152 



SUCCESSFUL FARMING 



in May or the first week in June. Hungarian millet may be seeded two 

 or three weeks later, while common millet will frequently produce a crop 

 when seeded as late as the middle of July. 



Millet is used chiefly as a catch crop for hay. It is well adapted for 

 this purpose and may be substituted where a catch of clover or timothy 

 fails. It is also excellent to fill in where areas of corn have failed. 



The preparation of the seed-bed should begin as early -in the spring as 

 conditions will permit. This gives an opportunity to rid the soil of weeds 

 by occasional harrowing prior to seeding. Millet is seeded broadcast at 

 the rate of one peck per acre when grown for seed, and one-half bushel per 



Millet Makes an Excellent Catch Crop and is Profitable Either for Hay 

 Purposes or for Seed Production. 



acre when grown for hay. Three pecks of seed is advised by some for hay. 

 This results in smaller plants with a finer quality of hay. 



Where extensively grown for seed, millet should be harvested with the 

 self-binder when the seed is in the stiff dough stage. The after-treatment is 

 similar to that for wheat and oats. The best quality of hay is secured by 

 cutting before the seeds begin to ripen. The seeds act as a diuretic to ani- 

 mals and it is not safe to feed too much of it to horses. Hay that is to be 

 used for horses should be harvested before seeds form. 



Rape. — Rape belongs to the same family of plants as cabbage and 

 turnips. There are two varieties, annual and biennial. The latter bears 

 seed in the second year. The best known variety of biennial is the Dwarf 

 Essex. This gives best results for soiling and pasture purposes. Cattle 

 and sheep are fond of rape. It is especially fine for hog pasture. 



