4 r.ri.i.KTix ms, u. s. department of agriculture. 



Antonio, since the peas or beans came up before the cotton planted 

 in the same hills, thus opening the wa} 7 for the more tender seedlings. 

 All things considered, however, beans seem to be better suited to this 

 purpose than peas, owing to the habit of beans in raising their 

 cotyledons above ground. A strong-growing variety of cowpeas does 

 very well, but in leaving its cotyledons at the depth the seed was 

 planted its lifting force is reduced. 



In choosing a variety of beans for planting with cotton seed, the 

 size of the beans should be considered. It appears that a variety of 

 beans having large seeds makes a stronger early growth than one 

 having small seeds: that is. the power to break through a soil crust 



Fio. 1. — Upland i Lone Star) cotton planted as a nurse crop for Egyptian cotton, 

 delinted seed of these varieties having been mixed in equal proportions and planted 

 with a corn planter, using a 6-hole plate : A, Section of the row before thinning, 

 when the plants were about 8 inches high, showing ihe uniform stand obtained; 

 B, section of the row after thinning out all the Lone Star plants, showing Egyptian 

 plants standing approximately 18 inches apart. In another section of this row an 

 equally good stand of Lone Star cotton remained after removing all the Egyptian 

 plants. The seedlings of these two types can easily be distinguished. (Photo- 

 graphed July 11, 1917.) 



is greater. Thus, for example, the pinto bean was found to be better 

 in this particular than the navy, and the navy better than the soy or 

 teparv. But on the other hand, smaller beans have certain advan- 

 tages over larger ones, as will be shown when the methods of plant- 

 ing are taken into account. 



The early habits of growth of different varieties of beans and peas 

 should also be considered. Large beans, like the pinto, and cowpeas, 

 such as the Black-Eye variety, usually develop broad first leaves. 

 This may be an advantage under some conditions, since the broad 

 leaves would provide a certain protection for the cotton seedlings, 

 but these overspreading leaves are likely at the same time to shade 



