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MAY 7 
rate as it can be done with a surveyor’s com¬ 
pass. By marking out the ground two ways, 
say three or four feet apart between rows, the 
rows will be three or four feet apart in three 
directions. Then, by starting the horse-hoe 
as soon as the growing corn is four or five 
inches high, and going through iu three direc¬ 
tions, one man or boy will be able to do all the 
hoeing, weeding and setting up the hills that 
are partially covered or bent over, as fast as 
another man can run the horse-hoe through 
one way. 1 prefer level cultivation. 
Potatoes are plante d in the same manner 
and the horse-hoe doe6 mftre than eleven- 
twelfths of the hoeing. If the soil is gener¬ 
ously seeded with noxious weeds, by running 
the horse-hoe three ways, when weeds are in 
the seed-leaf, or just out of it, almost every 
green thing, except the growing corn, will be 
covered up or rooted up. When weeds are 
small and tender they can be destroyed easily; 
but allow them to grow until they become 
rooted only medium deep, and they will cling 
to life with amazing persistence, especially if 
the soil is moist. s. e. t. 
Orange, N. J. 
BARLEY vs OATS. 
Over-Estimates of Corn Yields. 
Professor E. W. Stewart states in an article 
on corn which appeared some time ago in the 
Rui«al, that 100 bushels of corn per acre are an 
“ easily possible crop." I thiuk the Rural 
readers will agree with me iu saying that not 
one man in a hundred, if he should take ten 
acres on his owu farm, even with the most 
favorable conditions in every respect can raise 
100 bushels of corn to the acre, counting 56 
pounds to the bushel of corn containing not 
more than 11 per cent, of water. These im¬ 
mense yields, so frequently reported, are too 
often computed by going into the field early in 
the Fall, husking a half dozen hills or a row, 
estimating the amount of ground and measur¬ 
ing the corn in a basket, but it will shiink from 
ten to twenty per cent, afterward. The sci¬ 
ence of agriculture can never progress rapidly 
in the face of inaccuracy and wild statements. 
I. P. Rouekts. 
MOISTURE WITH MANURE. 
URAL NEW-YORKER. 
CORN CULTURE IN EASTERN OHIO. 
With the farmers of this part of the coun¬ 
try the corn crop is among the most import¬ 
ant. Iu fact, I might say it takes precedence 
of all others. As the people are mostly en¬ 
gaged in mixed farming, the most prominent 
feature of which is wool-growing, this crop 
occupies a place as a food unsurpassed by any¬ 
thing else, aud while there are but very few— 
mostly renters—that sell ai v, farmers general¬ 
ly calculate to raise enough for their own use. 
While it is no uncommon thing to see from 30 
to 30 acres in corn ou a single farm, the acreage 
is more frequently under than over that. 
The general practice is to plow sod for corn. 
This is mostly the first plowing done in the 
Spring and is attended to as soon as the frost 
Is out of the ground; or, if the season is favor¬ 
able. it is not au uncommon thing LO see fields 
plowed in the Fall, aud occasionally during the 
Winter months. It is a pretiy generally ac¬ 
cepted opinion that if the ground is fr< zen a 
few times after being plowed, the irjuiy from 
cut-worms will not be so great the following 
season. Some do not plow until immediately 
before planting, and claim that owing to the 
fresh grass being then turned under there will be 
less danger from cut-worms than if the plowing 
'ib done at anv other lime; but there Is danger 
of being caught by a dry spell about the last of 
April or first of May, and if the 6oil is lime¬ 
stone or heavy clay, one would have to wait for 
rain, which is a little risky, 
When the season arrives for planting, the 
ground is harrowed and put in the best possible 
condition. Of course, a great maty give 
it a “lick and a promise” and let it go ; 
but this kind of carelessness is getting less fre¬ 
quent each succeeding year. The rows are run 
from three and one-half to four feet apart each 
way, or, if the ground is side-hill, it i6 common 
to plant closer and work but one way. and even 
on level ground it is not an uncommon thing 
of late years to see fields drilled either by hand 
or by a planter. There are not as many plant¬ 
ers need as might be supposed for an old-set¬ 
tled part of the country, but they are coming 
into use more of late years. For running out 
the grouDd to plant some use a marker drawn 
by two horses, which makes three rows at a 
time; others use a one-horse bar shear plow, 
aud only three or four years since I saw a man 
on a reuted farm, who was putting in about 100 
acres, furrowing it all with a one-horse plow, 
but this practice is a little too slow for this fast 
age. and will soon be entirely discontinued, ex¬ 
cept on very rough pieces of ground. 
For cultivating, the one-horse cultivator and 
double-shovel plow are mostly used, but of late 
years a good many two-horse walking sulky 
shovel plows have been introduced, and an occa¬ 
sional riding sulky, but these are generally con¬ 
sidered too expensive for the number of acres 
appropriated to thiscrop.and then wehave con¬ 
siderable sidling and rough laud iu the counties 
bordering on the Ohio River. The hoe is not 
used in cultivating except to set up stalks. 
From two to three stalks are left iu a hill. The 
yield per acre varies from 50 to 160 bushels of 
ears, and an occasional field gives more or less, 
as the case may be; but the most common 
yield is about 100 bushels, and as a general 
thing no mauure or fertilizers are used, al¬ 
though au occasional field is manured in the 
hill. 
It is a very rare thing to see a field of corn 
not cut off previous to husking, as the fodder 
i6 held iu high esteem by all for feed for all 
kiuds of 6tock. When it is cut off it is put m 
stooks of from 04 to 144 hills, the former being 
the rule and the latter the exception. At busk¬ 
ing time it is tied into bunches containing from 
40 to GO stalks, of which from 10 to 20 are put 
together in stooks, where thi y are kept until 
feeding time, when thiy are hauled, as used, to 
the place of feeding. Of late years a good 
many have abandoned this plaD, and as soon 
as busking is ended, the fodder is hauled to the 
barn aud put in the mow or stacked out-of- 
doors convenient to the place where it is to be 
fed, and it is to be hoped the day is not far dis- 
WHITE LIBERIAN CANE—SEE PAGE 308.— FIG. 331. 
when the farmer is not pressed with other 
work, and hence, there is no good excuse for 
its being slighted- Neatness in the work is 
also an important factor aud should not be 
overlooked. 
The tobacco is assorted usually into four dif¬ 
ferent qualities ; sometimes Bix qualities are 
made as ordered by the purchaser of the 
crop. Tue customary four qualities are mark¬ 
ed A. A., A , B. and C-, according to grade, the 
A. A. meaning 1st wrappers, the siugle A. 2nd 
wrappers, the B. for binders and C. for fillers 
or '• lugs,” as they are sometimes termed. The 
work of assorting consists in placing a bunch 
of the tobacco upon the table or bench, loosen¬ 
ing the string or band, and handling the leaves 
over one by one. and throwing them into their 
respective piles, each assortment by itself. 
The leaves are then tied in “ hands ” or 
“hanks" containing from 15 to 20 leaves 
each. Soft, narrow leaves arc used for the 
“tiers "and are wrapped about the butt ends 
of the leaves foiming the baud, the tip ends 
being tucked between the leaves of the band, 
making a neatly-foi med hank. Our most suc¬ 
cessful growers exercise great care in assort¬ 
ing iheir tobacco. The hands are made as 
nearly as possible of equal size, and are neatly 
tied with leaves suitable for the purpose. 
“Fat” or very inferior leaves should not be 
used for tying the hands. Tobacco assorted 
in a neat aud workmanlike manner indicates 
care and painstaking on the part of ihe grow¬ 
er, which is recognized by the buyers and 
raises the reputation of the grower in their 
eyes. Tobacco before it is assorted should be 
in good condition as regards moisture, that is, 
the leave-B must be soft and pliable, so that 
they will not be damaged by the handling 
neeersaiy in performing the work well. It is 
also advisable in assorting to make the quali¬ 
ties good, that is, to make a good double A. 
and a good A wrapper ; in other words, to put 
iu a wrapper no leaves that do not absolutely 
belong there, leaving all poor and inferior 
leaves for the binders aod fillers. Some 
growers endeavor to make too many wrappers, 
thinking thereby to get more lor their cropB, 
by making a large show of the higher grades. 
Tnis is a mistaken method of assorting, and 
nearly always results unsatisfactorily. When 
six qualities are made in assorting, theA’s and 
double A’s are “ sized,” and the long and short 
leaves in each quality kept separate ; they are 
then termed long A. A’s. or short A. A’s., etc. 
I have dwelt at considerable length on the sub¬ 
ject of assorting tobacco, lor the reason that 
there is no part of the growing and handling 
of u crop, that gives the grower so good an 
opportunity to build up a good reputation as 
the manner in which he “ puts up ” his crop. 
The growers in Luicaster County, Pa., and in 
the Connecticut Valley have built up a high 
reputation by the commendable manner in 
which they assort their crops. So with cer¬ 
tain of our growers in the Chemung Valley, 
who have gained a favorable reputation 
among packers of the leaf, they owe their 
reputation to the care and painstaking which 
they exeicise in assorting and packing their 
tobacco. 
Farmbhs this year will probably sow barley 
rather than oats wherever barley has heretofore 
proven a profitable crop. In many places 
barley cannot be grown, as it is peculiarly lia¬ 
ble to injuty from excessive heat in 8ummer. 
The region iu Cauada north of Lake Ontario 
has long been famous for barley, aud its pro¬ 
duct bears a higher price than that growu ou 
this side of the line. But good barley is grown 
iu cool, moist soils in Western New York, and 
when the season is favorable it is a paying 
crop. As moist, cool soil is important a top¬ 
dressing of salt is one of the best possible ap¬ 
plications for barley. The salt should not be 
drilled with the seed, but sown after the bar¬ 
ky has begun to come up. Oue barrel per 
acre, or about 300 po*unds, costing one dollar, 
is the right quantity. It will make the barley 
straw bright aud the berry plump and of full 
weight, an item of great importance, for thous¬ 
ands of bushels of light barley are thrown out 
as unsalable for malting, and fit only for feed¬ 
ing. Barley is one of the best fallow crops 
for preceding wheat. It can be harvested two 
to four weeks earlier thau oats, and the longer 
preparation of the soil this secures is very im¬ 
portant for the wheat plant. It is also believed 
that barley is less exhaustive of the soil than 
oats, but this is not certain. Barley stubble 
is usually much lighter than that of oats, 
and therefore after plowing the mechanical 
condition of the soil i6 much more favorable. 
w. J. F. 
Everything is adulterated now-a-days, 
sometimes with much and again with but lit¬ 
tle damage. All chemical fertilizers are adul¬ 
terated, some with earth to make bulk and 
freight charges, some with plaster to attract 
moisture aud also to make bulk, upon the 
principle that this manufacturer eaD give you 
as much for your money as the next man. 
The addition of plaster to the other ingre¬ 
dients of a good fertilizer is only a damage iu 
so far as it increases the cost of haul'ng. 
Moisture is so vastly necessary to the profita¬ 
ble employment of all fertilizers, that if the 
manufacturers could, they would add water 
quantum siifficit to Irrigate the land during the 
whole growing season, without depending up¬ 
on the usual rainfall. Plaster absorbs mois¬ 
ture from the air more abundantly than any 
other knowu low-priced chemical Bubstanee, 
and hence its value as a fertilizer not only 
per se, but in combination; for besides its own 
exclusive effect upon the insoluble constituents 
of 6oils, it also furnisheB some extra moisture 
which enables other solubles to act. There¬ 
fore phosphatic feitilizers are benefited by its 
merits, nor is it ever so good that there is not 
some one to point out its faults. 
Jefferson Co., Ohio. M. N. Russell. 
--- 
RAISING GOOD CROPS OF CORN WITH¬ 
OUT HOEING. 
I have always thought that hand hoeing in 
producing a crop of Indian corn absorbed 
such a large proportion of the profit that there 
was only a small revenue left as an equiva¬ 
lent for the money invested in the land and the 
cost of plowing and planting. Hence it has lat¬ 
terly been my practice to manage so as to pre¬ 
vent the expense incident to hand-hoeing as 
much as practicable. To save hand-hoeing, my 
practice is to defer plowing the ground until 
the time for planting has nearly arrived. The 
object i6 to plant as soon after the land is 
plowed as the work can be done. By adopt¬ 
ing this practice the corn will come up qnick- 
ly, get the start of weeds and grass, and with 
a very little work with hand hoes the growing 
crop will maintain the ascendency during the 
entire Beason. When land is plowed two or 
three weeks prior to planting, unless the cul¬ 
ture has been unusually clean during previous 
years, grass and weeds will come np before 
the corn appears, thus necessitating a vast 
deal of expensive labor to weed the hills. 
Whatever may be the form of the plot of 
ground, if it is at all practicable, I commence 
plowing at the center and tnrn the furrow- 
slices all towards the center of the field. By 
thi- practice all middle furrows are avoided. 
Then, the ground Is marked out iu the modern 
quincunx order, or diamond fashion, so that 
any three hills at any part of the field stand¬ 
ing nearest each other will each of them 
appear at a coruer of an equilateral triangle. 
By this practice the horse-hoe can be run three 
ways as well as one way. 
In order to mark out the ground in the mod¬ 
ern quincunx order, the marks are made first 
one way, usually commencing on the longest 
side of the plot. After the ground is all 
marked out one way, if marks are made across 
taut when, instead of this being the exception, 
it will be the rule. There are but very few 
that cut their fodder before feeding, and con¬ 
sequently it is about all fed oui-of-doorson the 
ground. In preparing the grain to feed, some 
have it shelled and ground, but of late years 
mills for grinding corn and cob together have 
come into very general use, and the product is 
fed to horses, cattle, sheep and hogs. With 
sheep, however, a great many follow the old 
practice—feeding in the ear on the ground; 
while others shell and feed from troughs. 
As to kinds grown, they embrace all known 
sorts, but are mostly of the Yellow Dent vari¬ 
ety. New varieties are tested from time to 
time, and, aB is the case with everything else, 
any new sort has to make a very poor show in¬ 
deed if it does not find a friend to advocate its 
the first marks at an angle of about sixty de“ 
grees, ihe hills will all stand diamond fashion, 
each hill at the corner of an equilateral tri¬ 
angle, Take throe rails or poles or boards all 
of equal length (no matter how long if the 
three are of equal length) ; lay one pole in the 
first mark ou one side of the field ; then, place 
the ends of the other two poles or rails In con¬ 
tact with the first pole so as to form an equi¬ 
lateral triangle, somewhat like a three-square 
harrow, with one pole lying straight in one of 
the markB. The other two poles will indicate 
the direction for the cross marks. Three tall 
stakes can then be set up in a range with one 
of the poleB as it lies on the ground, to guide in 
making the first cross-mark. The foregoing 
manner of determining the direction for making 
the cross marks, will be found about as accu 
