FACTORS OF SUCCESSFUL FARMING XEAR M02STETT, MO. 23 



particular kind of bacteria that the cowpea crop requires in order to 

 thrive. A few farmers grow a considerable acreage of cowpeas for 

 hay. Kelatively few plant cowpeas in their cornfields. But in view of 

 the fact that the system of farming which prevails in this region is 

 one which does not maintain soil fertility, it is advisable for farmers 

 generally to give more attention to the cowpea crop. It has already 

 been suggested that it is a good plan to plant the cowpeas with the 

 corn at the time the corn is planted. When this is done the roots of 

 the cowpeas will leave considerable nitrogen in the soil, and the 

 cowpea vines, which will be harvested with the corn fodder., will ulti- 

 mately be converted into manure and returned to the soil. In case 

 the corn is not to be cut for fodder, it is just as well to plant the cow- 

 peas in the corn at the time of the last cultivation of the corn and 

 then plow the vines under either early in the winter or the next 

 spring. This, of course, is not practicable where wheat is to follow 

 corn, but it can be done where corn or any other spring crop follows 

 corn. 



The soy-bean crop deserves more attention than it has received 

 from farmers in this region. It has been tried frequently here, but 

 not always with satisfactory results, for the reason that some farmers 

 do not understand its requirements. Cowpeas have been grown in 

 America for 150 years, and the soil all over the eastern half of the 

 United States appears to be thoroughly inoculated for this crop. 

 Soy beans, on the other hand, were brought to this country rather 

 recently from Japan and Manchuria. They will not thrive unless 

 the soil has the proper land of bacteria in it, and these bacteria are 

 not yet generally spread over the country. Hence, in order to grow 

 soy beans successfully the soil must be inoculated for them. 



There are several methods of inoculating the soil for soy beans. 

 Soy-bean seed carry some of the inoculating material, but very 

 little. If a small patch be planted to soy beans for two or three 

 years in succession it will become well inoculated, and the soil from 

 this patch may then be used for inoculating any other part of the 

 farm where soy beans are to be planted. Another method is to 

 moisten the soy-bean seed with water in which a little glue has been 

 dissolved, sprinkle a little dirt from a soy-bean field over the seed, let 

 it dry, and then plant the seed. Great care must be used in this 

 method not to let the sun shine on the seed, for sunlight kills these 

 bacteria very quickly. Another method is to use the pure culture^ 

 of the soy-bean bacteria such as those furnished by the United States 

 Department of Agriculture. 



Soy beans have several very distinct advantages over cowpeas. 

 The most important is that they ordinarily yield from half as much 

 again to twice as much seed per acre as do cowpeas. They can be 

 made into hay more easily than cowpeas, and this hay, if fed with a 



