THE ROTATION OF CROPS 35 



In the trucking regions of New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and 

 Virginia, two crops may frequently be secured in one season. Over much 

 of this region tomatoes may be set as late as June 1st. This gives oppor- 

 tunity to grow a quick-maturing crop before the land is needed for tomatoes. 

 If hay is needed crimson clover may be seeded in the fall and cut for hay 

 the next spring, before the land is needed for tomatoes. Where canneries 

 are available, early peas may be harvested before time to set tomatoes. 

 This gives two crops in one season, both of which provide for the opera- 

 tion of the cannery and prolong its season of activity. Crimson clover 

 may be seeded in the tomatoes at the last cultivation, and growth turned 

 under the following spring for the benefit of a succeeding crop. 



In this district a two-year rotation in which four crops are grown is 

 found to be quite successful. Two of these are cash crops and two are 

 renovating crops. The cash crops are corn and either potatoes or toma- 

 toes. The renovating crops are crimson clover or soy beans or winter 

 rye mixed with winter vetch. This makes the purchase of nitrogen in 

 fertilizers unnecessary. Acid phosphate and potash are applied in moder- 

 ate quantities and generally to the cash crops only. This system, without 

 any manure and with the occasional use of lime, maintains the fertility 

 of the soil. 



In portions of Ohio and Indiana a three-year rotation of corn, wheat 

 and clover is common. One strong point in this rotation is that one plow- 

 ing answers for three crops. When the clover sod is plowed for corn in 

 the spring the ground breaks up easily and makes an ideal seed-bed for 

 corn. The cultivation given the corn provides a good seed-bed for 

 wheat with no other preparation than thorough disking and harrowing 

 of the corn stubble. This, of course, necessitates a removal of the corn 

 stalks sufficiently early to seed wheat. It is not applicable where the 

 growing season is too short. This rotation not only economizes in labor 

 as above suggested, but makes a good distribution of labor. Further- 

 more, it provides for rather continuous occupation of the soil. If the sod 

 devoted to corn is not plowed until spring and corn is followed by fall 

 seeding of wheat in which grass and clover is seeded, the soil will be subject 

 to erosion only during the time it is in corn. Erosion in this case may 

 take place in times of heavy rains and on rolling land, by the water run- 

 ning down the furrows between the corn rows. This may generally be 

 overcome by having the rows and cultivation at right angles to the 

 slope. 



This is a fairly good rotation for the stockman and dairy farmer. 

 Corn furnishes the material for the silo, while clover hay supplies the 

 protein in which corn is deficient, thus giving a well-balanced ration. 

 The wheat straw makes good bedding, while the wheat may be either sold 

 or exchanged for concentrates. On farms having no permanent pasture 

 the clover and timothy may be left for another year, cut once and pastured 

 afterwards, or, if necessary, it may be pastured throughout the fourth 



