1901 
595 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
WHEAT AFTER SILAGE CORN. 
Where the farm land is to be kept busy all the time, 
and all farm land should certainly be So kept, one of 
the great advantages of the silo as an adjunct to the 
farm is in the ability of the farmer to get the corn 
crop oft the ground in time to sow to wheat. If a 
clover sod is manured and plowed down for corn, or 
better, the manure applied after plowing and worked 
in with a disk harrow, a very fair start is made to¬ 
ward a good wheat crop. The good farmer will, of 
course, plow his land well for corn and work it thor¬ 
oughly, giving his corn frequent cultivation and 
keeping the land free from weeds, so when the corn 
is removed for the silo, he has a clean, well cultivated 
surface for wheat and an ideal seed bed, after he has 
loosened up the ground with a good cultivator that 
does not disturb the corn stubs and roots being run 
to a depth of about two inches. Then he has the solid 
ground under his fine shallow surface. This is a much 
less expensiive operation than plowing the ground 
after the removal of the corn, and more favorable for 
the wheat. The corn roots, not being torn up, are not 
at all objectionable in the harvesting of wheat, as the 
corn is cut so low to the ground that the stubble of it 
does not reach up to the wheat harvester knife. If we 
care to roll the wheat in the Spring much of the corn 
stubble will be entirely pressed into the ground. 
When the wheat is drilled the corn rows are simply 
“.straddled” between teeth of the drill. It is the prac¬ 
tice here to use a drill with fertilizer attachment, and 
from 200 to 500 pounds of commercial fertilizer is 
drilled with the wheat. Frequently no Timothy is 
sown, and the ground seeded to wheat a second time. 
I think a much better plan, and one I have followed 
successfully, is to sow Timothy with the wheat, and 
clover in the Spring. 1 keep the young clover and 
weeds clipped after harvest, mow twice the following 
Summer and put corn in the ground the next Spring. 
The wheat is covered with manure during the Winter 
and another dressing given the young clover after the 
wheat is harvested. Another application of manure 
for the corn gives an application for each crop in the 
tri-rotation. This method allows active use of the 
land, and at the same time improves its fertility. 
Pennsylvania. __ 
A TALK ABOUT ASHES. 
Wo are culling pine, hemlock and cedar logs in our 
siiwmili. ami burning Iho rcruse in our iarge iron burner. 
Uuubi the aslies bo u.sed as a fertilizer on our garden, 
and would tliey be as good as manure? We tiave a large 
tnianliiy, in pile outdoors, uncovered from last season. 
Could Ibis be used, or .has it lost its goodness? 
Kurd iliver, Mich. 
We have so many questions about ashes that we 
will try to cover them in one answer. One of the 
host pamphlets dealing with the subject is Bulletin 
No. 74 of the Maine Experiment Station, Orono, Me. 
Ashes, as we all know, contain the indestructible 
parts of vegetable matter. Sometimes the combustion 
is not complete, so that the ashes contain small bits 
of charcoal or unburned wood, which add little to 
the value. There is, of course, no nitrogen in a well- 
burned ash, since that element is a gas, and is driven 
off by heat. The three valuable fertilizing elements 
found in ashes are potash, phosphoric acid and lime. 
The value of a sample of wood ashes was formerly 
measured by the amount of potash it contained, but 
now that the value of Mme is more generally recog¬ 
nized, that element is considered. The value of any 
sample of ash will depend on the wood which was 
burned to produce it, and on the way it was burned. 
The director of the Maine Experiment Station makes 
the following classification: 
Pot- 
Kinds of ashes. ash. 
Unleached hard wood.8.0 
Unleached soft wood (household).2.6 
Unleached soft wood (dump).1.5 
Unleached soft wood (mill furnace)..3.5 
llnleached Canada .5.0 
Leached mixed wood.0.7 
This gives the amount of potash which is soluble 
in water. According to the table the hard-wcKxI ashes 
are worth more than those from soft wood, but this 
is due largely to the way the wood is burned and the 
way the ashes are kept. This is shown by some ex¬ 
periments in Canada reported by the Ontario Agri¬ 
cultural College. Different kinds of wood were burn¬ 
ed under the most favorable conditions—so that all 
the ash was saved and not mixed with sand. The fol¬ 
lowing table shows how some of these woo<ls com¬ 
pared: 
Kind of wood. 
Pot¬ 
ash. 
Phos¬ 
phoric 
acid. 
IJme. 
Sugar maple . 
2.03 
45.24 
Oak . 
.y..3!) 
1.6!) 
43.54 
Hirch . 
. 8.58 
1.47 
37.10 
Beech . 
. 7.58 
1.30 
41.21 
Apple . 
. 4.84 
1.81 
44.93 
Poplar . 
.10.42 
2.98 
28.38 
2.76 
45.83 
L’edar . 
Spruce . 
. 3.30 
4.03 
.98 
20.28 
49.06 
4.00 
25.S2 
In actual farm practice it would never be po.ssible 
to obtain pure ash, but these figures show that soft¬ 
wood ashes average well in potash, but vary in the 
amount of lime. Why then are soft-wood ashes, as 
sold, lower in potash? They are not always so, but 
many of them come from furnaces or mills where 
slabs are burned. These slabs are often covered with 
sand, which mixes with the ashes. The fires are 
usually very hot and part of the potash is actually 
driven off and lost, as is the nitrogen. Such ashes 
are not usually well kept. They are dumped outdoors 
in the dirt, and more or less exixtsed to the weather. 
With heavy rains some of the potash is leached out. 
It is probably safe to assume that the average ton 
of leached ashes, kept under cover, contains five per 
cent of potash, per cent of phosphoric acid and 
33 per cent of lime. The phosphoric acid in ashes is in¬ 
soluble, but the potash and the lime are both in good 
forms for plant feeding. As a fair basis for figuring 
values we may call the poitash worth four cents a 
pound, the phosphoric acid two cents, and the lime 
a little less than half a cent. 
1)0 wood ashes have any value in addition to what 
they give as plant food? They have a mechanical ef¬ 
fect on soils. They bind the lighter sands more close¬ 
ly togeither, thus making them beftter able to hold 
water. The lime acts on clays to open or crumble 
them. The potash lye from the ashes, in solution, 
has power to dissolve organic matter and thus make 
nitrogen in the soil available. Wherever land is 
burned over a very rank growth is sure to follow. 
This is not all due to the potash left in the ashes 
from the burning, but because that potash helped to 
make nitrogen available. In direct answer to the 
question it will be seen from all this that the sawmill 
ashes will be useful on the garden. They cannot fully 
take the place of manure, for the latter contains ni- 
FILliERT (}ALL ON A GUAPEVINK. Fio. 26L 
trogen, while the ashes do not. Most garden spots 
are rich, and for a year or two the ashes might give 
good crops if used alone. 
NITRATE OF SODA ON GRASS. 
On-'page 463 of The R. N.-Y., for July 7, 1900, Prof. 
Phelps advocates the use of 100 to 200 pounds nitrate 
of soda on grass lands, in connection with 150 to 200 
pounds muriate of potash and 200 to 300 pounds S. C. 
aoid rock. In a recent number of The R. N.-Y. you 
state that Mr. Clark is now using about 266 pounds ni¬ 
trate per acre. The question at once presents itself, 
how' much nitrate of soda can be used on grass with¬ 
out losing a portion by leaching? Nitrate costs us 
2% cents per pound, and with hay only $10 to $12 par 
ton one does not like to use more of such an expen¬ 
sive fertilizer than the crop will assimilate, and have 
the remainder wasted. Would such a heavy applica¬ 
tion last until the second or Pall crop? For seeding 
in the Fall, is not cotton-seed meal preferable? The 
United States Department of Agriculture states that 
it lasts in the South about a year, and probably a 
longer period in the North. Again, Proi. Phelps 
states that the grass, when nOt grown for seed re¬ 
quires relatively small amounts of phosphoric acid, 
but does not the grass which blooms and is just form¬ 
ing the seed w'hen cut for hay have practically the 
same demand upon it as if it were allowed to remain 
a few days longer to ripen the seed? e. c. c. 
Maine. 
ANSWERED HY VROE. S. PHELl’S. 
Nitrate of soda should always bn tised as fertilizer 
with caution. Unless there is a crop on the soil ready 
to take it up soon after it is ap[)lied, iimch of it may 
be lo.st by leaching. This again dppeiuls on the 
w(«i)ther. Heavy rains, which soak down two or morn 
ft^et, will probably carry away much of the nitrate, 
but many seasons the early Summer rains are light, 
and only wet the soil to the depth of about one foot. 
Nitrate is often iirofitable on such crops as potatoes 
or corn, which make little growth for a month or 
more after planting, but it is safer to use on grass or 
oats which are growing vigorously when the fertilizer 
is used. With hay worth only $10 to $12 per ton it is 
doubtful whether over 125 pounds of nitrate per acre 
would prove profitable. This would cost at 2^/^ cents 
per pound $3.13. We have found that nitrate or soda 
is often profitable on grass, especially when used on 
land that has been cropped several years without 
manure or fertilizers, and is soon to be plowed and 
reseeded. When land is in a comparatively low state 
of fertility it responds greatly to the stimulus of 
nitrate. 
It is generally true that plants of the grass family 
which produce seed, such as corn, rye, oats anu bar¬ 
ley, use larger quantities of phosphoric acid than 
others which are not allowed to seed. When grass is 
cut before the seed begins to form it needs less phos¬ 
phoric acid than the cereals. If cut late after the seed 
is fully grown more phosphoric acid is used, but even 
then not as much as is used by most of the cereal 
crops. It is generally believed that plants take up 
plant food from the soil as long as growth continues, 
and that only a part of the nourishment of the seed 
comes from the translocation of matter from the 
stems and leaves. Nitrate of soda, however, should 
not be xised on grass in the Fall. Cotton-seed meal, 
fish, or tankage, with muriate of potash, are better 
for use when seeding grass lands. 
HANDLING THE SILO CROP. 
This is now one of the most important jobs of the 
dairyman’s yearly work. It is hard work, from the 
cutting of the corn to the feeding of the cutter or 
properly packing the corn lin the silo. A feeling of 
thankfulness comes over one when the work is well 
done and completed, for there is no more satisfactory 
food in the dairyman’s bill of fare. Winds may blow, 
snow, rain or sleet cover the earth; there is nO husk¬ 
ing to be done with cold fingers, no moldy, wet fodder 
to haul in Christmas Day; no corn butts to clean out 
of the cow’s manger or to Ix^ther one in the manure 
pile. It is hard work to handle silage, but who is not 
willing to work hard when he is accomplishing some¬ 
thing? It is more satisfactory if one has his own cut¬ 
ting outfit, but this is not always practical, as silage 
machiinery is ralther expensive, and has but few days’ 
use during the year. If one has his own outfit more 
time can be t?iken with the filling, which is .some¬ 
times quite a convenience. 
Corn is late this year, and a good many will want 
to wait as late as possible, so if you have to hire an 
outfit it will be wise to watch your corn and make 
arrangements early, s?o that the corn will neither be 
frostbitten nor too far matured. We prefer to cut 
When in the milk stage. If beyond that period too 
much of the grain will harden and pass through the 
cow undigested, which is worse than wasting the best 
part of the food. Corn 12 to 16 fee:t long is heavy 
stuff to handle, and we should plan as far as pos¬ 
sible to avoid all unnecessary lifting. Have low rig¬ 
gings on the wagon. Set the cutter or build plat¬ 
forms so that everything will work down rather than 
up. By lifting the rear end of the ordinary cutter and 
extending the table so it is 14 to 20 feet long the feed¬ 
ing will be accompli.shed much more easily. We third 
cutting the whole field one year before starting the 
cutter, but did not like it. The top leaves will dry 
up and break off; it is more unpleasant to handle, 
many of the ears will get too ripe. If left in large 
bundles they will heat in the center. If rainy 
weather sets in the corn will be dirty, and decidedly 
unpleasant to handle. It takes more help to keep 
just ahead of the cutter, but it is more satisfactory. 
If you are short of teams and have an extra wagon, 
as most farmers do, two teams will take the place of 
three by hauling the load to cutter and changing 
wagons. Pulling out the evener pin and changing to 
the other wagon will take but a minute. Care should 
be used in loading to have butts all one way, and even 
across the load. Begin loading at front or hind end 
of wagon, whichever way is most convenient for un¬ 
loading at the cutter, and load as high at one point 
as you expect to load, then work backwards. Txxads 
properly put on can be unloaded quickly and easily, 
and in at least half the time of those improperly 
loaded, and with much less exhaustion of patience. 
Feed the cutter evenly, spreading the corn from one 
side of table to other, so that there is a continuous 
uu/iform stream going into the cutter. Some men will 
require more power, and not cut over half as much 
corn by uneven feeding. It wants about the best man 
on the job at the feed table, as he can help or hinder 
greatly. The ordinary carrier doesn’t deliver the 
corn in the best manner; ears will roll one way, with 
the heavier butts and the tops and lighter parts an¬ 
other. This will caiLse uneven settling and poor 
silage. One can make an A-shaped board apparatus 
to put under the end of carrier that will help greatly, 
or cutting ends of bran sacks and sewing together 
makes a swinging chute that can be swung all around 
the silo. Keep the .sides well filled and tramp them 
hard; no fear of getting it down too much. If you 
have any dry corn fodder don’t put it all in in one 
place, as It will be likely to firefang and spoil. Mix 
in a load with two of the green, and don’t have any 
of it near the top. 
There lies Itefore me as I write a catalogue of a corn 
harvester. Every cut of the machine at work (and 
they are photo-engravings) shows the corn cut from 
a foot to two or more above the ground. This wou’d 
be thought sinful waste in our section. Why throw 
away a good many tons that the cow will eat. clean 
and with relish, besides making the field harder to 
got i-nto shape for its next crop? We cut just as close 
to the ground ns possible. Corn knives are cheap, 
and it is better to wear one out on the stones and 
earth th.an to top the corn. Don’t leave the field hare 
all throneh the Winter. .\s soon as the corn is off we 
go over the field with hayrake, which picks up .all the 
rubbish, then follow with the disk harrow, sowing 
rye, and finish off with the weeder. This makes good 
pasturage and prevents washing on our hilly soils. 
Connecticut. u. m- 
Phos¬ 
phoric 
acid. Lime. 
3.3 36.5 
1.8 23.6 
1.1 34.3 
1.7 42.8 
i'.i 26.5 
