26 



fJULY, 1S08. 



EDIBLE PRODUCTS. 



RICE : ITS CULTIVATION AND FER- 

 TILIZATION IN THE UNITED 

 STATES OF NORTH AMERICA. 



By M. Andrew. 



The cultivation of rice in the United 

 States is chiefly confined to the lowlands, 

 moie properly speaking those which can 

 be irrigated easily. Some upland rice is 

 grown in the Southern States, but up- 

 land rice culture is not extensively 

 practised. In the Carolinas and Georgia 

 the cultivation is confined to the alluvial 

 soils along the rivers which flow into 

 the Atlantic and the Gulf. In Louisiana 

 and Texas the cultivation is chiefly 

 carried on on the flat prairies, which are 

 flooded by means of water pumped from 

 the numerous rivers which thread the 

 country or by means of water obtained 

 from artesian wells. The comparatively 

 level nature of this country and the 

 vast extent of the prairies enable the 

 farmers to produce rice at a distinct 

 economic advantage, and the peculiar 

 character of the soil, which is underlaid 

 by a tenacious clay subsoil, permits the 

 use of heavy machinery in harvesting 

 the crop. 



The best soil for rice is one containing 

 a considerable percentage of loam mixed 

 with clay. Soils devoid of humus are 

 not satisfactory, as they are likely to 

 become too compact when flooded with 

 water. On the other hand, open soils, 

 especially those of a sandy or gravelly 

 nature, are not retentive enough of 

 water to be useful for rice culture. 

 It is, of course, impossible to raise rice 

 successfully or profitably under the 

 conditions prevailing in this country 

 without irrigation. A cheap and abun- 

 dant supply of water must always be 

 at the command of the planter. When 

 this condition obtains the cultivation of 

 rice is not a difficult undertaking, though 

 care and skill in the cultivation of the 

 land and the handling of the crop are 

 as essential as ia other forms of farming. 



The thorough preparation of the land 

 is an important matter. Ploughing 

 should be done in the early winter, and 

 it should be deep. Cultivation with 

 such implements as will reduce the 

 surface soil should then be pursued so 

 as to secure a fine tilth at seeding time. 

 The drainage of the. rice fields must be 

 carefully looked after, for although rice 

 loves water, it gives its best results on a 



soil that is easily aeiated. For the past 

 few years the cultivation of rice has 

 been a comparatively profitable indus- 

 try. The virgin prairies were fairly well 

 supplied with plant food, and as the 

 land, was cheap, irrigating waters con- 

 venient, and labour-saving machinery 

 could be used advantageously, every- 

 thing favoured the development of the 

 industry on a great commercial scale. 

 It is apparent now, however, to some of 

 the most thoughtful planters that they 

 do not secure as large yields with the 

 same ease and regularity that they did 

 in former years. To those who have 

 given the matter some attention, it is 

 evident that the constant drain of fertil- 

 ity from the soil is having its effect, 

 and the subject of fertilization must 

 receive more consideration in the imme- 

 diate future than has been given it in 

 the past. 



Unfortunately, comparatively little 

 attention has been paid to the subject 

 of rice fertilization, and there is not 

 much experimental data available on 

 which to base conclusions with reference 

 to the special needs of this crop, but 

 such facts as can be correlated are pre- 

 sented herewith for the consideration 

 of the reader. In the first place, the 

 ratio of grain to straw in rice varies 

 between wide limits. When the ground 

 is fertile or an excess of nitrogen- 

 ous materials have been applied, the 

 quantity of straw is likely to be large. 

 Statistics indicate that the amount of 

 straw may vary from 1,500 up to 2,500 

 lb. per 1,000 lb. of rough rice as it comes 

 from the threshing machine. Of course, 

 the amount of straw obtained will vary 

 with the height at which it is cut. 

 Probably a fair average of the amount 

 of straw to rice is about two to one. On 

 this basis a field that would yield twelve 

 sacks of rice per acre containing 162 lb. 

 would produce 1,941 lb. of rough rice 

 and about 3,888 lb. of straw. One 

 thousand pounds of rice contains about 

 11-9 lb. of nitrogen, 3 21 lb. of phosphoric 

 acid, and 1*68 lb. of potash. One thou- 

 sand pounds of rice straw would contain 

 about 7-56 lb. of nitrogen, 260 lb. of 

 phosphoric acid, and 4*20 lb. of potash. 

 On this basis a yield of twelve sacks of 

 rice per acre with the amount of straw 

 indicated above would remove from the 

 land through the medium of rough rice 

 23*13 lb. of niti'ogen, 0-24 lb. of phos- 

 phoric acid, and 3 - ll lb. of potash. 

 The straw would remove 29'49 lb. of 

 nitrogen, 10 09 lb. of phosphoric acid and 

 16-31 lb. of potash. The total crop would 



