The progressive farmer and southern farm gazette., July 09, 1910, Page 479, Image 3

About The progressive farmer and southern farm gazette. (Starkville, Miss.) 1910-1920

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$500 More a Tear farming: Bow tiTfiet It
BY MAKING IDLE ACRES GROW FORAGE CROPS.
Time Vet to Plant Sorghum, Mexican June Corn or Kafir Coni
—ir These Crops Are Fed on the Farm and the Manure Re
turned to the Land It Will Be Better for the Soil Than to Leave
It Idle.
By T»it Butler.
rr^HE SOUTH BUYS millions of
I dollars worth of feeding stufTs
JL every year, and at the same
time her farmers allow a great deal
of land to lie idle during a portion of
the year when it would grow a large
amount of needed forage. Except in
a few comparatively small sections
of the South there is not enough hay
grown to supply local needs, and con
sequently hay generally sells at from
$ 1 f> to $25 a ton. Where this condi
tion exists there is no better money
crop than hay and not a single acre
of oat or wheat stubble should be left
Idle. In addition to the oat and wheat
lands there are many other idle and
"resting" acres that would pay better
in some useful forage crop.
In no part of our territory is it yet
too late for sorghum and millet, and,
except in the northern part it is not
too late for Mexican June corn and
kafir corn. The objection may be
urged against these, that they im
poverish the soil rather than Im
prove it. This Is true if they are
taken off and sold, or if made into
buy and fed and the manure wasted,
but if grazed or consumed on the
land, or if fed and the manure saved
and returned to the land, we would
rather have any soil growing theBe
crops than lying Idle producing a crop
of weed seed to interfere with the
grow th of next year’s crops. But the
man who is looking for an excuse to
avoid the work and expense necessary
to make forage on these Idle acres
will have no trouble In finding one,
and we fancy we hear him saying,
"Wouldn’t it be better to plant these
Idle acres tn cowpeas, or soy beans?”
Yes, It would, and we wish we could
induce our readers to grow enough
cow pea and soy bean seed to sow alt
the land the South ought to put Into
iheso crops; but this they will not
do and consequently many an acre of
oat and wheat stubble will be left
idle because cowpeas and soy beans
are too high-priced, or ran not be had
at any price.
Tl»e Value of a Hood Hay Crop.
We have never taken any stock in
the abuse of cotton as a farm crop,
which Is so popular at this time with
many who advise the farmer, but a
ton and a half of hay, worth on the
market from $20 to $30, and 20
bushels of soy beans, worth from
$1.50 to $2.50 a bushel, Is a crop
that will compare favorably with
cotton when we consider that in the
southern half of our territory two
crops might be grown on the same
land in one season, or in any part of
the South one crop of tills size may
he grown after a crop of oats or
wheat. Is cotton a better money
crop than soy beans at present prices,
considering the conditions under
which they may he grown?
At least, it is certain that those
lands which have grown cotton so
long would not grow it any the less
profitably if a crop of soy beans were
grow n on them every second year.
it is not, however, for those who
will sow every acre of idle land to
cowpeas or soy beans that wo are
writing at present. It is for those
who can not get the seed of those
legumes or those who will not pay the
present high prices, that we are call
ing attention to other forage crops
which, although not land improvers,
ure valuable forage crops that may
be made to save us millions of dol
ltirs now paid for Northern timothy
hay and corn and oata.
Koine Crops That Will Make Feed for
Next Winter.
Katlr corn and Mexican corn will
mature in less time than ordinary
corn and will make lair crops during
seasons so dry tnat a crop of late
planted corn would prove a failure.
1 he danger of late planted corn is
usually the dry weather of August
and September and for this reason
we believe that kafir corn should
receive more consideration for plant
ing on the lauds left idle during
these months.
We are not advising that kafir
corn or Mexican June corn take the
place of the common corn, nor that
millet and sorghum displace cowpeas
or soy beans, but if there is- an idle
acre of land which will not be occu
pied by other crops from now until
November 15th, we urge the planting
of it to some of these quick-growing,
dry-weather forage plants in all those
sections where sutlicient forage is not
usually produced to supply the local
demand. The cost of seed may not
in some cases be so much less than
for cowpeas und soy beans, but in
others it will be considerably cheap
er and probably in all cases will be
obtainable, which is not the case
with cow peas or soy begins this year.
Kafir corn is grown much as com
mon corn, whereas sorghum may be
grown in drills or broadcast. Millet
is sowed broadcast and will make a
crop of hay in from G5 to 80 days.
Dry-Weather Crops.
We know of no poor-laml crops,
that is, we know of no forage crop
that will not do better on rich land
than ou poor; nor do we know of any
that will not do better with a fairly
liberal supply of moisture; but these
crops, especially sorghum, will prob
ably make more forage than almost
any other crop on rather poor land
and sorghum and kafir corn, or
Mexican Juno corn, will make more
forage in a dry season, such as we
usually get during August, September
and October, than almost any other
of our forage crops.
The South must make more forage
before we can hope to raise more
live stock, aud live stock will be
found protitable or otherwise accord
ing as we produce feeds cheaply and
abundantly. If we continue to feed
too sparingly, as we surely shall so
long as we buy corn and hay to feed,
live stock will not prove profitable.
To feed the Increased number of ani
mals needed, most economically, we
MAY PDPCC Best firm press made.
Tjjll "H' thousands in use. Over
t w v 4G0 sold in 3 months. For 10 years wi've
made them. Shipped on 6 days' trial direct from
factory. Write for booklet.
WATKINS HAY PRESS CO. =: Atlanta. Ga.
r Is guaranteed to do as good and 1
as much work as any costing
TWICE as much. It bales faster,
has the best rebound break, the
lightest draft, and requires less
men and stock to work than any
other press made. Write for cataloK.
Address Ilay Press Dept.
WILLIAMS BUGGY CO., Makers
Macon, Georgia
„ l—J
must raise the forage without de
creasing our acreage in cotton and
other money crops. If we but use
lands and labor at idle times to
grow forage, we can produce it cheap
er than it is grown in any stock
raising section of this country to
day, and we have no hesitation in
stating that sufficient forage can be
produced at times when the labor is
not pressed with the other crops and
on lands that are idle to make this
a great stock-raising country. When
this is done the resulting manure
will largely increase the yields of our
staple crops.
In this issue, for the purpose of
supplementing this article, we are
printing on page 489 an article by
Prof. E. R. Lloyd, of the Mississippi
Experiment Station, giving some
specific directions for planting and
growing kafir corn.
HOW TO DISPOSE OF THE WHEAT
CHOP.
The wheat crop is good this year
in the greater part of the South. In
Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama
probably more was planted than for
many years. The cool, dry weather
has* been ideal for the wheat of this
section, and those who planted a few
acres last fall have harvested a good
crop.
We are now receiving inquiries re
garding the threshing, milling and
marketing of this wheat. Threshing
machines and flour mills are scarce
in the South and these offer obstacles
to the increase of the wheat crop. If
our ability to grow wheat profitably
one year with another was demon
strated and there was a reasonable
prospect of the crop being increased
sufficiently to justify the purchase of
harvesting and threshing machinery,
flouring mills would no doubt follow;
but it is doubtful if wheat growing
on such a scale will be found pro
fitable. Our warm, moist weather so
common in May and June, is not good
for wheat, and while small areas
may and probably should be grown,
the area is not likely to increase suf
ficiently to make it profitable for the
iverage farmer to buy the necessary
machinery to handle a wheat crop
iconomically. Those who sow a
small area may have the wheat
ground in the corn mills now com
mon everywhere in the South, and by
sifting out the coarse bran, may ob
tain a satisfactory brown or “Gra
ham” flour. This is as wholesome
and nourishing as the white flour.
There will also be a good demand
for seed wheat again this fall, for the
good crop this year is certain to in
duce others to try a few acres, and
probably also lead those who grew
wheat this year to increase the acre
age for next year. Those who do
not make it into “Graham” flour or
sell for seed, will probably find it
most profitable to ship the wheat to
the nearest flouring mill.
Destroy All Cotton Squares Punctur
ed by Weevils.
There is danger that farmers not
familiar with the boll weevil may be
deceived by the apparent “dying
out” of the pest at this time and not
persist in their efforts against it.
The weevils that passed through the
winter are now rapidly disappearing;
but they have left behind them a
larger crop of weevils than ever.
I' is of the greatest importance
that fields be gone over at once and
all punctured squares picked from
the ground and from the stalk. If
this is done carefully and promptly,
and repeated at weekly intervals, it
wil*. go far towards insuring a profit
able cotton crop. The punctured
squares should not be plowed under;
if they can not be picked, cultiva
tion should be with a harrow so as
to pull them out to the center of
the ~ow and leave them lying on the
surface. When cultivating, the cot
ton stalk should be brushed or shak
en, as many of the punctured squares
can be removed in this may.
To be effective, this work must be
done at once. Its object is to de
stroy the first crop of weevils.—B.
L. Moss, District Agent, Farmers’ Co
Operative Demonstration Work.
The Improved Red Ripper i
k Hay Press *—_ f
1 The RED RIPPER is used and recommended by State aod County Farms all oyer the
South. It is the only baler on the market that regulates the weight of bales automatically
It is strong, fast and durable—easy to feed, and light on the horse—makes neat, heavy bales,
and Is cheap. Write us for prices and easy terms.
SIKES HAY PRESS COMPANY, Box 84, OcOIyGy
Continuous Travel. THE ROYAL UHE OF HAY PRESSES
Before yon buy a hay press be sure you are get
ting one that la honestly built and will bale
smoothly, quickly and economically without break
ing down or getting out of order. We make this
kind of Hay Press—4 of them—The Begml. Roy
al Junior. Royal Economy and Nam Chieumamya.
Write ns today and let us prove to you that one of
these Is the one you should buy.
CHATTANOOGA IMPLHMBNT A MFG. CO..
Doyartmont T. Chattanooga, Toma.
CONDENSING
PACKER
LIGHTNING HAY PRESSES1
Tested for over 25years. Made in many styles.
Horse Power, Belt Power and Self-feed At
tachment. Simple and Durable with Greatest
Capacity. They make a Profitable Investment.
We can suit you. Write foe Catalog and prices.
KANSAS CITY IAY PRESS CO. 2 Mill St., Kansas CH;, Mr.
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