land. 



Sowing. It would seem safe to say that the best 

 dry land millet, all things considered, is the broom corn 

 variety, although some other varieties, as the Hungarian, 

 German and Japanese, may have higher adaptation for 

 sectional areas. Pearl millet is valuable for southern 

 areas. 



Millet should not be sown until the ground and 

 weather have become reasonably warm. Even though 

 safe germination should follow early sowing, the growth 

 subsequently is not likely to be so satisfactory as 

 when the seed is sown later. About the 'best time to 

 sow millet is at the close of the corn planting season or 

 about the same time as would be suitable for field beans 

 (see p. 298). When the seed is sown with the drill, all 

 the tubes in use, not more than l*/2 pecks of seed should 

 be used per acre. When sown in rows and cultivated, 

 from, say, 4 to 8 quarts of seed should suffice, according 

 to the spacing of the rows. These may be from, say, 24 

 to 36 inches apart, the wide spacing giving the better 

 opportunity for cultivating the crop. The seed is buried 

 from 1 to 2 inches or even to a greater depth, according 

 to the soil conditions. 



Care of the crop. If millet is harrowed before the 

 crop is up the aim should be to stir the ground as shal- 

 low as such work can be done. When the crop is 3 to 

 4 inches high, harrowing may only in some instances be 

 given with profit. The later cultivation given to the 

 crop grown in rows should be much the same as that 

 given to a corn crop (see p. 280). 



Harvesting. Millet is ready to harvest for hay when 

 all the plants are fully out in head, and for seed when all 

 have assumed a golden tint, except in varieties the seeds 



