1901 
rilE RURAL NEW-YORKKR 
467 
CHEMICALS, CLOVER, COWS AND LIME. 
Some Methods and Results Analyzed. 
Part II. 
WHY USE LIME?—There are some fiel.ls aroun''! 
Cranbury that seem to blush for shame at their sad 
and sour condition. They are red with sorrel. Gre'ji 
patches of this red signal of distress are to be seen 
here and there. In one field used for a pasture the 
sorrel was so thick that one would think the cows 
were in danger of giving buttermilk or clabber. Mr. 
Lewis is satisfied that the appearance of this sorrel 
indicates an acid condition of the soil which is not 
favorable to the growth of clover, grass or grain. It 
will often be noticed that on soil w'hich we know is 
strong and well fertilized clover will not start readily, 
while Timothy and other grasses gradually fall out, 
and sorrel comes in freely. It may be that a growth 
of sorrel does not always indicate that the soil is too 
acid, but it is a protty reliable indication that lime is 
ncedeil. Mr. Lewis had noticed for several years that 
the catch of clover was not satisfactory on his farm, 
e.specially on some of the fields. My own experience 
has been that different soils on the same farm, or 
even close together, may vary greatly in their need 
of lime. This partial failure of the clover and the 
appearance of the sorrel on neighboring farms con¬ 
vinced Mr. Lewis that liming once in live years will 
pay. He selected the wheat crop as best in all re¬ 
spects for the lime. One object is to use the lime 
so as to keep it as far as possible from the potato 
crop. This is because lime corrects the acid condi¬ 
tion of the soil, and encourages the development of 
the scab germ on potatoes. If there are any of these 
germs on the seed or in the soil lime will surely pro¬ 
duce a scabby crop. As wheat follows potatoes in 
this rotation it makes 
the safest point for the 
lime. The liming was 
begun in the F'all ot 1899. 
Twenty bushels or 1,'iOO 
pounds per acre were 
used. The best way to 
use the lime is to har¬ 
row it in after plowing, 
aithough Mr. Lewis says 
he has in some cases 
broadcast it over the 
growing wheat. The re¬ 
sults of the lirst applica¬ 
tion are quite evident in 
the clover and grass 
which follow last year’s 
wheat. This year’s clove.' 
loo has given a fine 
"catch.” Mr. Lewis feels 
confident that this use of 
lime once in five years 
will help the farm, lie 
does not regard the lime 
as plant food. The fer¬ 
tilizer used on potatoes 
contains plenty of lime 
in a condition to supply 
the food needs of the 
plants. The lime useu 
on the wheat unlocks 
plant food now in the 
soil, and makes it avail¬ 
able, and neutralizes the 
acids so that grain, clover and grass may grow to bet¬ 
ter advantage. It is the difference betw’een food and 
medicine. There is no thought of using less fertilizer 
or less manure, but it seems evident that the lime 
will enable the crops, especially the clover and grass, 
to make better use of the soil and what it contains. 
POTATOES.—The potatoes on this farm were the 
best I have seen anywhere this year. They are in a 
well-drained soil—perhaps the best field on the farm 
for potatoes. The soil was well fitted and the pota¬ 
toes were started right. They kept growing slowly 
through the wet, dull weather of May, making a slow, 
healthy growth, so that when the sunny days finally 
came they were not stunted, but started off rapidly. 
One secret of successful potato growing is to keep the 
crop moving. It must never stop or stand still, but 
must be forced from the time the plants show above 
ground. Mr. I.tewis feels confident that the crop will 
be at least a fair one this year. The plants are large, 
dark green in color, and with thick, heavy stems. ‘‘1 
know what is behind them!” says Mr. Lewis—mean¬ 
ing that he knows that the fertilizer close to their 
roots contains evei-ything they need to produce a full 
crop. The soil, too, is well filled with moisture, and 
by means of good cultivation much of this can be re¬ 
tained. In planting potatoes this year something of 
a new plan was tried. The Robbins planter was used, 
and the furrows were first opened alone—without any 
attempt to drop fertilizer or seed. Then the fertilizer 
feed was reversed so as to drop the fertilizer before 
rather than behind, and the machine was run along 
the open furrows. In this way it is thought that the 
fertilizer was put just where it was most needed, and 
the extra working seems to have paid. 
FERTILIZER PROBLEMS.—Mr. Lewis has used 
the same brand of fertilizer for many years. Farmers 
are frequently tempted to change from high-grade to 
low-grade goods, the chief argument being a lower 
price. Many of these men have studied the fertilizer 
problem, and know something of the value of plant 
food. After a year of light crop or low prices they 
are quite likely to drop the fertilizer which has proved 
reliable through a long series of years, and try some 
new mixture which is offered for several dollars le.ss 
per ton. Sometimes a single season’s test indicates 
that the lower-priced mixture by the side of the stand¬ 
ard goods will give nearly as good results in crop. 
'I’liey then conclude that it is just as good. Mr. Lewis 
says that during the 20 years he has been working 
the farm through the present rotation he has had but 
three maximum crops of potatoes. What he means 
is that only three times in 20 years has he been able 
to produce an average of 340 bushels per acre, and 
these results were obtained on three different fields. 
The same fertilizer -has been used all through this 
period, with the same culture and care, yet all the 
conditions needed to produce a full crop have been 
present only three times. Mr. Lewis argues from this 
that a single year’s results from a change of fertilizer 
prove little or nothing. The only way to fertilize po¬ 
tatoes is to use large quantities of a mixture known 
to suit the crop, and thus be always prepared for a 
combination of conditions that will just suit it. The 
experiment with the poorer goods might be made in 
a year when the best results were possible, and in 
that case there might be a serious loss. When asked 
whether the other crops in the rotation, wheat, grass, 
clover and corn, varied as the potatoes do, Mr Lewis 
said no—^^that under his S 5 'stem they were always 
sure of fair crops. This year’s grass is very heavy, 
while most of the wheat looks good for 35-40 bushels 
per acre. Mr. Lewis says that when the potato crop 
is average or below he does not use fertilizer on the 
wheat, since there is enough left by the potatoes. 
After a very heavy potato crop he would probably use 
e.xtra fertilizer. h. w. c. 
GOOD CULTURE FOR CORN. 
A good crop of corn can be raised while Summer 
fallowing, and all the weeds and foul stuff can be 
killed out just the same. The better you cultivate 
your corn the better corn you will have, and also the 
better wheat. Fit your ground well enough for a 
garden; then mark it both ways. I plant with an 
American Standard planter, and can easily plant 
seven acres a day; then as soon as I get my field 
planted I roll the ground, and when the corn is rooted 
in the hill so that it won’t be knocked out of place, 
I give it a thorough harrowing with a 60 spike-tooth 
harrow going both ways. The troubie with most 
farmers is that they get in too big a hurry to plant. 
They say they will fit their ground after planting 
with good cultivation, but this will never do. After 
my corn is nicely up I harrow it again; the harrow 
loosens the earth right in the hill. You must have 
the teeth in your harrow good and sharp or pointed. 
The first time that I did this 1 almost shut my eyes, 
it seemed such har.sn treatment for the tender corn, 
but in a couple of days I saw that it had done no harm 
to the corn. I never .saw any hand hoeing or culti¬ 
vating that did corn so much good as this did. Of 
course the field must be free from sticks, large stones 
and sods or the corn will be pulled out. 
I like to use the old-fashioned one-horse cultivator, 
for I always cultivate my corn (uagonally through the 
rows. Cultivating this way the hills do not come op¬ 
posite each other, the operator only has one hill to 
watch, and can get much closer to the hill, 'i'herefore 
the cultivator can be set fully as wide as the rows, 
and can be jogged over, so as to root grass and weeds 
almost right out of the hill. When a two-horse cul¬ 
tivator is used you have to allow for the spreading of 
the hill and set your cultivator accordingly. I have 
no two-horse cultivator, but I have a common two- 
horse disk, and 1 take off the two inside disks and 
can cultivate with it till the corn is from 18 inches 
to two feet high, straddling the rows the same as with 
the two-horse cultivator, and can do just as good and 
thorough work with it. 1 have never had a failure 
of corn or wheat since I followed this method. Corn 
has always gone over 100 bushels to the acre. 1 don’t 
like to see a good clean corn stubble go over the Win¬ 
ter. I always think what a good opportunity is lost 
for raising a crop of wheat. I like a good cover crop 
of some kind on all of my land. a. i,. s. 
Huron Co., Mich. 
LATE POTATOES AFTER EARLY PEAS. 
I tried an experiment this year with Canada peas 
and potatoes that may be interesting to your readers. 
The large potato growers in this vicinity generally 
plant in June. We tried it last year for the first time, 
and for growing pota¬ 
toes cheapiy it was a 
success. I have been a 
m a r k e t gardener in 
years past, and raised a 
great many peas for 
market, one year having 
put them into market on 
June 4. My own experi¬ 
ence is that peavines 
piowed under are a great 
benefit to the soil, but 
I never plowed them un¬ 
der until the vines were 
dead. What benefit green 
vines plowed under will 
be to the soil or to the 
potato ci’op I am unable 
to state, but hope to be 
able to know all about 
it when the potato crop 
is harvested. We plowed 
a lO-acre field on April 
10, 11, 12, dragged it and 
drilled in the peas April 
IG and 17, putting IV 2 
bushel of seed and 200 
pounds of potato ferti¬ 
lizer to the acre. Follow¬ 
ing this was one of the 
heaviest, wettest and 
most disagreeable snow¬ 
storms ever known in 
this vicinity. The peas 
commenced to break through the ground on May 1. 
About this time we were able to put in five acres 
more. To-day the field is a solid green; I measured 
the vines, and they are 19 inches high and seven 
branches on each stock. My neighbors admit that 
the crop of peas is a success; therefore it must be so. 
The season all know has been backward. Weeds 
have come up between the drill rows so thick that 
there is no ground visible. The continued rains have 
delayed all farm work, and some farmers had not 
finished planting corn by June 15. Some had finished 
planting potatoes, while most of the large potato 
growers were waiting for the ground to get dry 
enough to plow. I began to plow these peas under 
by June 17. Whether this will be a success in grow¬ 
ing potatoes the future alone can tell. As a weed 
killer and soil renovator there can be no doubt of 
its being successful. The weeds will all be plowed 
under. The ground being plowed twice and the extra 
cultivating to put in the peas and the potato ferti¬ 
lizer must help the crop of potatoes whether the pea- 
vines will or not. k. s. .wiinq. 
Portage Co., 0. 
R. N.-Y.—We would like to know the result at dig¬ 
ging time. The plan seems a good one in theory, but 
in our own location late planting seldom gives a 
good yield unless we use second-crop seed. For the 
potato crop we would prefer the green vines to dead 
ones, and the peas might follow rye or Winter oats, 
thus filling the soil with humus. 
A FIELD OF OATS AND PEAS READY TO CUT. Fio. 197. Ske First Page. 
