246 ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 



stalks fail to support the cow-pea vines, making the crop diffi- 

 cult to harvest. 



When cow-peas are sown in corn at the last cultivation the 

 usual method is to sow with the one-horse wheat-drill, plant- 

 ing two or three rows of peas between the rows of corn. A 

 common practice also is to sow the peas broadcast in the corn 

 at the last cultivation and cover them with the cultivator. This 

 method is not so satisfactory, on account of the uneve'nness of 

 the depth of covering and the consequent poorer stand of peas 

 which may result. 



Time Planting. 



Cow-peas, being a southern crop, are naturally sensitive to 

 cold. When planted in cold, wet soil, the seed will either rot or 

 the plants will make a poor, sickly growth. Cow peas should 

 not be planted until the soil has thoroughly warmed up and not 

 until all danger of periods of cold weather has passed. Cold 

 spells shortly after planting will often cause a poor stand of 

 the peas. The time of planting will depend largely upon the 

 purpose for which the peas are grown. For green manuring 

 they may be sown as late as the last of July and will make a 

 considerable growth of green material to be plowed under be- 

 fore frost, but if planted for hay or seed it is necessary to sow 

 earlier. In order to determine the most satisfactory date at 

 which to plant cow-peas, an experiment was started in 1904, 

 planting cow-peas at different dates. This experiment was 

 continued through 1905 and 1906. The results are shown in 

 table V. 



In this experiment the New Era, one of the earliest matur- 

 ing varieties of cow-peas, was planted. Since the dates of plant- 

 ing in 1904 do not exactly correspond with those of 1905 and 

 1906, the yields of the 1904 crop have not been used in de- 

 termining the average. Taking the average yields for 1905 

 and 1906, we find that planting June 9 has given the highest 

 yield of grain, and planting June 3 has given the largest pro- 

 duction of hay. In 1904 the greatest yield of hay was pro- 

 duced from the June 3 planting, but for this season the later 



