140 



CORN 



during the winter and when spring comes the bare stalks remain 

 standing. A railroad iron or heavy harrow is usually used to drag 

 them down. The practice of raking them up with a hay rake or 

 heavy corn-stalk rake is less in vogue at present because the soil 

 requires the humus and fertilizing- materials, which are largely lost 

 through the process ul Ijurning the stalks before planting. The 



SINGLE ROW STALK CUTTER. 



The stalk cutter can be used early in the spring before the 

 field is dry enough to disc. The hooks in front straight- 

 en out the stalks lengthwise with the row. 



chief arguments ad\'anced in fa\"or of luirning corn stalks are: lirst, 

 the freeing of the surface soil of trash which would otherwise pre- 

 vent the planter from running at a unif'jrm depth, and may even at 

 times cause the deposition of kernels on the surface; and second, the 

 partly covered stalks catch in the sho\'els of the cultivator the first 

 time over and dislodge whole hills of corn. 



The single-row stalk cutter is little used at present because, except 

 for cutting the stalks, it does very little toward loosening the surface 

 of the soil. Its only claims of practical value are: first, the fact that 

 being of light draft, it can be used early when the ground is not yel 

 dry enough for hea\'ier tools; and second, a boy can operate it. 



