216 



BERSEEM 



BROOM-CORN 



southern Arizona, the plants being one-half to one 

 inch high when the first frost conies. One cutting 

 is secured in April and one in May, after which the 

 plant succumbs to increasing heat. Frequent irri- 

 gation is required. Harvesting is the same as for 

 alfalfa or clover. 



The principal American literature to date is the 

 United States Department of Agriculture, Bureau 

 of Plant Industry Bulletin, No. 23. (See also Tri- 

 folium Alexandrinum, under Clover ; also, page 79.) 



BROOM-CORN. Andropogon Sorghum, Brot. var. 

 technieus (Sorghum vulgare, Pers. var.) Graminece. 

 Fig. 309. 



By C. W. Warhirton. 



Broom-corn belongs to the grass family and 

 to the same species as sorghum, kafir corn and 

 Jerusalem corn. It differs from other varieties of 



Fig. 309. Standard or tall broom-corn. 



the species in having the seeds borne in panicles with 

 long, straight branches. The seed-head or panicle, 

 known to growers and manufacturers as "brush," 

 is the valuable part of the plant and is used for 

 the manufacture of brooms of all kinds. There are 

 two groups of broom-corn, the standard and the 

 dwarf, varying only in height of plant and char- 

 acter of brush. The standard grows ten to fifteen 

 feet in height, with a brush eighteen to thirty 

 inches long; the dwarf grows but four to six feet 

 tall, with a brush one to two feet long. The dwarf 

 broom-corn is used most largely in the production 

 of whisk and other small brooms, while the stronger 

 brush of the standard type is used in carpet brooms. 

 Many varietal names are given both dwarf and 

 standard types ; they differ but little, however, and 

 in reality but the two types are grown. 



Area of cultivation. 



One essential in the production of broom-corn of 

 good quality is dry, clear weather when the brush 

 is maturing and during the harvest season. Rain 

 at this time causes discoloration of the brush 

 and a consequent deterioration in value. For this 

 reason, the central Mississippi valley and the 



plains of Kansas, Oklahoma and the Panhandle 

 of Texas are best adapted to the growing of 

 this crop. The regions of greatest production are 

 central Illinois, central Kansas and western 

 Oklahoma, Illinois growing the standard sorts and 

 Kansas and Oklahoma the dwarf varieties. 



Culture. 



With proper climatic conditions, any soil which 

 will produce good com is adapted to broom-corn. 

 To secure a crop of uniform quality, it is essential 

 that the land should be uniform. As the plants 

 grow slowly at first, the field should be in good 

 tilth and as free from weeds as possible. 



The land should be prepared as for corn, but 

 planting should be delayed until the soil is 

 thoroughly warmed. In the sections where broom- 

 corn is largely grown, the planting season includes 

 May and the first half of June. The • rows of 

 standard broom-corn should be three and 

 one-half feet apart, and of the dwarf sorts 

 three feet, with the plants three or four 

 inches apart in the drill. About two quarts 

 of seed are required to sow an acre. 

 Planting may be done with an ordinary 

 corn-planter, using sorghum plates, or with 

 a grain drill having part of the holes cov- 

 ered. Cultivation should be frequent and 

 shallow, using the harrow or weeder early 

 in the season and any of the shallow-run- 

 ning cultivators later. 



Harvesting and handling. 



To secure the best quality of brush, the 

 harvesting should be done about the close 

 of the blooming period. The brush becomes 

 stiff and brittle if the seed is allowed to 

 ripen, and is greatly reduced in value. 

 Dwarf broom-corn is usually harvested by 

 pulling the heads by hand, leaving a foot or 

 more of the stalk attached. Standard broom-corn, 

 because of its height, must be "tabled" before 

 harvesting. This "tabling" consists in bending the 

 stalks of adjacent rows at a height of about three 

 feet diagonally across the space between the rows, 

 so that the seed-heads of each row extend about 

 two feet beyond the adjoining one, and are in 

 position for cutting. The stalks are then cut a 

 few inches below the head and the heads laid on 

 the tables thus formed, in position for hauling. 



After the brush has been cut or pulled, it is 

 hauled to the drying sheds where it is sorted and 

 threshed. Sorting is simply the separation of 

 coarse or knotty brush from the uniform straight 

 heads ; when the crop is grown on a small scale, 

 the seed may be removed by "scraping" by hand; 

 when largely grown, the brush should be cleaned 

 with a broom-corn thresher. After threshing, 

 the brush should be dried so as to maintain its 

 uniform green color. Rapid drying without direct 

 sunlight is necessary to accomplish this result, 

 open sheds usually being used for the purpose. 

 After the brush is thoroughly dried it should 

 be baled, the bales weighing 300 to 400 pounds. 

 The crop is then ready for the market. In sections 



