1010 
The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
main vinos. The habit of growth of kudzu when grown 
for forage is little understood. Kudzu throws out thick 
and very long main vines from the root. These soon 
become tough and woody. These main vines make a 
joint a day, which average 15 or 16 inches, sometimes 
2 feet. At each joint these main vines, if on the ground, 
will strike root, and they also at once—the same day— 
throw up a branch vine at each joint. These branches 
are small and tender, and- covered quite thickly with 
leaves. It is these branches that we cut for hay, and 
that the stock eat in the pastures. When these main 
vines grow on fences the branches grow out perpen¬ 
dicular to the fences, twine and cling together, and in 
a few- weeks cover both sides of the fence with a mass 
of herbage 2 to 3 feet thick. Of course the main vines 
do not strike root when climbing, and eventually they 
arc covered with bark and attain considerable size, 
making a network on the fences that would stop a 
rabbit. 
It does not seem probable that such a plan would 
succeed at the North, yet the way our own kudzu is 
running there is no doubt that it will soon cover 
any fence. In fact, the running power of this plant 
is something that must he seen to he appreciated. 
The photographs show the kudzu running over these 
“perpendicular pastures.” Mr. Leach says the cattle 
do not rip off the main vines and thus tear down 
tiie fence; they graze off the leaves and branch vines. 
Mr. Leach also says regarding the. growth of kudzu: 
Many will not understand what I mean by perpen¬ 
dicular kudzu pastures. This is something we have 
partly discovered and partly inveuted on Cherokee 
Farms. Perpendicular kudzu pastures are simply kudzu 
vines set in parallel rows 7 feet apart and trained on 
cheap wire fences which are built along these rows. 
These fences are about 7 feet high, and the kudzu vines 
grow upon and over these fences and over the ground be¬ 
tween ; so that on every 7 feet of ground used we have 21 
feet of pasture, or three acres of pasture on one acre of 
land. The vines are set directly below the fence wires, 
and when the frost kills the kudzu in November or 
December we disk the ground in the alleys and plant 
them to Sweet and other clovers for Winter pasture. 
By this method our kudzu pastures carry five head of 
cattle from April 15 to November 15. and the Winter 
pastures of clover will carry the same stock from 
January 1 to March 1. But we find it necessary to feed 
each of our cows about 10 pounds of kudzu hay at 
night and 5 or G pounds of corn in the Winter time. 
Wo feed no corn or grain of any kind to our cows when 
cn kudzu. 
As we understand it. the roots of the kudzu are 
planted under the wires along the line of the fence. 
Some of the main stems climb the wires, while 
ethers run or spread over the ground. In these 
“perpendicular pastures" fence posts are G to 7 feet 
high, with about five barbed wires a foot apart to 
make the fence. The posts are 10 feet apart. The 
alleys, between these fences, are grazed in rotation, 
there being .fences -and gates at one end so as to 
shut out the cattle when desired. The cows are let 
into one or two alleys at a time, so that as they feed 
in one part of the field the rest of it is being covered 
with a new growth. 
From the way our own kudzu is now jumping we 
can readily see that in a warm climate these things 
which Mr. I .each claims are entirely possible. We 
shall not attempt to present all the facts he gives 
us, though we believe they arc facts. They seem so 
remarkable that he who would present them at this 
time would simply he classed as a rainbow chaser 
and headed for an asylum. They are so remarkable, 
however, that we think it will pay our dairymen 
and stockmen to try kudzu. But keep it out of the 
garden. Do not set it loose around the house, or it 
may pick up the house and carry it a few rods 
away! One man told us he would not dare let the 
baby go to sleep on the lawn near the kudzu. Before 
lie knew it the vine would Vie upon the child, twine 
its vines around her and carry her off! It surely 
is a grower, and there is no disputing the wonderful 
amount of forage it would provide if it can be 
started on some of our back pastures. Now you 
have our story—all that we feel justified in giving—■. 
though there is much more to it. You must use 
your own judgment about applying it. 
Poison Ivy and Live Stock 
N The K. N.-Y. of July t) Nathaniel Butler advises 
eating poison ivy to prevent poisoning. I con¬ 
sider this very dangerous indeed. I have known 
stock to eat the leaves, of poison ivy without ill 
effects, but have bad four severe cases of poisoning 
when stock ate the leaves of ivy. The first was a 
bunch of steers that ate leaves from a cluster on 
the fence. Their mouths were so sore that they 
would eat nothing for several days. It was neces¬ 
sary to shut them in the barnyard behind a high 
board fence, as they rushed about bellowing, and 
suffered so 'much it was almost impossible to keep 
them anywhere. 
The worst case I ever saw was a pet mare about 
1G or 17 years old. I never saw anything suffer as 
she did. She would throw herself as hard as she 
could and scrub along on the ground, kicking fur¬ 
iously. My wife begged me to shoot her to put her 
out of her misery. When she commenced to throw 
herself I called a veterinarian, and he gave a hyper- 
dermic to stop her suffering. He said the irritation 
of the ivy had caused paralysis of the bowels, so 
they seemed perfectly dead. He gave something 
that is given only as a last resort, but it caused the 
bowels to act in a very short time. Had they not. 
acted, the medicine would have caused death. After 
that we gave raw linseed oil and washed the blisters 
with a solution of sugar of lead. I don’t think there 
was an inch from her feet to her ears that did not 
peel. Some places the hide came off and left the 
hairs, and where she scrubbed the worst the hair 
never came in again. Her mouth as far back as one 
could see was as sore as anything could be. She 
would not attempt to chew, but would drink. I gave 
her hay tea with middlings in it. She came out of 
it all right, but I never want another case like that. 
She had four nice colts afterward. 
I also had two cows that ate ivy. Both had very 
sore mouths, then later aborted, and neither of them 
would breed afterwards. 
If eating the leaves would furnish immunity it 
would seem that a person who had been poisoned 
once would not suffer again. I have known a num¬ 
ber of persons who have been poisoned several times, 
and every time more readily than before and more 
severely. Several of the most severe cases of ivy 
poisoning I have ever seen were persons who had 
been immune and handled the plant as they would 
grapevines. They felt sure it would not poison them. 
There seems to be something about the condition of 
tlie plant or the person so that at one time it would 
not affect them and at another time would poison 
the same person severely. 
If I have to handle ivy as soon as possible after¬ 
wards I wash my hands and face with gasoline or 
kerosene oil. then with soap and water, and if the 
part continues to itch and burn use witch hazel, salt 
water or sugar of lead and water. When I was 
young I used to tear it off the trees with hare hands 
and not feel any effects, but now if I even touch it 
will feel the effect. The only safe way is to let it 
alone, and if it is necessary to handle it use all 
possible means to prevent poisoning. c. m. betts. 
Michigan. 
Comment by Dr. Alexander 
While poison ivy occasionally affects animals as 
it does man, that. I think, is comparatively rare. 1 
have seen cows and horses graze throughout the 
season in a small brush pasture thickly infested 
with poison ivy (Rhus toxicodendron) without any 
apparent ill effect. Cases have been quoted, how¬ 
ever. of local eruptions of the teats of cows caused 
by poison ivy, also on the snouts of hogs. Hunting 
dogs also have swellings of the head after running 
in poison ivy, hut there is no eruption. It is easy 
to jump at conclusions, and some of the cases quoted 
by C. M. Betts may not. in my opinion, have been 
caused by poison ivy. Mycotic stomatitis, for in¬ 
stance, caused by fungi in feed, is comparatively 
common in cattle, and causes sore mouth, with 
ulcers, and some also come on the skin about the 
feet. It might well he thought due to poison ivy, 
hut isn’t. The steers first mentioned may lrave had 
that. “Mud itch" of cattle is now known to be a 
form of hemorrhagic septicaemia, and is not due to 
poison ivy, etc. I hae me (loots! a. s. alexandek. 
Corn and an Acid Soil 
Last year we limed a piece of land and sowed it to 
oats and Sweet clover. This Spring, the Sweet clover 
made a good growth, and about the first of June we 
applied a light dressing of stable manure. The clover 
was about 3 ft. high at this time. We then plowed 
the Sweet clover under. The plowing was done so 
that none of the plants showed above ground. We 
then applied 100 lbs. nitrate of soda and 300-lbs. acid 
phosphate per acre. We planted Eureka corn in a 
good seed bed. The corn came up and is very spindling. 
The color is poor and there seems to be no vigor in tin; 
corn. Another field planted the same time, hut without 
the Sweet clover and without manure, is growing'a fine, 
vigorous, dark green crop of corn. The only solution I 
can think of is that perhaps the decomposition of the 
clover was making a bad acid condition, thereby jlnirtiug 
the corn. Do you -suppose this is so? If so. would it 
have corrected the situation to harrow the Sweet clover 
and apply linte before turning it under? h. j. f. 
Rhode Island. 
ENERALLY speaking, corn prefers a slightly 
acid soil, although some varieties can grow 
well on acid land, while still others appear to 
thrive on alkaline soil. Generally speaking, how¬ 
ever. most varieties prefer a mildly acid soil. There 
may have been some trouble with the seed. Either 
an early frost or some mistake of curing will at 
times greatly injure the vitality. The fact that 
some of the seed did well in another field seems to 
shows that this was not the trouble. There is 
nothing about a crop of Sweet clover, properly 
handled, that should injure corn. It is possible that 
this crop was not handled as it should be. When 
August 13, 1921 
a very green crop full of sap is plowed into a warm 
soil and not packed firmly down, there will often he 
a quick and strong fermentation which fills the upper 
soil with acid. In such condition, corn or any other 
seed would sprout and develop slowly, and some of 
it would he destroyed. It may lie that this heavy 
crop of Sweet clover was plowed loosely into the 
corn and left without packing down.* That would 
probably account for the trouble. It could have been 
overcome by packing the soil firmly after plowing 
with a roller or heavy drag, and with this heavy 
crop of green material plowed into the ground, it 
would have been better to use one ton to the acre 
of ground limestone, well harrowed in. That would 
have overcome much of the effect of the acid and 
put the land into better condition for the corn. 
How to Handle a Virginia Farm 
We have lately taken over a Virginia river farm, 
which 25 years ago was considered one of the prize 
farms of the section, but of late years has been abused 
and run down The land is about 30 feet above river 
level, rolling, with deep ravines running through the 
land, giving good drainage. The soil is loam, some 
parts running to sandy gravel, with clay subsoil; a 
small part clay which has become hardpan on account 
of lack of humus. The farm of course needs humus and 
manure. To furnish manure can 25 good cows be made 
pay for their feed and care at the present prices of 
feed and butterfat? There is a creamery located 40 
miles away, to which deliveries could be made three 
times a week for 25 cents per 100 freight, provided 
means were available. Outline the best and most 
economical plan of bringing up this farm. At present 
there is no pasture, and feed and cover crops will have 
to be sown. A. v. S. 
AN1>S along the Potomac either in Maryland or 
Virginia are usually suited to grain farming 
and are easily improved by a good rotation of crops 
in which clover and other legumes are used for 
building up or restoring the waste humus. On such 
a farm I would make wheat the leading crop, and 
would arrange the rotation to favor the increased 
production of wheat. But some live stock is of 
course at the very foundation of successful farming. 
There is roughage that can lie profitably consumed 
and through the making and saving by quick appli¬ 
cation to the soil all the manure that can he made 
will make the most economical source of soil im¬ 
provement. Methods of wheat growing in the upper 
part of the adjoining county of Westmoreland are as 
a rule fairly good. As a systematic rotation of crops 
I would suggest laying off one field convenient to the 
barn to he made into a permanent pasture. Then 
divide the remainder of the tillable land into three 
fields. Plant in succession corn, after deep breaking 
and harrowing in of 1,000 lbs. slaked lime per acre. 
Cultivate level and at last cultivation sow cow peas 
of an early variety, like New Era or Grout. Cut 
and shock the corn when mature, and disk down the 
peas, turn them under and disk the land fine, and 
after the first white frost in October drill five pecks 
of wheat an acre, using 400 lbs. an acre of acid 
phosphate. 
In early Spring when the soil is crusted with frost 
in the morning and thawing later, sow Red clover 
seed, 15 lbs. an acre, and the thawing will cover the 
seed enough. Next yeai* mow the first growth of 
clover and cure it for hay mainly in cock and barn, 
with as little exposure to the sun as practicable. 
You can pasture your cows on the second growth, 
but not horses, as it may salivate them badly. Dur¬ 
ing the Winter get out all the manure made as fast 
as made, and spread on the clover, and in the Spring 
turn all under for corn again. The corn can use 
the rough manure better than other crops, and its 
cultivation will make the fallow for the wheat crop 
that follows. If all the corn stover, wheat straw and 
clover hay are fed on the farm and the manure 
applied to the corn crop there will soon be no need 
for commercial fertilizer, except a carrier of phos¬ 
phorus. usually acid phosphate of 1<>9r grade. This 
for the wheat, corn using the manured clover sod. 
Follow this system strictly and you will find the 
productivity of the soil increasing rapidly. <)t 
course at first the three fit-ids will he planted to the 
crops without regard to what has been on the land, 
hut the rotation, started stick to it. To make a 
permanent, pasture sow the land in June in cow peas. 
You can use these for liog pasture after pods fill 
and then turn the residue under and harrow in lime 
at rate of 1,000 lbs. of slaked lime. Put the land 
into good order and sow 16 lbs. of Orchard grass 
and 10 lbs. of Kentucky Blue grass an acre. Getting 
a good stand, let the sod get strong before turning 
on it. Then every Spring give the pasture a dress¬ 
ing of 200 lbs. or more of raw bone meal to replace 
the phosphates taken by stock to make bone. Keep 
this up and the grass will really he permanent. 
There are hill lands in Maryland that have been 
so treated, and have been in grass for 75 years, mak¬ 
ing more grass today than ever. w. f. massey. 
