162 



CORN CROPS 



under the following spring. In the early days of com 

 culture in the middle west, the corn stalks were usually 

 burned. The common custom was to break down the 

 frozen stalks with a log or an iron rail and later when the 

 ground had thawed, they were raked with horse rakes 

 into long windrows, and burned. For a week or two in 

 each spring, the sky would be lit up every night by the 



Fig. 41. — Two- row stalk-cutter. 



great burning fields of corn stalks. This so rapidly re- 

 duced the organic matter in the soil that it soon became 

 necessary to plow the stalks under, as is now the general 

 custom, in order to obtain humus. 



To prepare for ploiving, the stalks are broken with a rail, 

 as before, and then usually gone over with a sharp disk, 

 to cut them up. The stalk-cutter is also in general use. 

 This implement has heavy revolving cyhnders set with 

 knives that cut the stalks in twelve inch lengths. Where 

 the stalks are heavy it is more satisfactory than the disk 

 harrow, although the stalk-cutter is often followed also 

 with a disk-harrow. 



