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THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
NEW YORK - BOSTON + CHICAGO
SAN FRANCISCO
MACMILLAN & CO., Limitep
LONDON + BOMBAY + CALCUTTA
MELBOURNE
THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Lr.
TORONTO
SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

(EXCLUSIVE OF FORAGE PLANTS)

BY
JOHN FREDERICK DUGGAR

DIRECTOR OF THE ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION
AND PROFESSOR OF AGRICULTURE IN THE ALABAMA
POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE

Ne York
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
1916

All rights reserved
Coryrieut, 1911,

By THE MACMILLAN COMPANY.

Set up and electrotyped. Published April, r911- Reprinted
September, 1911 ; November, 1912; September, 1913: September,
1914; April, 1915; September, November, 1916.

Norwood jpress
J. 8, Cushing Co. — Berwick & Smith Co.
Norwood, Mass., U.S.A.
Zo

MY PARENTS
DR. REUBEN HENRY DUGGAR
AND
MARGARET LOUISA (MINGE) DUGGAR
THIS BOOK
IS AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED
AS A SLIGHT TOKEN OF APPRECIATION OF
THEIR HIGH IDEALS AND CAREFUL

PARENTAL TRAINING
   

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EDITOR’S PREFACE

THERE are many types of text-books in agriculture.
Three types have now found their places in The Rural
Text-Book Series: One type, represented by Warren’s
“Elements of Agriculture,” expounds the general basis
and practice of the agricultural pursuit; another type,
represented in Lyon and Fippin’s “ Principles of Soil Man-
agement,” presents in detail one of the large fundamental
subjects; and another type, represented in the present
volume, explains the reasons and practices underlying the
raising of particular crops.

These three honest books also represent three ranges of
presentation: the Warren, a high school method; the Lyon
and Fippin, a distinctly college method; and the Duggar,
an intermediate method, designed for both advanced high
school and college.

A book may be adapted at the same time to college work
and to reading and reference by the best farmers. The
practicing farmer is increasingly requesting books that give
him real reasons and real facts. Text-books will increase
in use among farmers, not only among those farmers who
have had college instruction, but also with those who have
come to their work by other routes, but who desire to proceed
substantially. These text-books open new fields of observa-
tion. How many farmers really know how the roots of the
wheat plant look, or what is their mode of growth, or how

these roots compare with those of oats? How many know
vii
vill EDITORS PREFACE

the form and features in detail of the leaves of wheat and
barley and oats and rye? And yet all good farming rests
on good observation, and on sound reasoning from the facts
and phenomena that one observes.

I have been struck with the suggestions for original and
painstaking observation that the pages of this book contain.
It presents a type of teaching method that was well put
in book form by Hunt in his “Cereals in America,’ — the
method that sends the learner directly to the plant in the
field, to make careful observation from tip of root to tip of
top. Most farmers do not even yet really know the plants
that they till. This volume by Duggar will discover his
cotton and his cane to many a man who long has grown
them, but who has known them not. These makers of
observation text-books, that present the crops and the
animals in their real and living details, will set going a
great quiet movement to examine minutely the conditions
of agricultural failure and success.

L. HW. BAILEY.
AUTHOR’S SUGGESTIONS TO TEACHERS
AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Tuts book has been prepared to fill the needs of two
classes of individuals, — students desiring a full and practi-
cal, yet logical and pedagogical treatment of the staple crops
of the South, and farmers seeking a simple presentation of
the scientific principles underlying agriculture, together with
a condensed statement of the results of recent experiments
and experience.

Scientific terms have been excluded, except when de-
manded by accuracy and clearness, so that farmers having
no training in the use of such terms may be able to read the
volume understandingly. The meaning of every unfamiliar
term may be found in the glossary. Farmers will usually
omit the reading of the Exercises except when pursuing a
course of instruction, as in some study-center, or short-
course, or correspondence-course.

As a text-book, this volume is intended especially to serve
for classes in high-schools and normal schools. It is also in-
tended to constitute an outline of the subject for college use.
In high-school classes, it is expected that the teacher will
direct the students to omit all the matter printed in small
type, all technical names in parentheses, and such of the
exercises as deal with crops of which specimens cannot be
found in the neighborhood.

ix
x AUTHOR'S PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

For high-school use, the matter may be further abridged
by the omission of the study of those particular crops that
are unsuited to the locality.

College students are expected to prepare all the matter
in this book, including that in fine print, and all Exercises.
Their instructors will probably assign additional work on
the crops of chief interest to the locality. These additions
will usually take the form of supplementary lectures and
of collateral reading selected from the literature cited under
each crop.

It is scarcely necessary to point out that the use of a text-
book to afford at least the outline of the subject-matter on
crops will enable the student to cover much more ground
than would be possible if he relied exclusively on lecture
notes. The use of a text-book is also advantageous to the
instructor, since it permits him to devote a larger proportion
of his time to supplementary lectures, which will direct in-
creased attention to local problems and practices, suggest
methods of agricultural investigation, and discuss the most
effective methods of teaching the subject of agriculture.

The author desires to express his thanks to the numerous
friends who have assisted him in this work, and especially to
the following: To Messrs. C. A. Cauthen, H. P. Agee, W. R.
Dodson, J. N. Harper, and C. R. Ball for reading the manu-
script of certain chapters; and to Dr. L. H. Bailey for
editorial work and for the use of certain illustrations from
his Cyclopedia of American Agriculture.

Grateful acknowledgment is made to Dr. W. E. Hines for
a number of photographs of insects; to Professor L. N.
Duncan for making the photographs of corn ears; and to
Miss C. M. Cook, who made most of the drawings prepared
especially for this book. In the List of Illustrations credit
AUTHOR'S PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xi

is given in detail to the U.S. Department of Agriculture
and to those Experiment Stations that contributed photo-

graphs for this volume.
J. F. DUGGAR.
AUBURN, ALABAMA,
January 2, 1911.
CONTENTS

CHAPTER I

Oats — Avena sativa

Structure, 1; Varieties, 6;

22

PAGES

. -31

Climate, Soils, and Renieds

13; Cultural Methods, 16; netics: 25; Laboratory Exer-

cises, 29; Literature, 31.

CHAPTER II

Wueat— Triticum sativum

Structure and Composition, 32;
40; Soils, Rotation, and Fertilizers, 45;
Sowing, 50;
ercises, 64; Literature, 67.

CHAPTER III

Rye anp Barley ‘ ; . ‘ .
Rye — Secale cereale . ‘ 3 : 7
Barley — Hordeum sativum %
Laboratory Exercises, 77 ; Literature, 77.

CHAPTER IV

Corn or Maize — Zea mays

Species and Varieties,
Preparation and
Harvesting, 58; Enemies, 59; Laboratory Ex-

32-67

68-77
. . . 68

78-97

Structure, 80; The Corn Grain or Kernel, 92; Laboratory

Exercises, 95; Literature, 97.

CHAPTER V

Corn — CoMPposiITION AND JUDGING . .

Judging Corn, 101.

Laboratory Exercises, 102; Literature, 111.

xiii

. . 98-111
Xiv CONTENTS

CHAPTER VI

Corn— Races AND VARIETIES . . . ms
Laboratory Exercises, 125; Literature, 126.

CHAPTER VII

Corn — BREEDING OR IMPROVEMENT . r .
Laboratory Exercises, 148; Literature, 149.

CHAPTER VIII

Corn —So1rs, Rotations, AND FERTILIZERS

PAGES

. - 112-126

. 127-149

: - 150-157

Soils, 150; Rotation, 151; Fertilizers, 153; Laboratory

Exercises, 157; Literature, 157.

CHAPTER IX

Corn — Tue TILLAGE oR CULTIVATION
Laboratory Exercises, 188 ; Literature, 188,

CHAPTER X

Corn — Harvestine

Laboratory Exercises, 204; Literature, 205.

CHAPTER XI

Corn — ENEMIES .

« 158-188

. - 189-205

+ 206-216

Insects, 206; Fungous Diseases, 214; Laboratory Exer-

cises, 216 ; Literature, 216.

CHAPTER XII
Rice — Oryza sativa

Laboratory Exercises, 229; Literature, 230.

. - 217-230
CONTENTS xV

CHAPTER XIII
PAGES
Tue Sorcuums— Andropogon sorghum  . : . . 281-247

The Sorghums in General, 231; Saccharine or Sweet Sor-

92

ghums, 234; Kafir, 239; Milo, 240; Broom Corn, 244;
Laboratory Exercises, 245; Literature, 246.

CHAPTER XIV

Cotton —SrTRUCTURE AND GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS . 248-266

Laboratory Exercises, 265; Literature, 266.

CHAPTER XV

Cotton —ComPposiTION AND THE PRINCIPAL Uses . . 267-2738
Laboratory Exercises, 273 ; Literature, 273.

CHAPTER XVI
Cotron — THE PRINCIPAL SPECIES 3 . 274-281

Laboratory Exercises, 281; Literature, 281.

CHAPTER XVII
Cotron — VARIETIES OF AMERICAN UPLAND . . 282-299

Laboratory Exercises, 299; Literature, 299.

CHAPTER XVIII
Cotton BREEDING 3

; a : 5 - - 800-814
Laboratory Exercises, 313; Literature, 314.

CHAPTER XIX

: ° ; . 815-840
General Considerations on Fertilizing Cotton, 315; Ni-

trogenous Fertilizers, 325; Phosphatic Fertilizers, 329; Pot-

ash Fertilizers, 332 ; Miscellaneous Fertilizers and Effects of

Fertilizers, 335 ; Laboratory Exercises, 339; Literature, 339.

Cotton —Soirs AnD FERTILIZERS H
xvi CONTENTS

CHAPTER XX

PAGES

Corron — Tue CULTIVATION OF THE AMERICAN UPLAND Group 841-860

Laboratory Exercises, 360 ; Literature, 360.

CHAPTER XXI
Cotron — HarvestinG AND MARKETING
Laboratory Exercises, 376 ; Literature, 376.
CHAPTER XXII
Corron— History AND STATISTICS . e é

Laboratory Exercises, 387 ; Literature, 387.

CHAPTER XXIII

Corron — Insect ENEMIES .

. - 9861-876

. . 877-387

888-410

Cotton Boll-worm, 388; Mexican Cotton Boll-weevil, 392 ;
Insects of Minor Importance, 407; Laboratory Exercises,

410; Literature, 410.

CHAPTER XXIV
Corron —Funcous anp Otner Disrases .
Laboratory Exercises, 420; Literature, 420.
CHAPTER XXV
Heme — Cannabis sativa

Laboratory Exercises, 424 ; Literature, 424.

CHAPTER XXVI

SweeEt-rotatTo — Ipomea batatas

. 411-420

. . 422-424

425-456

Composition and Uses, 428; Varieties, 431; Soils, Fer-
tilizers, and Rotation, 434; Cultural Methods, 438; Har-
vesting and Storing Sweet-potatoes, 447; Enemies, 452;

Laboratory Exercises, 455; Literature, 455.
CONTENTS xvii

CHAPTER XXVII

PAGES
Cassava — Manihot utilissima . . ‘ a . « 457-462

Laboratory Exercises, 462; Literature, 462.

CHAPTER XXVIII
Peanut — Arachis hypogea : R Fi : I . 463-483
Laboratory Exercises, 482; Literature, 483.

CHAPTER XXIX
Scear-cane — Saccharum officinarum a‘ : < « 484-522
Composition, 492; Soils and Fertilizers, 494; Cultural
Methods, 499; Varieties, 506; Harvesting and Uses, 508;
Sirup Making, 515; History and Statistics, 518; Enemies,

520 ; Laboratory Exercises, 522; Literature, 522.

CHAPTER XXX
Topacco— Nicotiana tabacum . : 3 3 z . 623-547

Cultural Methods, 530; Harvesting and Curing, 539 ;
Enemies, 545; Laboratory Exercises, 546; Literature, 547.

GLossaRyY  . . ‘ 2 < . . x z . 549

INDEX . : . : ‘ ‘ ‘ ° ‘ ‘ - 563
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FIG.
1. Part of an Oat Plant, showing the Absence of Clasps
2. A Panicle of Oats . : 5 ;
3. Oak Spikelet in Bloom. (L. H. Bailey)
4. Spikelets of Red Rust-proof Oats .
5. A Panicle of Red Rust-proof Oats
6. Burt Oats
7. Spikelets of Burt Oats
8. Oats destroyed by Smut : ; é
9. Green-bug ( Toroptera arent, (S. J. Hunter) .
10. Two Stages of a Lady-bug which destroys Green-bugs.
(S. J. Hunter) é : :
11. Oats and Wheat grown with Caicea Clover: (Alabama
Experiment Station) . : . ;
12. Part of a Young Wheat Plant ‘
13. Floret of Wheat. (L. H. Bailey) 3
14. A Head, Spikelet, and Grain of Bearded Wheat .
15. A Typical Head of Beardless Wheat 5
16. A Good Sample of Wheat. (California Heperment Station)
17. Heads of Wheat
18. Heads of Wheat : F é ‘
19. Shocks of Wheat from Pua aes (Alabama Experiment
Station) .
20. Double-disk Grain Drill.
21. Loose Smut of Wheat 2 A e
22. The Angoumois Grain-moth. (W. E. Hinds)
23. Heads of Southern Rye
24. Part of a Young Rye Plant, showing ihe small Blakes a ihe
Leaves . .
25. A Mixture of Rye ae Grindett Clov er. ‘ . ’
26. Ergotina Headof Rye. (L. H. Bailey) . . .

xix

a mm co co w oo wb
oO WeParndAarn

cS oO
woe

63
69

70
72
73
xx

FIG.
. A Head and Grains of Bearded Barley . E : 3 ‘
28.
29.

9

ov.

eo
oo

er)

i

9

39

co te

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

The Large Clasps of Barley Leaf . ‘ . . . .

Head and Spikelet of Beardless Barley . 5 - 3

Roots of Corn 47 Days after Level Planting. on Ex-
periment Station)

. Showing Roots of Corn 47 Days after Planting in “Deep

Furrows. (Kansas Experiment Station) . : . .
Brace-roots on the Corn Plant : . 5
Part of a Corn Leaf showing Wavy Margins. p .

An Ear of Corn on which Leaf-blades are borne on fia Tips
of many of the Shucks

Differences in Height and Position of Far in the ‘Same va.
riety

Diagram showing Gouna of the Pollen: bake Frans silk to
Ovary. (C.S. Ridgway) . : ‘ :

The Embryo-sac of Corn at the Time of weruiation: (F. E.
Lloyd) ‘ : : ‘ : . i .

. A Well-propor tiénedl Ear of a Hard Yellow Variety . ;
. Transverse Section through Corn Grains

40-45. Ears of Henry Grady Corn to be criticized by santa
(L. N. Duncan) . ; * Fs - 102-103
46-57. Ears of Corn with Wats Detects, ae N. Duncan) 104-107

58.
59.
60.

61.

66.
67.

Ear with Long, Well-formed Grains

Ear with Short Grains

An Ear having too much Space Reon een Graitins near che
Cob

An Ear in which ieee? is no Last Gaines betweai Ginine near
the Cob

Showing Variations among Clann Gisins

Various Shapes of Corn Kernels. (Michigan Maiesment
Station)

. Sections across Gra rains of Tout Flint, Poni = eet: tn Soft

Corn
Longitudinal Sebtiows insets Grsing of Dent, Flint, “Pop,
Sweet, and Soft Corn
Showins an Ear with Tip well cov Ei by Shnncies
Showing’an Ear Tip not well covered by Shucks

PAGE

74
75
76
79
81
82
84
85
87
89
90

91
94

108
108

108

108
109

110
112
113

115
118
FIG.

68, 69. Varieties of Corn. (Alabama Experiment Station) 123,

70. Showing the Immediate Effects of crossing a White Pop
Corn with Pollen from a Yellow Dent Corn

71. Relative Yields of the Same Variety of Corn from 2 veut
ing Rows of the Same Length. (Oklahoma Experiment
Station) . .

72. Diagram showing ‘Arran getnent of aes in Coes Piceaine
plot é : ,

73. Germinator eee tigun a Sean ee Conte of Beveeaear
Stations, U. S. Dept. Agr.)

74, Showing rie from In-breeding nee (CU. s. Depart
of Agriculture) . - : 7

75. Showing Larger Yield on oe not ieee: Ww. S. Depart-
ment of Agriculture) . .

76. Young Corn Plants, from Tip, Middle, ad Butt Hevnals,
(Michigan Experiment Station) : = ° . .

77. AStalk-cutter. (B. F. Avery & Sons Co.) . . . .

78. A Subsoil Plow. (L. H. Bailey) . : 7

79. A Turn-plow . : ‘“ ‘ ‘

80. A Disk-plow. (B. F. de ery ‘& Sens Ca )

81. Combined Lister and Corn Planter. (U.S. Department e
Agriculture)

82. A One-row Corn Plantar: (B. F. skeet & Sous Ce. ).

3. Diagram of Young Corn Plants . - : ‘

84. Hand Corn Planter, for Replanting 5 ‘

85. A Spike-tooth Harrow. (B. F. Avery & Sons Gis )

86. A Weeder. (L. H. Bailey) . - é

87. A One-horse, Spring-tooth Harrow. (B. F. Aven & Sons
Co.), . .

88. Check-row Covi Planter swith Double Disks e open a "Hag
Furrow. (U.S. Department of Agriculture)

89. Cowpeas growing between Rows of Corn . .

90. The Williamson Method of Corn Culture

91. Condition of Surface after ‘‘ Laying by’’ Corn Sederdine to
the Williamson Plan .

92. Showing ‘‘ Throw-board’’ on Wasa — ned in aa Bae

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

ing Corn. (Oklahoma Experiment Station).

Xxi

PAGE

124

127

141
141

146
158
163
164
165

165
167
168
169
171

172

175
182
186
187

190
XXil LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
FIG. PAGE
93. Shocking Horse . 7 . 7 . : : : . 194
94. Corn well Shocked. (Oklahoma Experiment Station) . 196
95. Sled Corn Cutter, with Automatic Knife Guards. (U.S.
Department of Agriculture) . : . A : . 197
96. A Home-made Sled Corn Cutter. (U.S. Department of
Agriculture). : ‘ . : 7 c . . 197
97. A Corn Harvester. (International Harvester Co.) . . 199
98. Corn Husker and Shredder at Work. (L. H. Bailey) . 200
99. A Field of Corn in Alabama that yielded 1032 Bushels per
Acre. (Farmer’s Coéperative Demonstration Work) . 203
100. The Budworm of Corn (Diabrotica eae (After

Chittenden) . 3 : : . - 206
101. Eggs of Corn Ear-worm on Com Silks. (A. L. Quaintance,
U.S. Dept. Agr., Bureau of Entomology) - 208

102. The Corn Haevorn at Work in the Tip of an Ear of Green
Corn. (A. L. Quaintance, U. S. Dept. Agr., Bureau of
Entomology) . 209

103. The Corn Ear-worm neaetae on fie ender Tear es of Cara,

(A. L. Quaintance, U. 8. Dept. Agr., Bureau of Ento-
mology) . : - - 210

104. The Rice Weevil, most Desinctives in Saoted oan: (Photo
by W. E. Hinds) , . ‘ : : ‘ . - 211

105. An Ear of Corn injured = Weevils. (Photo by W. E.

Hinds) . . . . - 212
106. Larva of Angoumois Moth ina Guia of Corn, (Photo by

W.E. Hinds) . 3 . 5 : : . . - 213
107. The Indian Meal Moth. (Photo by W. E. Hinds) . . 214
108. Corn Smut. (L. H. Bailey) : 3 : < ; - 215
109. Bundles of Two Varieties of Rice p ‘ : - 218
110, 111. Two Types of Rice. (L. H. Bailey) . : - 220
112. Preparing for Rice in Louisiana. (Louisiana Repeuiment

Station) . . - 222
113. An Weperitnettal Field of Rice ne rowley ni, (Louisi-

ana Experiment Station) . : ‘ : : - 224
114. A Rice Field after Harvest. {fouians Experiment Sta-

tion) . f . ; : - 227

115. Heads of Amber Souhun and of Red Kafir ° < - 284
FIG.

116.

117.

118.
119.

120.
121.
122.
123.

H
bo
reg

H
bo
oO

bh bo bw to
aor > Cc

Bee
co

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS XXili

Orange Sorghum. (Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. De-
partment of Agriculture) .

Goose Neck Sorghum. (Bureau of Plant es v, s.
Department of Agriculture) : :

A Field of Black-hulled White Katir. “(E. B. Voorhees)

Heads of Milo and of Black-hulled White Kafir. (E. B.
Voorhees) 5 : ‘ .

Broom-corn Brush ‘

A Vegetative Branch from near the Bake of a Cotton Plant

A Fruiting Branch of a Cotton Plant .

A Cotton Plant . . .

. Cotton Plant, on which the Verolatiee Enaehes are : Sap:

pressed

. A Cotton Plant, ore aie Pints ious

Cotton Leaves

. Cotton Bolls. (U.S. Department of Agriculture)
. A Cotton Plant deficient in Storm-resistance
. Storm-resistant Boll and Burs; Bolls and Burs lacking

Storm-resistance

. Various Shapes of Cotton Bolls

131. A Sea Island Cotton Plant .

139.

140.
141.
142.
143.
144.

132. Where Sea Island Cotton is Grown. (U.S. Department

of Agriculture)

. A Cotton Plant of the Cluster Ty pe. © S. Department

of Agriculture)
A Fruiting Limb of a Cluster Cotton Plants
A Cotton Plant of the Semicluster Type

. The Peterkin Type of Cotton Plant
7. A Cotton Plant of the King Type
38. A Cotton Plant of the Big-boll, Scorm-orout ABs pe

A Cotton Plant of the Long-staple, Upland Type. (U.S
Department of Agriculture) 4 :

Fibers of Several Varieties of Cotton .

A Productive Cotton Plant of the Toole Varley

A Productive Cotton Plant. (University of Georgia)

An Unproductive Cotton Plant. (University of Georgia) .

Diagram showing a Breeding Plot of Twenty Rows of

Cotton . . : . . . :

PAGE

279

284
285
286
287
288
289

291
292
297
303
304

311
XXiV LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FIG.

145.
146.

147.
8. A Field of Cotton, showing the Effects of Potash in retains

Diagram showing Method of selecting Cotton. (H. J.

Webber) . . . . . 3 ;
Cotton Plants, showing Retention of Teas es ; and Shedding

of Leaves . . ‘
A Field of Cotton, Fertilized ma Unfertilized

ing the Leaves .

. A Middle Burster, or Double Moldboard Plow. (B. F.

Avery & Sons Co.) ‘

An Inexpensive Cotton Planter .

One Form of Plow-stock

A Young Cotton Plant, showing Two cea. idages aad we
True Leaves

Various Forms of Sweeps on Bonapes used in Soldvating
Cotton. (L. H. Bailey) .

. An Alabama Cotton Field. (Hamnbe's Coiperative Demon-

stration Work)

. The Worswick-Hardt Cation Bicker af Wont
5. The Dixie Cotton Picker

Vertical Section through the Dixie Cotton “Prokex elise at

Work Z : : ‘ : 7 .
Section through a awene (Continental Gin Company) .
Transverse Section through a Cotton Gin. (Continental

Gin Company) . : . : . .
Foreign and American Bales : . 5
Cotton Bales left unprotected from Rain . . A

Side View of Cotton Bales :

Bales from a Gin Compress. (Farmers! Gin Compre ess
Company ) ‘ ;

The Propelling Mechanism of an old Horse: -power Gin,
(From D. A. Tompkins’ ‘‘ Cotton a Factor in Progress ’’)

Percentage of the Total American Crop of Cotton grown in
Each State in 1908, (U.S. Census Bureau) . :

Percentage of World’s Mill Supply of Cotton contributed
by Each Country in 1908. (U.S. Census Bureau) .

Moths of Cotton Boll-worm and Corn Ear-worm. (U.S,
Dept. Agr., Bureau of Entomology)

Do ©
oO
oOo

eo co
FIG.

168.

180.
181.
182.

183.
184.

186.
187.
188.

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

The ee Boll-worm on the Outside of a Cotton Boll.
(U. S. Dept. Agr., Bureau of Entomology)

. Pupal or Chrysalis Gia of the Cotton Boll-worm sia ths

Corn Ear-worm. ue S. Dept. Agr., Bureau of Ento-
mology)

. Pupa of Boll-worm in its Underground Buneor, (After

Quaintance and Brues, U. 8. Department of Agricul-
ture)

71. The Mature Boll- ecu (W. E. Hinds) .
2. Cotton Square, showing eee halae Larva in Position.

(After W. D. Hunter, U. S. Dept. Agr., Bureau of Ento-
mology)

3. Punctured Cotton Saad aie W. D. Hunter, U. 8S.

Dept. Agr., Bureau of Entomology) s :
Cotton Stalk Cutter. (Louisiana Crop Pest donate ere 2

. Side View of Cotton Stalk Cutter. (Louisiana Crop Pest

Commission)

. Cotton Plant in the “Budding” Stage. (Louisiana Crop

Pest Commission)

. The Hinds Chain Cultivator. cw. E. Hinds) <
. Map showing the Areas infested by the Boll-weevil. (U.S

Dept. Agr., Bureau of Entomology)
Cowvea-pod Weevil. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. “tee 7
Bureau of Entomology) - : 3 .
Cotton Plants attacked by Wilt : :
Section through Wilted and Healthy Cotton Stalks
Root-knot or Nematode Injuries on Cotton Roots. (C. F.
Atkinson) : : : . :
Anthracnose on Cotton Bolls. (C. F. Atkinson) ;
Diseased Leaves, Boll, and Stem of Cotton Plant. cw. A.
Orton, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Department of
Agriculture)

. A Field of Hemp. (Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. De-

partment of Agriculture) . : :
Leaf and Flowers of Hemp. (L. H. Bailey)
Shocking Hemp. (L. H. Bailey) : A . .
A Field of Sweet-potatoes in Alabama ‘ . . .

XXV

PAGE

391

892

402
403

404
408
412
413
416
417

420
XXvi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FIG.

189.

190.

191.

192.

193.

194,
195.

196.
197.

198.

199.
200.

204.
205.
206.
207.
208.
209,

210.

A Branch of a Vineless Sweet-potato Plant. (After Price,
Texas Experiment Station) 3 : . é $

Three Shapes of Sweet-potato Leaves. (After Price, Texas
Experiment Station) ; : : : :

Sweet-potato Slips ready to be at; (U. 8. Department of
Agriculture)

Devices employed in Setting Saeetpotals “Slips ie ine
Cuttings. (U.S. Department of Agriculture)

Transplanting Machine ne Sweet-potatoes. m H.
Bailey)

Sweet-potatoes atiadhad toa : Section of Hantad vine

Special Plows for Digging Sweet-potatoes. (U.S. Depart-
ment of Agriculture) 2

End View of House for Storing Sweat-putatoes :

Cross Section through Sweet-potato, showing Injuries by
Borer. (After Conradi, Texas Experiment Station)

Black-rot on Root and Slip of Sweet-potato. (After B.
Halsted, New Jersey Experiment Station)

The Cassava Plant. (U.S. Department of Aerhenteties)

Method of Preparing Bed for Keeping Cassava Seed-stems
over Winter. (S. M. Tracy, U. S. Department of Agri-
culture)

. The Lower Part of a Beate Pant: (U. S. Department of

Agriculture)

. A Peanut ‘ Popper.”’ ‘Ww. N. ne
3. A Field of Spanish Peanuts grown from Selena ‘Seed.

(W. N. Roper, American Nut Journal) 2

Pods and Peas of Three Varieties of Peanuts. (ws Ss De
partment of Agriculture) . i ; 3

A Bunch of Spanish Peanuts. (W.N. Roper) .

Stacking Peanuts. (U.S. Department of Agriculture)

A Part of a Stem of Sugar-cane. (W. C. Stubbs)

Cross Section of Part of a Stem of Sugar-cane. (W. R.
Dodson) ‘

Cross Section thectigh a Bundle nae the Bean of ieee
cane. (W. R. Dodson) ; ‘

One Form of Cane Loader. (L. H. Bailey)

442

444

444
445

449
452

454

455
458

488

488
500
211.
212.
215.
214.
215.
216.

217.
218.

219.

220.

221,

222.

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS XXV1l

A Field of Velvet Beans : . © <

Cutting Sugar-cane in Louisiana. (W. R. Dodson)

A Cane Stripper . : : ‘ A 5 ‘

Diagram of Tobacco Flower. (After Shamel and Cobey) .

Showing the Results of Breeding a Strain of Tobacco Re-
sistant to Disease. (Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S.
Department of Agriculture)

Young Tobacco Plants. (Bureau of Plant ase U. Ss.
Department of Agriculture) :

A Tobacco Seed Blower. (A. D. Shawil) .

A Cloth Shade or Tent. (Bureau of Plant Industry, ‘U. s.
Department of Agriculture) : .

A Transplanting Machine for Satine ‘Teiiseeo: (Bureau
of Plant Industry, U. S. Department of Agriculture)

Young Tobacco Plants growing under a Lath Shade in
Alabama .

Diagram showing how eaves of Wiiguce Fobacco are 2 Cut.
(U. 8. Department of Agriculture) . :

Southern Tobacco Worm. (U. S. Dept. Agr., Ean at
Entomology) . 5 : : : ‘

PAGE
504
508
509

627

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SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

CHAPTER I

OATS — AVENA SATIVA

THE oat plant is included in the great family of the
grasses (Graminee), as are all the grains. It came into
use at a later date than did wheat and barley.

The seed or grain of oats is used chiefly as food for
horses. It is also employed, in the form of oatmeal and
other cereal dishes, as human food. The oat plant is
useful for hay and for pasturage. Its straw is utilized as
food and bedding for animals and as packing material.

STRUCTURE

1. Roots. — The oat, as the other grains, is a fibrous-
rooted plant, having no tap-root. The crown from which
the main stems originate is usually within about an inch
of the surface of the ground.

2. Stems. — The stems of the oat plant originate in the
same way as those of the wheat, each as a developed bud
or branch, from an older stem. At each underground node
of every stem a bud may develop into another stalk and
its lower nodes in turn may send out additional shoots,
Hence a single plant may bear an indefinite number of
stems, the usual number, however, being two to six. A
large number is formed by thin sowing and by abundance

of moisture and plant-food, or by hilling up earth around
B 1

.
2 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

the lower nodes. The conditions that hinder tillering
(sometimes limiting the number of stems to one or two to
the plant) are thick sowing, late sowing, and deficiency
of moisture or plant-food.

3. Leaves. — The leaf-blade of the oat is wider than that

of wheat or rye, and on its margins are scattering hairs so
fine as to be noticed only on care-
ful examination.
- At the junction of the leaf-blade
and sheath there are no clasps
or auricles (Fig. 1), which absence
serves to distinguish the young
oat plant from that of any other
small grain.

4. Pollination. — The oat in na-
ture is self-pollinated ; hence there
is practically no danger of crossing
between different varieties. Sev-
eral varieties may properly be
sown in adjacent fields, if care
is taken to prevent mixing by me-
Fic. 1.— Parr or an Oar Chanical means, as in harvesting

PLANT. and threshing.

Showing the absence of 5. The panicle and spikelets. —
pei leaf-blade and The grain-bearing part of the
plant, though usually called a
head, is really a panicle, or widely branched terminal part
of the stem (Fig. 2). The branches of the head originate
at the upper nodes or joints of the stem, several usually
springing from each node. Each branch may bear a single

spikelet (that is, a group of grains) or several spikelets.

 
 

 

 
SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Each spikelet (Fig. 3) consists of two or more flowers,
of which usually only two develop into perfect grains.
Those that usually develop are the
two grains nearest to the branch, the
nearer or lower one being almost invari-
ably the larger seed. Hence an oat
spikelet may be said to consist in most
instances of twin grains which may or
may not be separated in threshing.

The third flower coming from the
branch somet mes develops into a small
grain, but more frequently it is abortive,

 

Fie. 3. — Oat SPIKE-
LET IN BLoom.

Showing 2 outer
pieces of chaff inclos-
ing 2 flowers, each
one containing 3
pollen cases (anthers)
and 2 plume-like stig-
mas.

or undeveloped.

6. The grain.— Each grain consists
of a nearly cylindrical kernel and of
an inclosing hull. This hull is tightly
wrapped about the kernel, and is usu-
ally not removed in threshing ; but the

two parts are not grown together, as

shown by the fact that by pinching the grain between the
fingers the inner part can readily be forced out, free from
any hull.

In most states the legal weight of a bushel of oats is 32 pounds.
A measured bushel usually weighs 30 to 36 pounds. Oats are sold
by the bushel of legal weight.

Saunders found that in the cool climate of Canada oats germi-
nated well even when the seeds were three years old, after which
time the percentage of germination rapidly decreased.

CoMPOSITION

7. Analyses. — According to Hunt (“Cereals in Amer-
ica’’) the average of American analyses is as follows: —
OATS 5

 

| Oar Oar Oar a Oat Hay |

Grain KERNEL STRAW cuTin Oat Hots
| | pike Mirk |

 

% Bm | Te | Me |
Water . . ./ 11.0 79 | 9.2 15.0 C3
WASH cre ay Wer ais 3.0 2.0 | 5.1 | 5.2 6.7
Protein. . .| 11.8 14.7 | 40 | 93 3.3
Crude fiber. 9.5 0.9 37.0 | 29.2 29.7
Nitrogen-free |
extract . .| 59.7 | 67.4 42.4 | 39.0 | 52.0
Fat 5.0 tok 2.3 | 2.3 1.0

 

Since the percentage of hulls varies in different varieties
and in different seasons, the composition of different lots
of oats is naturally variable. A sample of oats with
slender or incompletely filled grains is inferior in composi-
tion and food value to a sample of plump oats. The hull
averages about 30 per cent of the total weight of the grain.

8. Draft on soil fertility. — The following table’ shows
the amounts of nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and potash re-
moved from the soil in a crop of 40 bushels of oats and
the accompanying amount of straw: —

 

 

PHOSPHORIC

 

|

|
NITROGEN | | ‘MGIB PorasH

|
Oat grains, with hulls, per cent . 1.76 | 0.59 0.48
Oat straw, percent . . 0.56 .28 1.62

Oat grain removes in a crop of |

40 bu. (1280 1b.), lb... 22.53 8.83 6.14
0 4.20 24.30

2.5
Oat straw (1500 lb. ) removes, ‘lb. 8.4
Total crop of 40 bu. and 1500 Ib. /

‘ 30.93

of straw removes, lb. 13.03 30.44

 

 

1 Calculated from data in Hopkins’ ‘‘Soil Fertility and Per-
manent Agriculture.”
6 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

From the above table it may be seen that the oat plant
makes considerable demands on soil fertility; that the
greater part of the nitrogen and of the phosphoric acid is
removed by the grain; and that by far the greater part of
the potash is removed by the straw.

These figures should impress the fact that the straw
should be returned to the land in the form of stable manure,
after having been used either as food or bedding. In case
it is impracticable to make either of these uses of the straw,
the stacks should not be burned nor left to rot in one
place, but immediately or after partly rotting the straw
should be distributed over the galled spots in the fields.

In spite of the fact that a good crop of oats, if the straw be
carried off, removes a considerable amount of plant-food, yet ex-
perience shows that the occasional introduction of an oat crop
into the rotation increases the yield of succeeding crops. This
is chiefly because of the vegetation occupying the land after oats
are harvested. Even the growth of a mass of weeds may be help-
ful to some soils. However, the oat crop gives opportunity to
improve the land still more rapidly, due to the sueceeding growth
of cowpeas, which is usually the best crop to follow oats.

VARIETIES

9. Types of Southern oats. — In Europe, Canada, and
the northern part of the United States, the number of
varieties of oats in cultivation is considerable. However,
nowhere does the number equal that of varieties of wheat.

In the Gulf States, few varieties of oats are grown. The
types most commonly raised in the South are: —

(1) Red Rust-proof;

(2) Burt;

(8) Turf or Grazing.
OATS q

Each of these may be known under several names, or
may have several strains. For example, among the sub-
varieties or selections of the Red Rust-proof we are
Appler, Culberson, and Bancroft.

10. Red Rust-proof oats. — This is the most sania
type of oats from North Carolina to Texas, and is variously
called Red oats, Rust-proof oats, and Texas oats. It and
its strains may be recognized, or distinguished from other
varieties, by the following characteris-
tics: When a bunch of slender bristles
is present at the base of the lower grain
of a spikelet, they are of greater length
than those sometimes occurring on
other varieties growing in the South
(Fig. 4); and almost invariably both
of the developed grains in a spikelet
are armed with beards, while in most
other varieties the beards, if present,
usually occur only on the larger grain
in each spikelet. The usual means of

 

or ee ~ Fic.4.—SPIKELETS OF
distinguishing Red Rust-proof oats is Rep Rust-pRoorOatTs.

by the reddish or yellowish appearance Note length of bris-

of the grains that have not been stained ‘les at base of apelelot.

by bad weather, and the greater plumpness of the grains
as compared with those of other Southern varieties. The
head or panicle is rather compact, and the branches short
(Fig. 5).

The straw of Red Rust-proof oats is stout or large, and
on poor or medium land the plants do not grow as tall as
do those of Burt and Turf oats. This stout straw makes
Red Rust-proof oats less liable to fall or lodge than are the
8 SOUTHERN FIELL CROPS

varieties just mentioned. In crops yielding 15 to 30
bushels per acre, there is usually about the same weight

 

Vic. 5.—A Panicte or Rep Rust-proor Oats.

of straw as of threshed grain: as the yield increases the
percentage of straw increases,
OATS 9

The Red Rust-proof variety and its various strains —
Appler, Culberson, and Bancroft — may be sown either in
the fall or after Christmas. In hardiness toward cold, or
ability successfully to withstand a severe winter, this
variety is superior to Burt but less hardy than Turf, and
decidedly less hardy than barley, wheat, or rye. In spite
of the occasional winter-killing of a crop of Red oats sown
in the fall, it is usually more profitable throughout the
greater part of the cotton-belt to sow in the fall than after
Christmas. Means of decreasing winter-killing are in-
dicated in paragraph 22.

In maturity, the Red Rust-proof group of varieties is
earlier by two to three weeks than Turf oats sown at the
same time in the fall. When sown after Christmas, Red
oats are at least a week later than Burt oats sown at the
same time.

Red Rust-proof oats are not really completely rust-
proof, but strongly rust-resistant. In years when rust is
especially severe, this variety is attacked and occasionally
rather severely injured, but never to the same extent as
other varieties.

In yield of grain, the Red Rust-proof type has on the
whole been more satisfactory in the cotton-belt than any
other. It is especially more productive than Turf oats
where the soil is poor or when the weather conditions are
unfavorable.

Appler is a popular variety of the Red Rust-proof type,
which sometimes has proved slightly more productive
than an unselected strain of the Red Rust-proof.

11. Burt oats. — This variety (Figs. 6 and 7), sometimes
known as “ May oats,” has a slender, bearded grain, usu-
10 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

Ira. 6.— Burr Oars.

ally of a grayish or light dun color. The branches of the
head are long. In the greater part of the cotton region
OATS 11

the Burt oat cannot safely be planted in the fall, for it is
frequently winter-killed. It is essentially a variety for
sowing after Christmas. It is the earliest of the commonly
grown varieties of the Southern region.
Its earliness, together with its great
height of straw, are in its favor when
the date of sowing is late. The grain
weighs less per bushel than Red oats,
and shatters much more easily when
harvested.

12. Turf or Grazing oats. —Among
the names given to this variety, or to
strains of it, are Gray, Virginia Gray,

Winter, Turf, and Myers’ Turf. This ee oe
is the hardiest of the varieties, and has Note shortness of
been known to survive the winters a basal bristles, which
little higher than the latitude of northern “”” eee ae
Virginia. It is practically safe against winter-killing
throughout the cotton-belt; yet it is not so hardy as
wheat.

The grain is slender and of a gray or light dun color.
Usually there are beards on one grain in each spikelet.
This oat branches or stools freely, thus making it especially
valuable for pasturing, and winning for it the name of
“ grazing oats.” The straw is tall and slender.

 

This variety ripens about two weeks later than Red Rust-proof
oats sown at the same time. It is much more susceptible to rust ;
and on poor land or with unfavorable seasons it often fails to
produce plump, well-filled grains. Its best place is in the region
just north of the cotton-belt.

Turf oats are unsuitable for sowing after Christmas. This
variety requires earlier planting in the fall than Red oats.
12 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Turf oats are suitable for sowing with hairy vetch when both
vetch and oats are to be threshed for seed. On rich land, the
two plants ripen together, and usually enough seed of both are
shattered in harvesting to reseed the land the next fall. On
poor and medium land Turf oats grow off too slowly to be ready
to cut for hay when hairy vetch is in the best condition for hay
making. Therefore, for purposes of making hay it is usually
better to sow vetch with Red Rust-proof oats than with Turf

oats.
The weight of straw is usually about double that of grain.

13. Improvement of varieties. — Much less work has
been done in improving the oat by selection and breeding
than in cotton, corn, and wheat. Breeding experiments
at the Alabama Experiment Station with the Red Rust-
proof variety have shown clearly that most samples of seed
of this variety are badly mixed; that even in apparently
uniform samples there are numerous strains or elementary
species; and that careful selection of individual plants
may result in modifying the yield, the time of maturity,
and other qualities.

Desirable improvements in the Red Rust-proof variety
are: (1) increased yield; (2) greater uniformity ; (3) elimi-
nation of the beards and of the black grains; and (4) in-
creased resistance to rust.

Desirable improvements in the Burt oats are: (1) larger
yields; (2) increased uniformity; (3) elimination of the
tendency to shatter; (4) greater plumpness of grain;
and (5) adaptation of this variety to fall sowing, by selec-
tion of plants that withstand the cold of winter.

For sowing in the fall, preference should be given to
seed from a strain which has been repeatedly sown at this
season.
OATS 13

CLIMATE, SOILS, AND FERTILIZERS FOR OaTs

14. Climate. — The oat plant is most at home in a cool
moist climate. Yet in the Southern States, with a moist
but hot climate, it is successfully cultivated, although the
yield per acre and the weight per measured bushel are
reduced. In the South, climate is most important in de-
termining whether Red Rust-proof oats, the kind most
extensively grown, should be sown in the fall or after mid-
winter.

That part of the South in which by far the greater part of the
crop of Red Rust-proof oats is sown in the fall lies south of a line
drawn nearly through Birmingham in Alabama, Atlanta in Georgia,
Charlotte in North Carolina, and Norfolk in Virginia. Yet, ex-
perience shows that it is profitable to sow Red Rust-proof oats in
the fall considerably northward of this line, though at the risk
of more frequent failures from winter-killing. Even in the
northern third of the Gulf States, this class of oats, when sown
in the fall, is not seriously injured by cold in one winter out of
three. Since two crops of fall-sown oats usually yield more than
three crops of oats sown after Christmas, fall sowing should be
more generally practiced. North of the line indicated above,
Turf oats are hardy in most winters, at least as far northward as
Maryland.

15. Soils. — The oat is adapted to a wider range of soils
than is wheat. In fact, it may be grown on almost any
soil on which other ordinary field crops succeed. The low
yields of oats as shown by statistics are largely due to the
fact that the crop is often sown on land too poor for other
profitable use.

Moreover, the oat crop is less frequently fertilized than are

the other staple crops. Land that is too poor for cotton is
usually too poor for oats sown after Christmas, but such land
14 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

can often be profitably utilized by sowing oats in the fall and fer-
tilizing in March with nitrate of soda.

One difficulty in growing Red Rust-proof oats without fertilizer
on poor and rocky land is the fact that the short straw made by
this variety under such conditions makes it difficult to save all
the heads in harvesting the crop. This difficulty is largely over-
come by the use of nitrate of soda and other fertilizers rich in
nitrogen.

Oats thrive on a moderately rich soil, and fertility is especially
important when sowing is done after Christmas. On land exces-
sively rich in nitrogen, and at the same time quite moist, there is
danger that the straw will grow so tall and weak as to fall or lodge,
and thus reduce the yield. The same danger may occur from
excessive use of stable manure or other nitrogenous fertilizer.

16. Place in the rotation. — The usual position of the
oat crop in a rotation in the cotton-belt is immediately
after corn, the oats being followed by cowpeas the same
year, and the cowpeas being followed by cotton the next
year. This is the logical practice for fall-sown oats, since
the corn crop can be removed in October in time for the
sowing of oats, while cotton is usually not removed
in time for the largest yield of fall-sown oats. However,
in regions where spring sowing of oats is practiced, this
crop may just as well follow cotton as follow corn.

In the usual practice of fall-sowing of oats after corn, the oats
get the advantage of the fertilizer produced by the cowpeas
that are usually planted between the rows of corn.

Inquiry is sometimes made whether it may not be pract* cable
to grow oats continuously on the same land with a cateh-crop
of cowpeas each summer, the cowpeas to be used for hay. This
would be advisable only under exceptional conditions and when
phosphoric acid and potash could be restored to the soil in the
fertilizer, especially in the fertilizer for the cowpea crop.
OATS 15

17. Fertilizers. — Too frequently oats are sown on poor
jand without being fertilized. Experiments in several
Southern States have shown that it pays to fertilize oats
growing on medium or poor lands. On many of these
lands, acid phosphate should be used. This may be ap-
plied at the rate of 100 to 200 pounds per acre at the time
of sowing. It may be run through the fertilizer attach-
ment of the grain drill, and its contact with the seed will
not injure germination. However, it would not be safe
thus to sow through the grain drill and with the seed any
considerable amount of cotton-seed meal, or other nitrog-
enous fertilizer or of potash salts.

While some sandy soils may require for the maximum
growth of oats a small amount of potash, it is not usually
necessary to apply this fertilizer constituent to the oat
crop.

The most universal need of oats on the average soils of the
cotton-belt is for nitrogen. Since the oat makes its growth
in the cooler part of the year when vegetable matter does
not rapidly nitrify or become available as plant-food, the
best form of nitrogenous fertilizer is nitrate of soda. This
fertilizer does not require further change, but is immedi-
ately available.

Experiments have shown that it is usually profitable to apply
any amount of nitrate of soda between 40 and 160 pounds per
acre. About 80 pounds per acre is usually advisable. The
lumps should be carefully crushed and the fertilizer sown broad-
cast as a top-dressing at least two months before the average date
of harvest. As arule, the first half of March is a suitable time
for applying nitrate of soda to fall-sown oats, and the latter
half of the month for spring-sown oats.

No covering of soil is necessary in using nitrate of soda, but the
16 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

use of a light harrow or weeder immediately after sowing the
fertilizer would often be advantageous, especially if the surface
should be quite dry, or if a heavy rain should fall soon after the
application.

CuLtuRAL METHODS FOR OaTs

18. Preparation of land. — The usual preparation of the
land for the oat crop is poorer than for most other crops.
Too often the seed is sown broadcast on unplowed land and
then covered with a one-horse or two-horse turn-plow.
The danger in this procedure is that the seed may be
covered too deeply or by large clods, either of which pre-
vents the germination of some of the seeds. A method
that insures more thorough preparation is the following:
plowing, then sowing the seed broadcast, and covering by
the use of a disk-harrow. A still better method consists
in first plowing the land and then sowing with the grain
drill. ,

Either of these methods permits deeper plowing than is
advisable when the seed is covered with the turn-plow.

On clean, friable soil oats are sometimes merely disked
in without plowing. This method is not so well suited to
Southern soils, deficient in vegetable matter, as it is to
regions farther north.

19. When to sow. — Repeated experiments have’shown
that throughout the greater part of the cotton-belt the yield
secured from fall-sown oats is at least 50 per cent greater
than from crops sown after Christmas. Frequently fall-
sown oats yield twice as much as those sown in February.

The exact date of planting that is most likely to give the
maximum yield varies with the latitude and climate, and
even with varieties. The earliest practicable date for fall-
OATS 17

sowing is in the first half of September. In the central
and southern part of the cotton-belt, this is too early for
sowing Red Rust-proof oats, since it tends to make the
plants form stems and to head too early the latter part of
the winter, at which stage the oat is easily killed by freezing
temperatures. However, very early sowing may be prac-
ticed when the oats are to be rather closely grazed through-
out the winter.

The period that is generally preferred for sowing Red oats
extends from October 1 to the middle of November;
sowings made in the earlier part of this period usually
afford the larger yields. If sowing is postponed much
beyond the latter date, the young plants do not have
time to become firmly rooted and anchored before they
are subjected to heaving by the alternate freezing and
thawing of the soil.

In sowing oats after Christmas, custom varies greatly,
the usual limits being from January 1 to April 1. In the
central part of the cotton-belt, probably the first few weeks
in February is a safer period than is an earlier date, and
any delay after this time is likely to reduce the yield
greatly.

20. Drilling versus broadcast sowing. — Some experi-
ments have shown advantage in yield from sowing oats
with a grain drill as compared with broadcast sowing.
Drilling has the advantages: (1) of saving at least half a
bushel of seed per acre; (2) placing the seed at a more
uniform depth, thus favoring uniformity in ripening; and
(3) leaving the plants in a very shallow depression, which
affords a slight degree of protection against cold and
heaving.

c
18 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Extensive experiments in the cotton-belt have proved that,
on an average, drilling affords a larger crop than broadcast sow-
ing. The Illinois Experiment Station found the smaller yield
with broadcast oats to be due in part to the more uneven and
generally shallower depth at which the seed were placed in broad-
cast sowing.

In countries where it is customary to sow red clover with the
small grains, it has been noticed that the clover is thriftier and
less injured by hot weather when the rows made by the grain
drill extend north and south rather than east and west.

21. The open-furrow method of drilling oats. — This
consists in sowing the seed, not with a two-horse grain
drill, but with a one-horse planter, which deposits the seed
in the bottom of a deep furrow or trench previously opened
by a large shovel plow. The seeds are barely covered by
the small amount of soil which falls into the trench as the
planter passes along. Therefore, the plants grow from
the bottom of a rather deep furrow which remains unfilled
throughout the winter. Here they are somewhat protected
from cold and greatly protected from heaving, since the soil
and the plants in the bottom of a furrow are not easily
lifted by alternate freezing and thawing.

These deep furrows are 18 to 24 inches apart. Fertil-
izer is drilled in with the seed.

An incidental advantage of the open-furrow method is the
fact that it permits thorough harrowing in early spring. This
affords all the usual advantages of cultivation and partially
fills the open furrows so as to make easier the operation of the
binder or mower.

At the Alabama and Georgia Experiment Stations, this method
has given larger yields than were secured from broadeast sowing,
besides almost complete protection from winter-kiling. How-
ever, this method is not adapted to very stiff or poorly drained
OATS 19

soil. It is also a slow method, but the reported invention of a
machine for sowing several rows at one time may possibly over-
come this objection.

22. Prevention of winter-killing. — Since Red Rust-
proof oats are sometimes thinned, or even killed com-
pletely, by cold weather in winter, methods of decreasing
this injury are important. Oats are more frequently win-
ter-killed on account of heaving, or lifting of the soil and of
the young plants when the ground freezes, than from the
direct effects of low temperatures. Heaving is due to
the expansion in freezing of the water in the soil. Every
one has noticed on a frosty morning the little icicles pro-
jected upward from a spot of wet clayey land. Often these
icicles lift on their summits particles of soil. By this
same process of expansion of soil-moisture in freezing,
young plants are lifted. This heaving is worst in soils
that contain the most water; that is, in clay spots and
where the drainage is poor.

Means of decreasing winter-killing of oats are: (1) plant-
ing in depressions or unfilled furrows (the open-furrow
system); (2) improved drainage; (3) selection of hardy
varieties or strains; (4) the use of the roller to settle the
lifted plants into closer contact with the soil.

23. Quantity of seed. — On account of the ability of the
oat plant to throw out an indefinite number of shoots or
‘culms, and thus to utilize whatever space may be avail-
able, the thickness of sowing does not directly determine
the rate of yield. From 4 to 16 pecks to the acre may be
taken as the extreme limits. The quantity of seed usu-
ally advisable for broadcast sowing is between 14 and
24 bushels per acre. By using the grain drill, this may
20 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

be reduced by about half a bushel per acre, and the open:
furrow method makes possible an even greater reduction.
The earlier the date of sowing and the more complete the
preparation of the land, the smaller may be the quantity of
seed employed.

24, Size of seed. — Scores of experiments have been
made to determine the size of seed or grain to sow for the
best agricultural results, most of which show a distinct
advantage from sowing large or heavy seed.

Zavitz secured the following results (American Breeders’ As-
sociation, Vol. II, p. 121): —

After selecting seed for thirteen years, the large seed being
taken each year from the plot sown with large grains, the small
grains continuously from the plots sown with small seed, the crop
from the large seed yielded 65.5 bushels per acre as compared
with 44.7 bushels from the small seed; the crop from the large
seed weighed 35.5 pounds per bushel as compared with 24.3
pounds per bushel from the continuous sowing of light seed. The
deterioration due to sowing poor seed is still better shown by the
fact that the crop from the large seed required only 1149 grains
to weigh an ounce while that from the light seed required 2066
grains.

Among the publications summarizing the experiments on this
point are the following : —

Nebraska Expr. Station Bull. 104.

Ohio Expr. Station Bull. 38.

Kansas Expr. Station Bull. 74.

Canada Expr. Farms, Rpt. 1901. ;
Ontario Agr. College and Expr. Farms, Rpt. 1903.

25. Separation of grains by fanning. — It should be
borne in mind that there is a tendency for any one oat
plant to bear as many heavy seeds as light seeds. This is
because each spikelet usually matures one large and one
OATS 21

small grain. Hence separation by fanning machines
tends to place among the large seeds and among the small
seeds, grains from the same parent plants. This indicates
that for most rapid improvement of the oat, reliance cannot
be placed chiefly on selection by the use of the fanning
machine, but rather on the selection of individual plants.

However, seed oats should be fanned for the following
reasons: (1) to eliminate many grass and weed seeds;
(2) to remove those oat grains that are too light to germi-
nate or to make vigorous plants ; (3) to decrease the danger
of clogging the grain drill with broken straw and trash and
beards, especially in the Red Rust-proof variety.

26. Change of seed. — There is a widespread belief
that some indefinite and mysterious advantage results
from changing the seed of almost any crop. In the case of
oats, all available evidence is against this notion and seems
to indicate that the varieties do not ‘ run-out,” or degen-
erate, from being grown continuously in any part of the
cotton-belt. Oats grown in the locality where they are to
be planted are best for sowing.

The advantages of home-grown seed are usually the following :
(1) A yield equal or superior to that secured from seed grown
in a different latitude. (2) The ability to select a strain of seed
adapted to fall sowing, whereas the seed obtained from other
localities is frequently from a spring-sown strain, and hence less
able to escape winter-killing. (3) Greater freedom of home-
grown oats from admixture with seed of Johnson-grass or noxious
weeds that might be introduced from abroad.

In itself there seems to be no virtue in changing seed. How-
ever, a farmer should not hesitate to change seed to procure an-
other strain grown in the same latitude, if his own seed is espe-
cially light or poor; or if, by changing seed, he can secure a better
or purer variety suited to his soil or climate.
22, SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

27. Cultivation or inter-tillage of oats. — It is unusual
to till oats after germination occurs. It is probable that in
the South, especially on soils inclined to bake, it will be
generally advantageous to harrow drilled oats. Harrow-
ing is seldom injurious to the stand of oats sown with the
grain drill and not at all hurtful to the stand of oats sown
in open furrows.

But few tests have been made to determine whether inter-
tillage of small grains is profitable. At the Nebraska Experiment
Station (Bulletin No. 104) the yield of oats sown with a grain
drill was increased by harrowing, in three dry years out of five.
With oats sown broadcast, harrowing reduced the yield every
year, because it thinned the stand. Drilled oats, tilled, yielded
more grain than broadeast oats without tillage. At the same
station the yield on the harrowed plots decreased as the space
between rows was widened from 6 to 12, 18, and 24 inches.

28. Pasturing oats. — During periods when the soil is
so dry as to be uninjured in its mechanical condition by the
tramping of live-stock, there may be no harm in pasturing
oats intended for grain.

Cautions to be observed in pasturing any small grains
are: (1) Keeping the stock off the land while wet ; (2) dis-
continuing pasturage early enough to afford abundant
time for the plants to tiller and head; (3) avoidance of
pasturing too closely while there is danger of severe
freezes.

For oats sown rather early in the fall, pasturing may be
a distinct advantage in preventing the formation of stems
while there is still danger of freezing weather, which would
be especially injurious to oats in the ‘ booting ” stage, that
is, after the stems have begun to lengthen rapidly.
OATS

ENEMIES

29. Weeds. — The same
weeds are troublesome in oats
as in wheat. Chief among
these is cheat or chess. The
use of clean seed, that has been
carefully fanned and screened,
is the best means of avoiding
weed pests.

In purchasing seed oats, care
should be taken that they con-
tain no seed of Johnson-grass.

30. Fungous diseases. of
oats. — Chief among diseases
caused by fungi is rust, for
which there is no treatment.
The Red Rust-proof variety
and its various strains are the
most rust-resistant varieties,
but even these are not entirely
exempt. Rust is worse in
damp weather.

Oat smut (Fig. 8). — This
disease usually reduces the
yield of oats 10 to 20 per cent.
Unlike rust, it is entirely under
the control of the farmer.
It appears as blackened heads
in which no grains develop,
Lut in the place of which are

 

 

 

 

 

Fic. 8.— Oats DESTROYED BY
Smut.
24 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

conspicuous masses of black, powdery material or spores.
These spores answer the purpose of seed in carrying smut
to the next crop of oats. This particular fungus originates
from a tiny spore (or particle of black dust) which has
found its way during ripening, or harvesting or threshing
to the seed grain. The fungus grows in the form of threads
through the entire length of the oat plant and finally
bears what may be called its fruit or spores at the time of
heading.

To prevent smut, all that is necessary is to destroy the
life of the tiny spore that may have found lodgment
on the surface of the seed grain. There are several
methods, the simplest and most convenient of which is the
formalin treatment, the directions for which follow :—

For each three gallons of water add one ounce of formalin.
With this liquid, wet or thoroughly moisten the seed, either by
dipping the sacks of grain or by thoroughly sprinkling the seed
while it is being stirred. Then leave the damp seed in a pile
for at least two hours, covering it meantime with a sheet, or
old carpet, which has also been dipped in this liquid. The pur-
pose in thus covering the pile is to enable the vapors formed
by the evaporation of the formalin to completely envelop
every seed. Dry the oats before sowing them, and do not let
them come in contact with old sacks or floors that have not been
disinfected with formalin.

Another method of entirely preventing smut in oats is
by the hot-water treatment : —

Dip the bags of seed oats into a vessel of water kept constantly
at a temperature of about 133° F. and always between 130° and
135°. Keep the seed in this hot water for ten minutes. It
may then be cooled by being dipped in cold water, or it may be
spread out to dry. The temperature of the hot water is most
conveniently kept at a constant point by the addition of cold
OATS

or hot water as required, and by
first heating the oats for a few
minutes in warm water at about
120° F.; for if the cold seed were
dipped into water at 133°, they would
too rapidly lower its temperature.
This method requires the use of an
accurate thermometer.

31. Insect pests. — Insects are
the same as those of wheat, ex-
cept that the oat is not attacked
by the Hessian fly, and that
granary insects do less harm to
the oat grain, protected as it is
by its enveloping hull. A serious
pest of the oat plant in the West
and Southwest is the green-bug
(Toxoptera graminum, Fig. 9).

 

 

 

 

 

Fic. 9.—Green-bua (Tor-
optera graminum) ; WING-
LESS ADULT.

Greatly enlarged. (After

S. J. Hunter.)

The green-bug is a plant-louse of green color and very small

size, that sucks the juices from the young plant.

 

Fic. 10.— Two Straces or a Lany-
BUG WHICH DESTROYS ‘‘ GREEN-
BUGS.”

Right, adult beetle; left, larva.

Enlarged. (After 8S. J. Hunter.)

It has many
natural enemies which, after the
early cool part of the season,
usually keep it in subjection.
One of these enemies, a lady-bug
beetle (Fig. 10), has sometimes
been artificially bred and dis-
tributed as a means of com-
bating the green-bug, especially
before the weather has become
warm enough to bring forth
naturally many of the enemies
of this pest.

Another parasite on this plant-
louse is a tiny four-winged insect
26 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

which lays its eggs in the body of the green-bug, where they hatch
and kill the host.

32. Harvesting and marketing. — Oat erains mature
from the top of the panicle downward. Most of the grains
should change color and be in the late dough stage, or riper,
before being harvested for grain. The harvesting of oats
is done with the self-binder or the mowing machine, or on
small areas of rough land with the grain cradle.

It is an advantage in threshing if the grain is tied in bundles, as
is done by the self-binder or by laborers following the cradler.

Oats are marketed without any special preparation beyond
that of sacking.

It is customary in some communities for oats to be bound into
bundles and shocked, left for a week or more in the shocks,
and then stored for several weeks in a stack or barn before being
threshed; however, oats are often handled directly from the
shock to the threshing machine. Damp or rainy weather during
threshing renders this operation slower and more incomplete.

33. Yields. — For the first few years in the twentieth
century the world’s oat crop averaged approximately
3,900,000,000 bushels, of which more than one fourth was
produced in the United States, on about 28,000,000 acres.
The average for the United States is usually between 30
and 35 bushels per acre. This yield is much below that
in Germany and Great Britain.

For oats sown in the fall in the ecotton-belt a yield of
less than 20 bushels may be regarded as poor; of 20 to 30
bushels as fair; and a good yield is one exceeding 40
bushels per acre.

A medium yield of oat hay is about one ton per acre,
which may be greatly increased by the liberal use of nitrate
of soda or by sowing seed of hairy veteh or crimson
OATS 27

 

 

 

Fic. 11.— Grains GROWN WITH CRIMSON CLOVER FOR FORAGE AT
ALABAMA EXPERIMENT STATION.

On left, oats; on right, wheat.
28 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

clover with the seed oats in September or Octobe1
(Fig. 11).

For oats sown after Christmas in the Gulf States the yields may
be taken as not quite two thirds of the figures for fall-sown oats
on the same land.

In several instances yields of more than 100 bushels per acre
have been reported in the Southern States.

At the Alabama Experiment Station on poor, sandy loam soil
the yield averaged about one and one half times as many bushels
of fall-sown oats as of corn similarly fertilized. Considering that
oats weigh 32 pounds per bushel, as compared with 56 pounds per
bushel of corn, there was nearly an equal weight of grain produced
whether the crop was corn or oats.

In the case of a medium yield of Red Rust-proof oats there is
about one pound of straw for each pound of threshed grain.
That is, a yield of 32 bushels of oats, weighing 960 pounds, is
usually accompanied by a yield of about half a ton of straw.

34. Teams and labor for oat culture. — The oat crop
requires little expenditure for hand labor. Machinery
and horse tools perform most of the work. By sowing
oats in the fall, the farm teams are kept employed at a
time when, on cotton-farms, there is usually no large
amount of other work for them. However, the date of
harvesting occurs during the busy season when teams and
laborers are needed in the early tilling of cotton and the
tillage of corn. Therefore any farm on which a consider-
able proportion of the acreage is devoted to oats should be
well stocked with teams and so situated that additional
laborers can be hired for a few days during harvest.

When additional day labor cannot be hired to shock a
large area of oats in a brief time, the harvest season can
be spread out over a longer period by sowing a part of the
OATS 29

area in Red Rust-proof oats and a part in some variety
ripening either earlier or later.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

Young plants in the field. ,

(1) From a number of plants of wheat, oats, rye, and barley,
pulled and mixed together, separate all the oat plants by the ab-
sence of clasps (auricles) on the leaves. Repeat until young oat
plants are readily recognized.

(2) With specimens used in (1) or growing in the field, write
out other means of distinguishing leaves of oats from those of each
of the other small grains.

(3) Compare several varieties of oats, if available, as to differ-
ences in appearance of the young plants.

(4) Dig four young plants sprung from seed buried deeply
and four others from seed lightly covered; record for each plant
of each class the length of that section of root between the parent
grain and the crown, or place where most stems originate.

Examination of bloom.

(5) Pinch off the smaller flower in a spikelet, and treat the
larger as follows: With pin or small forceps open the incurved
transparent inner hull, or palet, before the pollen has been shed,
and make a drawing, showing the number and position of stamens
and stigmas.

Crossing oat flowers.

(6) If practicable to execute No. (5) at 8 to 10 a.M., practice
opening several flowers in such a way as to give least injury to the
transparent inner covering or palet; when successful, remove
with a pin the three unopened anthers; carefully replace the
palet; cover with a very small paper bag; about 5 in the after-
noon of the same day reopen the same flower and insert on the
stigmas an anther that shows loose grains of pollen; replace the
palet, and a week later note whether a crossed grain has formed.
Repeat this exercise several times.
30 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Smut.

(7) Insert a barrel hoop, or sides of a bottomless box, over a
number of oat plants in the field; count the number of smutted
and healthy heads; calculate the percentage of smutted heads,
and the apparent loss per acre from smut if the yield of the field
would have been thirty bushels per acre had there been no
smut.

The oat panicle and stems.

(8) Compare the form of panicle of Red Rust-proof oats with
that of Burt or Turf oats.

(9) Record the number of whorls (sets of branches) and the
number of spikelets in each of five heads of oats.

(10) Record the total number of stems of ten plants with abun-
dant room and of ten plants in a part of the field where the plants
are thick.

Samples of threshed seed.

(11) Carry out directions for prevention of smut by the for-
malin treatment (paragraph 30).

(12) Practice the hot-water treatment for smut.

(13) Save some seed in both treatments above and make a ger-
mination test, in soil or in germinating box, of 100 seeds treated
with formalin, 100 with hot water, and 100 not treated.

(14) Make a germination test of 100 small seeds from upper
grains of spikelets and of 100 large grains, each of the latter
being the lower grain of its spikelet; notice results in 7 or 14
days as to percentage of germinated seed and character of
sprouts or young plants. (In a good sample, 97 per cent should
germinate. )

(15) Note all differences between seeds of Red Rust-proof,
Burt, and Turf types of oats.

(16) Make drawings of a spikelet of Red Rust-proof freed of
chaff, showing number and position of beards. Do likewise for
some other variety.

(17) Determine the weight of a measured bushel of several
samples of oats, by weighing a gallon or peck.
OATS 31

Scoring.
(18) Score as many samples of threshed oats as practicable,
by the following score-card : —

1. Trueness to type . UE Bea oO
2. Uniformity of kernel in size and shape oa Aare ce S10
3. Purity of color. «a UTS
4. Cleanliness, or freedom from weed seeds, trash, eters % 10
5. Seed condition, or Senains POWwer- Ss) slots “Ge se 15
6. Proportion of hull . . Ses ae et cas ee cou eee DLO)
#. Weight-per bushel: 4: 3. (2 js: ay ce ep ee A Ger 2.

Potalspoimts! 2: 4. ek. 2a fe Ge es An ay Bo ce ds, LOO

LITERATURE

Cultural Methods.

Ducear, J. F. Ala. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 137.

Reppinc, R. J. Ga. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 44 and 72.

Ten Eycx, A. M., and SHorsmirH, V. M. Kan. Expr. Sta.,
Bul. No. 144.

Composition.

Prrer, A. M. Ky. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 99.
Storer, F. H. Agriculture in its Relation to Chemistry, Vol.
IL, p. 400.

Breeding.
Norton, J. B. Am. Breeders’ Assen., Vol. III, pp. 280-285.

Score-card.

Lyon and Montcomery. Examining and Grading Grains.
Lincoln, Neb.

Ten Eycx, A. M. Kan. Agr. Col., 1907. Rules for Judging
and Grading Small Grains.

Enemies: Green-bug.

Honter, S. J., in Kan. Bd. Agr., 1907.
U.S. Bur. Entomology, Bul. No. 38, and Cires. 81, 85, and 93.
CHAPTER II

WHEAT — TRITICUM SATIVUM

Wueart belongs to the grass family, and is thus closely
related to all the other cereal grains and to the forage
grasses. All the various wheats are included in the genus
Triticum, which term thus forms the first word in the bo-
tanical name of wheat. All kinds of wheat are annuals.

Wheat is chiefly used for the manufacture of flour.
From the wheat grain are also made breakfast foods, mac-
aroni, and other articles for human nourishment. When
the price of wheat is low, the grain is sometimes fed to all
classes of live-stock. It is especially prized as a food for
poultry.

The wheat plant affords valuable winter pasturage, and
when cut before ripening, it makes hay of good quality.
For use as hay a variety having no beards is, of course,
preferable. In the southern parts of the Gulf States,
wheat is more valued for forage than for grain.

STRUCTURE AND COMPOSITION

35. Roots. — The wheat has fibrous roots, and in this
respect it is entirely unlike such plants as the legumes, cow-
peas, clovers and cotton, which have tap-roots. The roots
of wheat do not extend so widely as do those of corn and
cotton. The roots originate at the crown, which is usually

32
WHEAT 83

within an inch of the surface of the ground, whatever may
have been the depth of planting.

However, before the crown and the main or permanent
system of roots are formed, three short temporary roots
develop from the sprouted grain; thus the depth of these
temporary roots depends upon the depth oi planting.
They serve no further use after the development of the
numerous permanent roots originating chiefly at the crown.
Hence, the depth at which the wheat roots and feeds is
independent of the depth at which the seed is sown.

36. Stems. — The stems or culms of wheat are hollow,
with closed or solid joints. The usual height is three to
five feet. When the straw grows to great length, there is
danger that the plant may “ lodge ” (fall), thus interfering
with the perfect development of the grain and making har-
vesting difficult and incomplete. As a rule, wheat grows
taller than barley and not so tall as rye. The weight of
straw is usually nearly twice the weight of grain, but it may
vary widely from this.

A single wheat grain may give rise directly to a single
culm and indirectly to a score or more of stems, as explained
below. The buds at the lower nodes (joints) of each culm
may themselves develop into additional culms, and from
the lower nodes of these still other stems may spring. This
formation of culms from lower buds at the underground
nodes of each stem explains how and why wheat and other
small grains tiller; that is, they produce a number of
stems from a single seed. The greater the space between
plants and the greater the rainfall and supply of plant-
food, the greater is the number of culms from a single

crown.
»
sD

4 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

€

37. Leaves. — The leaves of wheat vary in width, and
even in the shade of green. Asa rule, they are narrower
than the leaves of barley and
oats. Young wheat plants of
the species usually cultivated in
the United States (Triticum
sativum) may be distinguished
easily from those of the other
small grains by the two small
clasps (auricles) that partly en-
circle the stem where the blade,
or free part of each leaf, unites
with the sheath (Fig. 12). In
Pre. 12.--Paax or a Yours the young wheat plant these

Wueat Puanr. clasps bear on their margins a

Showing clasps bordered with few very inconspicuous hairs.
meee No hairs occur on the larger
clasps of barley nor on the smaller auricles of rye. Oats
have no auricles.

 

Young plants of the four small grains, therefore, may be dis-
tinguished by the following leaf characters, as well as by others :—

Oats have no auricles or clasps (Fig. 1).

Rye has very small auricles (Fig. 23).

Barley leaves are provided with large auricles (Fig. 28).

Wheat has auricles intermediate in size between those of rye
and barley, and on the outer margin of each auricle on American
wheats are a few hairs (Fig. 12).

38. Pollination. — Although wanting in showy colors, the
part from which each wheat grain develops is a true flower.
On carefully opening the husk-like inclosing parts in a newly
formed head of wheat, within each flower are found three
XS

WHEAT 30

G

stamens, which soon afford the yellow powder or pollen.
There is also a pair of small glistening plumes (Fig. 13),
corresponding to the silks in corn.
These are the stigmas or divisions
of the pistil, and in these delicate
plumes the pollen must lodge and
grow before a seed can form.

The plume-like stigmas are
snugly inclosed by the chaff, thus
preventing the access of any pollen
except that which develops within
the same flower. Hence wheat is a

 

Fic. 13.— FuLoret oF
; WHEAT.
self-pollinated plant. Therefore, Showing two stigmas and

See i two of the three anthers.
two varieties of wheat sown side

by side do not cross or mix, unless the seed be mechanically
mixed by careless handling.

Two varieties of wheat can be crossed or hybridized by
removing the pollen-cases (anthers) before they burst, and
then, a little later, by applying to the stigmas pollen
from a plant on which the anthers have just set free
the pollen. The best time for hybridizing wheat is before
daybreak.

39. The spike and the spikelets. — ‘‘Spike”’ is the name
given to the entire head of wheat, and spikelet is the name
of a group of flowers or grains springing from the same
place onthe stem. The head or spike is borne at the top
of each completely developed stem or straw. In wheat
there is only one spikelet, or flower-cluster, at each node or
joint.’ The spikelets are arranged alternately on the zigzag
stem (orrachis). The spikelets are arranged flatwise to the
stem.
36 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

The shape of the spike differs in certain species and va-
rieties of wheat and may be (1) tapering, or (2) nearly
uniform in size, or (3) club-shaped (that is, decidedly

Pic. 14.—A Heap, SprkeLet, and

GRAIN OF BrearpDED WHear.

 

largest at the extreme
upper end) (Fig. 17). The
shape of the spike or head
cepends largely on the size
to which the spikelets in
different parts of the spike
develop.

Comprising each spikelet
are usually three or more
flowers (Fig. 14). From
them, when all conditions
are favorable, may develop
three grains. More fre-
quently, only two flowers
develop, and the spikelet
yields only two grains,
sometimes only one. <A
crop with ‘three grains
to the mesh,’ as some
farmers express it, should
make a large yield.

In some varieties, beards
project from the tips of
certain of the chaff-like
parts which inclose the seed.
It has not been proved
that bearded varieties of
wheat are any hardier or
WHEAT 37
any more productive in the South than beardless varieties
(which are also known as “ smooth ” or “ bald ’’ wheats)
(Fig. 15). On farms where it is some-
times desirable to utilize at least a part
of the wheat crop for hay, beardless
varieties are decidedly preferable, and
also probably just as good when the
sole aim is the production of grain.

40. The grain. — When wheat is
threshed, the grain is freed from the
chaff that has enfolded it. The same
is true of rye. On the other hand,
the hull of oats continues to enfold
the grain after threshing, and in barley
the hull grows fast to the grain.

A single grain of wheat is usually
about a quarter of an inch long. <A
deep furrow or crease extends nearly
the length of the grain on the side
opposite the germ or embryo. The
greater depth of this furrow, together
with the shorter, plumper grain (Fig.
16), readily distinguish a wheat kernel
from a grain of rye. ‘Wl

In color wheat grains vary from a yg. 15,—A Typrcar
light, almost creamy yellow (called Hap or Brarpress
white) through an amber tint to dark Meee
red. Red and amber-colored wheats are more com-
monly grown in the South than those of the lghter
shades, and probably the former are hardier under South-
ern conditions.

 
38 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

The kernel of wheat is divided into three principal parts:
(1) the germ, or embryo ; (2) the starchy part, or endosperm ;
(3) the several outer layers constituting the bran. The germ,
which may be located by a tiny sear, constitutes only a very
small proportion of the
grain, occupying only
about one thirteenth
as much space as the
endosperm. The
starchy portion, or
endosperm, is the part
from which flour is
made. This is a re-
serve supply of food
material stored by the
maturing plant for the
nourishment of the
young seedling be-
fore the roots of the
latter are able to fur-
mish a full supply of
plant-food. The bran
consists of — several
coats, the outer of
which corresponds
botanically to the pod
that covers a pea or
bean.

Wheat grains are of
such size that usually
from 500,000 to 1,000,-

Via. 16.—A Goop Sampie or Wurar. 000 are contained in a

bushel, though the
number is occasionally below and sometimes above these limits.
The legal weight of a bushel of wheat is 60 pounds, but a measured
bushel often weighs several pounds less.
pounds more than the standard.

 

and sometimes a few
WHEAT 39

41. Composition. — In round numbers, the entire wheat
grain has the following average composition: —

Per Cent

Water .. ae eh OSD
Gluten and other nitrogenous constituents (protein) on ee eee
Fats, etc. . . . « » » » » » alittle more than 2:0
Crude fiber. . . . . . . . . . alittle less than 2.0
Ash . . . alittleless than 2.0
Starch and other ‘nitrogen-free extract . . more than 71, 5

PRO bAL ew toe Sic ton ake sect ate) aie er ee ae tea LOS)

The higher the percentage of protein in normally ma-
tured wheat grains the higher, as a rule, are the quality and
breadmaking value of the wheat. The protein is often as
much as 2 per cent either above or below the average
just given, and still greater extremes in composition some-
times occur. Any climatic or other condition that prevents
the complete maturity of the wheat into plump grains
tends to reduce the proportion of starch, which is the ma-
terial last to be added to the grain; this reduction in the
percentage of starch naturally raises the percentage of ni-
trogen. It has been found at the Tennessee Experiment
Station (Bul., Vol. XVI, No. 4) that wheat grown in the
South contains a high percentage of protein. Hard grains,
which present a horny appearance, are usually richer in
protein than those which have a less flinty appearance.

Gluten, the principal nitrogenous constituent in wheat,
is not only prized for its high nutritive value, but also
because to its presence is due the “ rising power ”’ possessed
by wheat flour as compared with flour or meal from Indian
corn. Gluten is the sticky residue left in the mouth when
one chews unground wheat grains. The favorable action
of this sticky gluten in making flour bread to rise, or to
40 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

become “‘ light,”’ is due to the fact that the gluten entangles
and holds in the dough the bubbles of carbonic acid gas
formed by fermentation when yeast is added to dough.

SPECIES AND VARIETIES

42. Species and subspecies.—The genus Triticum, to
which all forms of wheat belong, includes eight species or
subspecies. Only one of these is generally cultivated in
the South, namely, the winter-growing form of common
wheat (Triticum sativum vulgare). Spring wheat is un-
suited to the South.

Macaroni wheat (Triticum durum) is adapted to a semiarid
climate. At least one of its varicties, under the name of Nica-
ragua wheat, has been successfully grown in the drier portions
of Texas. Macaroni wheat in that climate makes a large
yield of grain, which is suitable either for the manufacture of
macaroni or vermicelli, or for stock food. Macaroni wheat is
bearded. In its early growth it is more erect, and the plant is
less inclined to stool or tiller than common wheat.

Other forms of wheat, not grown in the South, are the follow-

ing :—

Club wheat is the favorite kind in Oregon and Washington
(Fig. 17).

Spelt is one form in which the chaff clings to the grains after
threshing.

Emmer is useful for its resistance to drought and to rust, and is
especially promising as a forage plant in the semiarid Northwest.
It seems to be unpromising for the South because most of the
varieties require sowing after winter has passed.

Pouwlard wheat is closely related to macaroni wheat

Branching wheat is so named beeause the head is branched.
In this class belongs the variety recently advertised under the
name of Alaska wheat, which has generally proved an inferior
kind.
Polish wheat is
characterized by
very large kernels.
It is not suitable
for breadmaking,
but for the manu-
facture of maca-
roni.

One-grained
wheat (einkorn)
is another un-
promising kind.

43. Varieties
of winter wheat.
— Although
more than a
thousand vari-
eties of wheat
are known,
those exten-

the cotton-belt
are probably
less than a
score in num-
ber. © Among
the most pop-
ular and pro-

 

WHEAT 4i

 

 

Fic. 17.— Heaps or WHEAT.

On left, Golden Chaff; in center, Currell; on
right, Club.

ductive varieties are the following :—
Blue Stem or Purple Straw. — This is so named
because of the purplish tint on the upper part of the

ripened straw.

It is beardless, and hence suitable for
42 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

hay as well as for grain. When the seeds are continu-
ously grown in the South, it is one of the earliest varie-

 

 

 

 

 

Pia. 18.— Heaps or Wuear.

On left, Fultz, then Blue Stem; on extreme right, Fuleaster, next to
which is Club.
WHEAT 43

ties. The grain is amber-colored or reddish, and of
medium size.

Fultz (Fig. 18).— This variety is widely grown in the
South. Itis practically beardless, though very short beards
are found in the upper part of the head on a few of the
glumes, or chaffy parts. It may be used for hay as well as
for grain.

Red May. — An early beardless variety.

Fulcaster (Fig. 18).— A bearded variety widely grown
in the South, and generally found to be comparatively
hardy and productive.

44. Most productive varieties of wheat.—There is no
one variety of wheat that is best for all seasons and for
all localities in the South. This explains why variety tests
present such different results in different years.

In experiments made at the Test Farms in North Caro-
lina, during several years, Golden Chaff, Bearded Fulcaster,
and Improved Amber were among the most productive
varieties.

At the Alabama Experiment Station, a local strain of
Blue Stem has been the earliest and one of the most pro-
ductive varieties tested. Fulcaster has also made good
yields of grain.

At the Oklahoma Station, Sibley’s New Golden was one
of the best varieties. This is a bearded variety with soft
grains. At the same station good yields were also made by
Blue Stem and Fulcaster, and by some of the hard wheats,
including among others, Turkey Red. (Okla. Expr. Sta.,
An. Rpt., 1908-1909.)

45. Means of distinguishing varieties.— Varieties are
distinguished by the presence or absence of beards; by the
44 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

color of grain; by the color of chaff; by the presence ot
absence of hairs (“ velvet’) on the chaff; by the height
of straw; by the time of maturity; and by other char-
acters. Hence, it is evident that a variety cannot be iden-
tified merely by an inspection of the grain itself. Indeed,
positive identification of the variety is almost impossible,
even when the mature plants are examined in the field.
Yet it is important that growers keep each variety pure, to
insure uniformity in ripening and in quality of grain, and
in order to propagate only the best varieties.

46. Qualities desired in varieties for the South. — The
qualities chiefly desired in varieties of wheat for the South
are the following : —

(1) High yield.

(2) Rust-resistance, and earliness, as a means of mini-
mizing the injury from rust.

(3) Resistance to drought, though marked differences
in this respect among American varieties have not been
demonstrated.

(4) More than the average percentage of protein, and
good quality of the flour produced.

47. Improvement of varieties. — Wheat can readily be
improved by selecting for seed the best individual plants ;
for example, those affording a larger yield than other plants
having an equal amount of space and fertilizer, or those
most resistant to rust, or the earliest productive plants.
Improvement will be more rapid if farmers specially in-
terested in breeding up their wheat would set apart small
areas, for use as breeding nurseries, where the seed from
each selected plant could be sown in a separate row. The
seed from the best of these rows should be planted the next
WHEAT 45

year on a larger area. By the third year, there should be
enough seed to plant a small field.

In selecting for rapid improvement, it is much more
important to choose the best plants than to pick out the
largest grains or the best single heads.

Hand selection of the best plants, even without separate
breeding rows, will improve the variety and increase the
yield. Hunt expresses the belief that the most promising
means of increasing the yield is by selecting to increase the
number of spikelets on a spike. Breeding should also be
directed towards increasing the size of grain and the re-
sistance to rust. (See 58.)

Sorts, RoTaTION, AND FERTILIZERS

48. Soils. — Wheat thrives better on a clay or loam
soil than on one that is sandy. Most suitable of all is a
lime soil, if it also contains considerable clay.

Wheat does not thrive on acid soils. Hence, the acid areas so
often found among the sandy soils of the Gulf States should be
avoided for this crop, or else limed with from 1000 to 1500 pounds
of slacked lime per acre as a preparation for wheat. Liming
is best done through the grain drill, several weeks before the seed
are planted. When applied on the surface, lime should be well
harrowed in.

In choosing a field for wheat, wet, undrained spots should be
avoided. The crop is less likely to suffer severely from rust if
grown on upland than if sown on lowland completely surrounded
by higher land and from which field there is consequently no air
drainage. Yet, bottom lands of suitable character in favorable
years afford large yields of wheat.

In the northern part of most of the Gulf States are found many
soils suitable for wheat, after they have been somewhat improved
46 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

by the addition of vegetable matter. Among such soils may be
especially noted the limestone valleys, and also the reddish clay
or clay-loam soils of the Piedmont region or foothills, the latter
being designated in the soil survey reports as belonging to the
Cecil series of soils.

Likewise, the waxy lime lands of central Alabama, north-
eastern Mississippi, and of Texas, offer suitable conditions for the
growth of wheat when sufficient vegetable matter is incorporated
with the soil. On all of these and on many Southern soils, now
seldom or never utilized for wheat, this crop should become
an important one when the presence of the boll weevil or other
incentive shall make imperative a more diversified agriculture.

Wheat needs a rich or fairly rich soil. More economical than
the use of most forms of commercial fertilizer is the improvement
of the soil for wheat by a preceding crop of cowpeas or of other
legumes. This is the cheapest means of adding nitrogen, the.
most expensive plant-food purchased in commercial fertilizers.
The preceding crop of legumes should be fertilized with acid
phosphate, so as to enable the legumes to make a more luxuriant
growth and thus to add to the soil a larger amount of nitrogen
than would be possible if this crop had been grown without
fertilizer. If the preceding crop of cowpeas is luxuriant, it
will often suffice to plow under merely the stubble as a fertilizer
for wheat, utilizing the tops of the legume for hay.

Among the legumes that may be used to fit the land for a
profitable crop of wheat are the following : cowpeas and soybeans,
as summer growing legumes, on any soils; red clover on lime soils ;
sweet clover (Melilotus alba) on the waxy lime soils; and crimson
clover, a winter-growing annual that is adapted to almost any
soil suitable for wheat.

49. Place in the rotation. —In the cotton-belt, the
crop preceding wheat is usually cowpeas, either grown
alone or as a catch-crop. between rows of corn. It is not
unusual for a growth of cowpeas to add 4 to 10 bushels of
wheat per acre to the yield of the following wheat crop.
WHEAT 47

In those parts of the South where red clover is grown,
a good three-year rotation is : —

First year: wheat, with red clover seed.

Second year: red clover.

Third year: corn.

Wheat is again grown the fourth year.

Where neither red clover nor cotton succeeds, crimson
clover may be used instead of red clover, as follows : —

First year: late corn, cultivated late, and the middles
seeded to crimson clover in September.

Second year: tobacco, late corn, or other summer crop
not requiring early planting.

Third year: wheat, followed by cowpeas.

In those parts of the cotton-belt where red clover does
not thrive, the following four-year rotation is often desir-
able: —

First year: cotton, with crimson clover seeded in
September between the rows.

Second year: cotton.

Third year: corn, with cowpeas between the rows.

Fourth year: wheat, followed by cowpeas.

50. Fertilization. — A crop of 25 bushels of wheat, with
its accompaniment of say 2500 pounds of straw, removes
from the land approximately the following amounts of
plant-food : —

 

 

In Gran | In Straw] In Gray snp STRAW

| |
Mifosen. «. + es 25. 10.8 | 26.7
‘|

9
Phosphorie acid 14.4 | 3.0 | 17.7
Potash . S38 | 186 23.8

 

 
48 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

These figures indicate that the grain depletes the land of
considerable quantities of nitrogen and phosphoric acid,
while the straw removes a large quantity of potash and also
considerable nitrogen. The straw, after being used as
food or bedding, should be restored to the farm in the form
of manure. This, however, will usually not be applied to
the field from which the straw was taken.

Phosphoric acid is very generally deficient in Southern
soils. Phosphate is the fertilizer usually applied to wheat.
Two hundred to four hundred pounds per acre may well
be employed. The time to apply acid phosphate to
wheat is at the time of sowing the grain. It may be sown
through the fertilizer attachment of the grain drill and
while the seed is being sown. The germination is not in-
jured by phosphate in contact with the seed.

Since wheat makes most of its growth during the cooler
part of the year, while decay and nitrification are least ac-
tive, this plant responds profitably to applications of nitrog-
enous fertilizers. For the reason just indicated the most
readily soluble form of nitrogen, namely, nitrate of soda,
is usually the most effective form in which to convey at
least a part of the supply of nitrogen to the wheat plant
(Fig. 19). On account of its ready solubility, nitrate of
soda should not be applied until winter is past and the
plants have a well-developed root system ready to appropri-
ate the soluble nitrates. It is well to apply nitrate of soda
at least two months before the date of anticipated harvest.

This usually means that in the Guif States nitrate of soda
should be used by or before the twentieth of Mareh, or in higher
latitudes at proportionately later dates: SO pounds per acre is the
amount most genertly advisable, — though profitable use ean
WHEAT 49

often be made of amounts smaller or larger by 50 per cent. Ni-
trate of soda should be very uniformly sown, after all lumps
have been pulverized. No covering is required, but when harrow-
ing can be done without serious injury to the stand of plants, it

 

 

Fic. 19.—SHocks of WHEAT FROM EquaL AREAS.

On left, fertilized with nitrate of soda; on right, no nitrogen in the

fertilizer.

will often be helpful, both as a means of hastening the absorption
of the nitrate of soda and also for its effects as a cultivation.

It should always be borne in mind that the application of very
large amounts of nitrogen in any form, even in barnyard manure,
may cause the straw to grow so tall and weak that it may fall,
or lodge. The application of phosphate and kainit is believed
to have a tendency to strengthen the straw and to reduce the
danger of lodging.

Formerly when cotton-seed was worth less than twelve
dollars per ton, it was largely used as a fertilizer for wheat.
Cotton-seed was plowed in when the wheat was sown, and
its use, especially when combined with acid phosphate,
was effective. Cotton-seed is now in most localities too

E
50 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

high-priced to be used as a fertilizer for wheat in competi-
tion with cotton-seed meal or nitrate of soda.

Cotton-seed meal is a common ingredient of a fertilizer
mixture for wheat. It is usually less effective and eco-
nomical for wheat than an equal value of nitrate of soda.
When cotton-seed meal is used, it should be applied before
the wheat is sown, and the seed should not be permitted to
come in contact with it, since the meal, in its decay, has an
unfavorable effect on the germinating seed. Hence, to
avoid injuring the stand, no considerable amount of cotton-
seed meal should be applied while the seed are being drilled
in. The meal may be first drilled in, or sown broadcast
and harrowed in, and then the seed sown. The same cau-
tion may well be exercised when the fertilizer contains any
considerable amount of kainit, or muriate of potash, dried
blood, or tankage.

Most fertilizer tests show smaller gains from the use of potash
as a fertilizer for wheat than from the use of nitrogen or phos-

phorie acid. For soils not in the best condition for wheat the
following formula will often prove profitable :—
200 pounds acid phosphate per acre and
25 pounds of muriate of potash (when the seed are sown).
100 pounds nitrate of soda (early in March).

In case the preceding crop is cowpeas, the nitrate of soda may
be reduced or omitted.

The cowpea piants, which usually follow wheat, may utilize
some of the phosphate not used by the grain crop.

CutturAL Metuops

51. Preparation of land. — Wheat requires a carefully
prepared seed-bed, moderately compact in the lower layers
and loose and fine near the surface. In order to permit the
WHEAT 51

soil to settle or become moderately compacted by rain,
plowing for wheat should be done, if practicable, at least
several weeks before the anticipated date of sowing the
seed. In Oklahoma it has been found advantageous
to plow for wheat as early as midsummer. Plowing
three to six weeks before seeding is often advisable;
but when wheat follows catch-crops of cowpeas, it is
often necessary to sow it soon. after plowing under the
cowpea stubble and to rely upon harrowing and rolling
to compact the soil. Immediately after plowing and
before the upturned soil has dried into clods, the field
should be harrowed. Harrowing should be repeated
at such intervals between the dates of plowing and
sowing as to prevent the formation of a crust or the
growth of vegetation.

If no rain falls near the time of plowing, it will be advisable
to employ the roller or plank drag in addition to the harrow, in
compacting and pulverizing the seed-bed for wheat. In case the
soil is excessively dry, it may be necessary to use ‘he roller after
sowing the seed, to enable moisture from the subsoil to be con-
veyed more easily by capillary attraction through the rolled soil
to the seeds, which, by means of the roller, are pressed into close
contact with the particles of soil.

However, the same compactness that makes it easier for the
moisture in the rolled soil to rise from the subsoil to the seed also
makes it easier for this moisture to continue to rise to the sur-
face, where it would be lost by evaporation. Hence, evaporation
must be decreased by forming a mulch, or layer of loose soil on
the surface, which is most easily done by using a harrow or
weeder after the roller.

The sowing of wheat on land which has not been plowed, but
merely disked, is sometimes practiced on clean mellow soil *n
higher latitudes. This procedure has been found insufficient in
the South.
e

2 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

a

52. When to sow wheat. — The kind of wheat grown in
the South should be sown in the fall. In the Gulf States
some wheat is sown as late as the first part of December.
This is too late for the maximum yield, even in the central
or southern parts of the Gulf States.

The best date for sowing wheat depends on the following
considerations : —

(1) The average date when killing frost occurs in each
locality.

(2) The latitude and altitude.

(3) The fertility of the soil.

53. The date as determined by killing frost. — In
North Carolina and the other parts of the cotton-belt in
which the Hessian fly, or ‘“ wheat-fly ’ occurs, sowing is
postponed, if practicable, as late as necessary to insure that
the young wheat plants do not come up until after a killing
frost has occurred. This is because a killing frost stops
the laying of eggs by the Hessian fly, and because if young
wheat plants should appear above the ground before that
time, the eggs would be deposited on them and the crop
subsequently injured by the insects developing from the
eggs. It was found that in the northern part of Georgia
(Ga. Bd. Entomology, Cire. 7), wheat sown during the last
10 days in October practically escaped injury.

Average dates of first killing frost. — The average dates of first
killing frosts for typical southern localities, as determined by the
Weather Bureau, are as follows :—

Blacksburg, Virginia, Sept. 30. Asheville, North Carolina,

Lynchburg, Virginia, Nov. 1. Oct. 20.
Knoxville, Tennessee, Oct. 27. Charlotte, North Carolina,

Nashville, Tennessee, Oct. 24. Nov. 4.
WHEAT 53

Greenville, South Carolina, Montgomery, Alabama, Nov. 8.

Nov. 6. Columbia, South Carolina,
Atlanta, Georgia, Nov. 7. Nov. 8.
Decatur, Alabama, Oct. 15. Shreveport, Louisiana, Nov. 11.

Memphis, Tennessee, Oct. 28. Dallas, Texas, Nov. 15.
Opelika, Alabama, Nov. 9.

The average date of killing frost will usually prove a satisfac-
tory date for sowing wheat in the northern and central parts of
the cotton-belt. North of the cotton-belt, a date slightly ahead
of the average date of killing frost may afford a larger yield.
South of the area where the Hessian fly occurs, the sowing of
wheat may be several weeks earlier than the average date of
first killing frost.

54. Climate and soil as related to the best date for
sowing wheat. — The cooler the climate, — that is, the
higher the latitude and the greater the altitude, — the
earlier must wheat be sown to afford the maximum yield.
Early sowing usually affords the largest yield, since it pro-
vides a longer time for the plant to develop a strong root
system, to tiller or thicken more completely, and to collect
plant-food. However, extremely early sowing is inad-
visable, even in regions where the Hessian fly is not
present, since this causes the plants to enter the boot
stage — that is, to form stems— before all freezing weather
is past. In this stage plants of all of the small grains
are especially liable to injury by a degree of cold that
would not prove harmful to plants that had not begun
to form stems.

The poorer the land the more urgent the need for a rather
early date of sowing, so that the early sowing may encour-
age tillering, which is not favored by poor soil.

For the central part of the cotton-belt, the first half
54 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

of November may be regarded as a generally satisfactory
date for sowing wheat.

55. Drilling versus broadcast sowing. — Experiments in
the principal wheat-growing states show a larger yield from

 

 

 

 

Fic. 20.— DousLe5-piskK Grain DRILL.

drilling wheat by the use of a grain drill (Fig. 20), sowing
the seed in rows, 6, 7, or 8 inches apart, than from sowing
broadcast. The advantages of drilling are the following :—

(1) Usually a somewhat larger yield.

(2) Planting at a more uniform depth and hence greater
uniformity in the ripening of the plants.

(3) Slightly increased protection from winter-killing
through heaving, that is, the lifting of the young plants
above the surface by the expansion of the moisture in the
soil when it freezes; the plants growing in the slight de-
pression left by the drill are in the position where there is
WHEAT 55

least tendency for the soil and the plant to be pressed
upward.

(4) A saving of 1 to 2 pecks of seed wheat per acre when
the seed is drilled.

The increased yield from drilling at the Kentucky Experiment
Station averaged 4 bushels per acre.

The slight ridges left by the grain drill are advantageous
in the colder parts of Virginia and Kentucky, and still more so
further north, since they hold the snow and thus keep the plants
warmer than they would be if exposed to very severe cold, with-
out the covering of snow. This consideration does not apply to
most Southern States, in which snow normally lies on the ground
for only a small portion of the winter.

56. Seeding machines. — Of the several types of
grain drills, the disk drills (Fig. 20) are preferable,
especially where there is much litter, stone, or other
obstruction. For land that is clean and in excellent
condition, the hoe drill and the shoe drill are also satis-
factory. Most drills are provided with fertilizer attach-
ments, and attachments for sowing grass or clover seed
can also be purchased.

Broadeast sowing is usually done by hand. Yet
there are cheap and efficient broadcast seeders that
may be hung from the sower’s shoulders; there are
also broadcast seeders that may be attached to the rear
end of a wagon and driven by the revolution of the
wagon wheels.

57. Quantity of seed. — In the wheat-growing states,
great numbers of experiments have been made on this
point. The results have been variable from year to year,
with different soils and climates, and with different varie-
56 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

ties. In general the highest yields have seldom been made
with less than 5 pecks of seed, and usually 6 pecks or more
per acre have afforded larger yields than have smaller
quantities of seed.

The earlier the sowing and the better prepared the land, the
smaller may be the quantity of seed. Varieties with large seed
require a greater number of pecks per acre. The richer the soil
the greater the number of plants that an acre will provide with
food and moisture, and also the greater, with early sowing, will
be the amount of tillering. While no general rule is universally
applicable, a safe average amount is 5 pecks per acre for drilling
and 6 pecks for broadcast sowing.

58. Large versus medium and small seed. — (See 47.)
In numerous experiments in Europe and America com-
parisons have been made between the large and the small
seed of wheat, as separated by sieves, and ordinary seed.
The results have been variable. Apparently it pays to
select the largest grains by means of sieves or other devices
connected with fanning mach‘nes, — provided a larger
volume of the larger seed be sown, so as to afford the same
number of plants as a smaller weight of lighter seed. Sep-
aration of seed by this means is especially important in the
South, where small and shrunken grains frequently occur,
often as the result of injury by rust.

However, to improve a variety one must not rely ex-
clusively on sowing the larger grains. Not all of these
occur on the best plants, and it is the entire parent
plant, rather than an individual seed, that determines
the character of the offspring. Fanning and_ screen-
ing should be practiced with the general crop, but to
improve wheat rapidly there is also needed a special
WHEAT 57

seed patch, the seeds for which are all from plants
selected as the best.

59. Change of seed. — As a general rule, there is no
advantage, and often a decided loss in yield, in bringing
seed wheat from a different latitude, instead of sowing
grain grown in thesame climate. Southern seed wheat for
Southern fields should be the rule, except where the home-
grown crop has been a failure, resulting in small, shrunken
grains. There is no inherent advantage in change of seed.
Acclimatized seed is more productive and, in the case of
wheat, earlier.

60. Tillage. — Since wheat is usually sown either broad-
cast or else in rows 6 to 8 inches apart, it usually receives
no tillage after the plants come up. Yet occasionally
farmers have drilled wheat in rows far enough apart and
have cultivated the crop, with resulting large yields. Such
tillage, if given at all, should be extremely shallow, espe-
cially in the latter part of the growing season, since many
of the roots of wheat are near the surface. It is practicable
to till wheat by the use of a light spike-tooth adjustable
harrow, or weeder.

The stiffer the soil and the smaller its supply of vege-
table matter the greater is the benefit from harrowing wheat
before the booting stage. Wheat sown by-a grain drill is
more satisfactorily harrowed than broadcast wheat. But
in neither case is the stand materially thinned by the use of
a weeder or harrow when conditions are favorable; for
example, — stones and litter absent and plants several
months old, but not with stems of any considerable length.

61. Pasturing wheat. — Since wheat makes an excellent
winter pasture for practically all kinds of live-stock, it is
58 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

sometimes grazed in winter, and later used for grain pro-
duction. Experiments for three years at the Oklahoma
Experiment Station resulted in little or no reduction in the
yield of grain from judicious pasturing of wheat in winter,
when pasturing was not continued beyond March 1.
(Okla. Expr. Sta., Rpt., 1906, p. 31.)

When stock was kept on wheat as late as April 15, the
grain yield was notably reduced.

In pasturing wheat in winter care should be taken to
exclude the stock while the ground is wet. In the case of
wheat that is too forward, or in danger of forming culms
before freezing weather is past, moderate pasturing is
usually advantageous, since it delays growth. Pasturing
early in the winter is thought to increase the number of
stems to the plant and thus to thicken the stand.

HARVESTING

62. Time to harvest wheat.— The proper time for
harvesting wheat is indicated both by the color of the straw
and by the degree of hardness of the grain. Wheat should
be cut when the individual grains are soft enough to be
indented by the finger-nail, but too hard to be easily
crushed between the thumb and finger. At this stage of
maturity, the straw of most plants will have turned yellow-
ish. However, when rust is prevalent and increasing,
earlier harvesting of the grain crop is advisable. Indeed,
should rust become very serious before the grain reaches
the milk stage, it will often be advisable to mow the crop
promptly for hay.. In the Gulf States wheat harvest occurs
late in May and early in June, or a little earlier than the
harvest of fall-sown red oats.
WHEAT 59

Wheat is best cut and tied by the self-binder. It should
be promptly shocked and capped. Some farmers thresh
from the shock a few weeks after harvest, but it is safer to
place the sheaf-wheat in stack or barn until ready to
thresh. Threshing is usually done by threshing crews
that travel from farm to farm.

63. When to cut wheat for hay. — Wheat for hay is
probably best cut when in the ‘‘ late milk stage,” but if
rust is absent, mowing may be deferred until the grain is in
the “early dough” stage. If rust promises to be severe,
wheat may be mown while still in bloom.

64. Yields and prices. — The legal weight of a bushel
of wheat is 60 pounds. A measured bushel may weigh a
few pounds above or below this weight. The heavier a
bushel of wheat, the better is the quality. The average
yield of wheat in the entire United States for the ten-year
period ending in 1906 was 13.8 bushels per acre. The
average of the cotton states is considerably below this
figure; but individual farmers in the cotton states some-
times produce an average of more than 20 bushels per acre.
The usual price of wheat is from 80 cents to $1.20 per
bushel.

ENEMIES

65. Weeds. — Numerous weeds grow in wheat fields,
either because the seeds were sown as impurities in the
seed wheat, or because the weed seeds were already in the
ground. Among the most important of these are the fol-
lowing : —

Cheat or chess. — A winter-growing annual grass liable
to be troublesome in all kinds of grain. It is most abun-
60 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

dant and injurious when unfavorable conditions result in a
thin stand of wheat. There is no foundation for the belief
that wheat may turn to cheat. The cheat comes only from
cheat seeds, which are much smaller and lighter than wheat
grains. Hence, cheat seed can be separated from wheat
by the fanning machine, or by immersing the seed in water,
when the sound wheat grains sink, while the cheat seeds
float and may be skimmed off.

Cockle is an annual plant with large pink flowers and
black seeds. The latter are so nearly of the same diameter
as grains of wheat that their separation is not easy, and
their retention results in very inferior flour. Avoid sowing
wheat with these black seed in it. If occasional plants of
cockle appear, they should be pulled.

Wild garlic (wild onion) and peppergrass are among the
other weeds often found in wheat fields. The fanning and
screening of the seed wheat is the usual means of avoiding
peppergrass and other weeds. Recent experiments have
shown that millers can separate onion bulblets from wheat
by artificially drying the wheat and then passing it through
the ordinary cleaning machinery of the mills. (U.S. Dept.
Agr., Bur. Plant Ind., Bul. No. 100, Part III.)

66. Diseases.— Rusts are the most injurious diseases
of wheat. The rusts are caused by certain microscopic
organisms (fungi). Both the leaves and stems may be af-
fected and changed from a green color by a series of small
reddish or black spots from which may arise clouds of pow-
dery spores, or propagating bodies. The destruction of the
green coloring matter in the leaf prevents the formation of
starch, and results in poor yields of small, shriveled grains.
Dampness and heat favor rust. Varieties ripening early
WHEAT 61

will usually suffer less than late varieties. On low damp
land rust is most destructive. Attempts have often been
made, with but little success, to breed a rust-resistant
variety, that should also be productive and otherwise
desirable. Such efforts should be continued. No efiec-
tive treatment for wheat rust is known.

Stinking or concealed smut. — This disease changes the
grain into a mass of powdery black spores, with offensive
smell. It ruins the flour. As the chaff is not changed, the
diseased grains may not be noticed. The spores of this
fungus are conveyed by the seed wheat, hence the disease
may readily be prevented by either of the following treat-
ments of the seed wheat : —

(1) Immerse the seed or thoroughly dampen them with
a mixture of one ounce of liquid formalin in each three
gallons of water; keep the seed grains damp and the pile
covered with cloth for at least a few hours; then dry and
plant the grain.

(2) Or immerse the seed grain for ten minutes in a solu-
tion of one pound of bluestone (copper sulfate) in five
gallons of water.

(3) Or immerse the seed wheat for ten minutes in water
kept at about 133° F., then cool the seed promptly by
stirring or by dipping the hot grain into cold water.

Loose smut of wheat (Fig. 21).—This disease is known
by the occasional heads that contain no semblance of grains,
but only small black masses of powder, consisting of spores,
which are microscopic bodies serving the purpose of seed
for the fungus that causes this disease. It is rarer than
concealed smut, and like it, is conveyed by the seed wheat.
The fungus causing loose smut of wheat is much less easily
62 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

Fig. 21.—Loosr Smur or
WuEatT.

 

destroyed than the organism
causing concealed smut of wheat
or the loose smut of oats. Treat-
ment is not recommended unless
the disease has been injuriously
present in the crop from which
seed is taken. When treatment
is necessary, it kills many of the
seed, so that 50 per cent addi-
tional seed should be sown.

The treatment when necessary
is as follows: Soak the seed
wheat for 4 hours in cold water ;
then scald for 5 minutes at a
temperature of 133° F.

In treating seed wheat or other
seed grain by any of the above-
named methods, the grain after
treatment should not be allowed
to come in contact with floors or
sacks that have not been dis-
infected; such contact would
again infect the treated grain
with spores, which would cause
the disease.

67. Insect pests of wheat. —
The Hessian fly is the most seri-
ous of insect pests and is widely
spread. From the egg, laid on
the leaf blades of the young
plants, hatch tiny insects which
WHEAT 63

find their way to a point within the leaf-sheath, where
their injuries cause many of the stems in spring to break
and fall over. The name ‘ flaxseed’ is applied to the
pupal or transforming stage of the insect because of the
resemblance of the pupa in color and shape to a flaxseed.
This pest spends the summer on the wheat stubble.
Hence the usual means of combating the insect is to burn
the stubble, or to plow it in thoroughly. Postponement
of sowing until a severe frost occurs greatly decreases the
number of eggs deposited in the fall. Rotation of crops
is an important
means of decreas- vee
ing the injury.

Chinch bugs. —
Small insects that
undergo a number
of changes in size
and color; are
sometimes injuri-
ous to wheat.
When warfare is
madeagainst them,
it is usually after
they have emerged
from the wheat
field and are invad-
ing corn fields.

The wheat plant-
louse or “ green-
bug”? (Fig. 9).— This small greenish plant-louse has in
some years proved very injurious to wheat in the south-

 

 

 

 

 

Fic. 22.— THE ANGOUMOIS GRAIN-MOTH.
Enlarged 6 times. (W. E. Hinds.)
64 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

western part of the wheat-growing region. Its injury is
done by sucking the juices from the plant. Its natural
enemies among insects are relied on to keep the green-bug
in subjection. One of these, a lady-bug beetle (Fig. 10),
has sometimes been propagated by entomologists and sent
into the infested regions.

In the shock, stack, or bin the wheat grain is attacked
by weevils and by the larva, or worm stage, of the small,
gray grain-moth (Galechia cerealella) (Fig. 22). The reme-
dies consist in prompt threshing of the grain and in placing
near the top of the tight bin of threshed grain one pound
of carbon-disulfide for each 30 bushels of grain. This
liquid promptly vaporizes. The vapors are destructive
to insect life. They are also quite inflammable, so that no
fire, or light, or smoking is permissible about the granary
while grain is being thus fumigated.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

The young plants.

(1) Repeated tests should be made of the student’s ability to
distinguish the young plants of wheat, oats, barley, and rye by the
auricles (Figs. 1, 12,23,and 28). Ifno young plants are available,
leaves of mature plants may be used for the same purpose, after
dampening them.

(2) Select five young wheat plants, each having abundant
space around it, and record (a) total number of stems and (b)
average number of stems per plant.

(3) Repeat exercise (2) with five plants closely crowded by
other plants. Compare figures for (2) with those for (3).

(4) Plant 25 kernels of wheat at each of the following depths:
4 inch, 1 inch, 2, 3, 4,5, and 6 inches. Keep the soil moderately
moist; at intervals of a week record the number of plants that
have come up from each depth of planting.
WHEAT 65

(5) After the plants from the deeper depths have been up for
two or more weeks, and again at a much later date, carefully dig
several plants from plantings made at each depth, and record the
distances below the surface at which the principal roots are grow-
ing, or depths at which the crown is forming.

The mature plants.

(6) If drilled and broadcast wheat are both available, ascertain
(by digging the plants) the average number of plants and of stems
per square foot of ground surface with each of these two methods
of sowing.

(7) From wheat heading in the field or from dried specimens,
record the following data for as many varieties of wheat as are
commonly grown in the locality :—

(a) Average height of plant.

(b) Average number of stems bearing heads.

(c) Bearded, beardless, or partly bearded.

(d) Estimated percentage of upper leaf surface covered byrust.

(e) Has rust attacked the stems slightly, considerably, or not
at all?

(8) From dried mature plants in the laboratory, after being
moistened, or from nearly mature specimens from the field,
describe in writing each of the varieties indicated by the instruc-
tor, as to the following points : —

(a) Bearded, beardless, or partly bearded.

(b) Average length of head.

(c) Average number of spikelets per head.

(d) Difference, if any, in usual number of grains per spikelet
in tip, middle, and base of head.

(e) Difference, if any, in size of grains in tip, middle, and
base of head.

(f) Difference in size of middle grain in a mesh compared
with the two outer grains.

Character of grain.

(9) For varieties commonly grown in the locality record a
description as to each of the following points : —
F
o>
o

SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

(a) Prevailing color, — whitish, amber, or reddish.
(b) Hard, medium, or soft, in crushing.

(c) Plump, shriveled, or medium-plump.

(d) Size of grain, — large, medium, or small.

(e) Crease, — deep, medium, or shallow.

(10) Standards for wheat grown in the South have not been
agreed on. Until this is done, the following standard for Fultz
wheat used in Kansas may prove a useful basis for the formu-
lation of Southern standards.

Fultz. Type: red, soft, winter.
Length of berry : inches, 35 to #5.
Thickness of berry : inches, 34 to +4.
Shape and plumpness: very plump, rounded sides;
shallow groove.
Moisture content: per cent, 10.
Weight per bushel: pounds, 60.
Percentage of soft grains, 90.

 

Practice scoring wheat grain by the following score-card, or
such modification of it as the instructor may direct :—

 

 

Dees | |
| Depuct | | |
PERFECT |roR EACH |
Score | °% UNDE- 1} 2 3°] 4 5

 

1. Trueness to variety |

2. Uniformity in size and |
shape of kernel |

3. Color of grain

4. Freedom from mixture
with other grain

5. Size of kernel

6. Per cent and nature of
weed seed, dirt, ete.

7. Per cent of damaged,
smutty,ormusty kernels

8. Weight of grain per bu. |

9. Germination

 

Total

 
WHEAT 67

LITERATURE

Brsspy,C. E. The Structure of the Wheat Grain. Neb. Expr.
Sta., Bul. No. 32.

Kizcore, B. W., and others. Culture and Variety Tests of
Wheat. N.C. Dept. Agr. Bul., Vol. 30, No. 8, Aug. 1909.

Hunt, Tuomas F. The Cereals in America. New York, 1908.

Exuiott, EK. E., and Lyon, T. L. Wheat. Bailey’s Cyclo. Am.
Agr., Vol. II, pp. 660-670.

Carteton, M.A. The Basis for the Improvement of American
Wheats. U.S. Dept. Agr., Div. Veg. Phys. and Path., Bul.
No. 24.

Caruteton, M. A., and others. Field Methods in Breeding
Wheat. Am. Breeders’ Assen., Vol. V, pp. 185-207.

Scorretp, Cart 8S. The Description of Wheat Varieties. U. S.
Dept. Agr., Bur. Plant Ind., Bul. No. 27.

Hays, Wittett M. Plant Breeding. U.S. Dept. Agr., Div. of
Veg. Phys. and Path., Bul. No. 29.

Souter, A. M., and Vanatter, P. O. Tenn. Expr. Sta. Bul.,
Vol. 14, No. 3, and Vol. 16, No. 4.

Lyon, T. L. Improving the Quality of Wheat. U. 8S. Dept.
Agr., Bur. Plant Ind., Bul. No. 78. }

Lyon and Montcomery. Examining and Grading Grains,
Lincoln, Neb.

Donpuincer, P. T. Book of Wheat. New York, 1908.
CHAPTER III

RYE AND BARLEY

Rye and barley are not more closely related than the
other small grains treated in this book, but they are
thrown together in one chapter because they are relatively
unimportant in the South. Rye is a cool-season crop,
whereas north of the cotton-belt barley is a warm-season
crop. Both are members of the grass family (Graminee).

I. RYE—SECALE CEREALE

Rye is an annual winter-growing grain. The acreage in
the South is very small compared with that of oats or wheat.
The chief use of rye in the South is for pasturage and for
soiling (that is, to be used as cut green food).

Other uses of various parts of the plant are the following:
The grain is used in the manufacture of alcoholic liquors ;
it is utilized to a small extent in this country for human food
and as a food for live-stock. The straw commands a higher
price than that of any of the other small grains. Its prin-
cipal use is for bedding; for the manufacture of horse
collars; and as packing material. Most of the rye grain
threshed in the Southern States is used as seed for the
succeeding crop. The rye plant makes hay of very poor
quality.

68. Description. — The grain of rye, like that of wheat, has
no adhering hull after it has passed through the thresher.

68
RYE AND BARLEY 69

It may be distinguished
from a wheat grain by
the longer, slenderer,
more wrinkled appear-
ance, and by the fact
that the crease is more
shallow.

The head of rye (Fig.
23) is longer than that
of wheat or barley, and
long beards are borne
on the tips of the
glumes. The heads are
usually slightly  flat-
tened, the beards heing
arranged loosely in two
rows and not spreading
so widely as in bearded
wheat and barley.

The young plant of
rye may be distinguished
from young wheat and
barley by the very small
auricles at the points
where leaf-blade. and
leaf-sheath join (Fig.
24).

Young rye plants usu-
ally show considerable
reddish color in the
stem, and the foliage

 

Fic. 23.— Heaps oF SouTHERN RYE
70 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

is commonly of a grayer green than that of the other
small grains.

69. Varieties. — There is but a limited number of vari-
eties of rye, even in European countries. Practically only
one kind or variety is successfully and
generally grown in the warmer portion
of the South, which is known simply
as Southern rye.

The rye flower, unlike that of
wheat, oats, and barley, is cross-pol-
linated, so that it would not be desir-
able to sow two different varieties
near together.

70. Climate. — The rye plant is
fs adapted to a wide range of climate.
Fic. 24.—Parr or a It is hardier towards cold than any of

Youna Rye Pant, the other small grains and is practi-

SHOWING THE SMALL peat A =

Clasps or tHe cally never injured in the South by

Leaves. winter-killing. Rye can be sown suc-
cessfully in a latitude too far south for general success with
wheat. However, in growing rye in the South it is very
important to use seed grown as far south as practicable.
It is thought that seed from the central and lower parts
of the Gulf States is better for sowing in the South than
that from the extreme northern parts of the same states,
and far better than that from still higher latitudes. North-
ern rye spreads out so closely on the ground that it does
not afford the best early winter pasturage, and seed from
higher latitudes produces a smaller plant that is more
subject to rust than Southern rye.

71. Soils and fertilizers. — Rye can be grown on almost

 
RYE AND BARLEY 71

any soil, provided it be fairly well drained. It has been
found to endure a greater amount of acidity in the soil than
oats, wheat, or barley plants. (R.I. Expr. Sta., Rpt. 1907,
p. 359.)

While rye will grow on poor soils, it is possible to make
large yields of forage only on rich or highly fertilized land.
With rye intended for soiling, a liberal use of stable manure
constitutes the best fertilization. If commercial fertilizers
alone must be used, it is usually advisable to apply acid
phosphate; in addition cotton-seed meal may be applied at
the time of planting and not in contact with the seed, or else
nitrate of soda may be employed as a top dressing before
the stems have formed. On very sandy soils there may
be need for a small amount of potash.

72. Preparation and sowing. — Rye may be sown
either (1) broadcast, or (2) in drills 6 or 8 inches apart by the
use of a grain drill, or (3) it may be sown by hand or planter
in drills 18 to 24 inches apart. For soiling purposes it is
preferable to sow in drills, but for grazing, broadcast sowing
is the most common. Rye may be sown through a longer
period than any of the other small grains. September 1 is
not too early for a sowing on rich land with the purpose of
furnishing soiling food in December, January, and February.
Sowings may be made at intervals throughout the fall and
even up to December 15, the later sowing making a smaller
yield. When sown broadcast, the amount of seed needed
for grain production is 4 to 5 pecks per acre, and for pas-
turage 6 to 8 pecks. In planting rye in 18-inch drills, one
bushel per acre is usually sufficient. For pasturage, rye
may be sown with crimson clover (Fig. 25) or with other
winter-growing legumes.
72 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

 

 

Fic. 25.—A Mixture or Rye anp CRIMSON CLOVER.

Showing the height to which rye grows.

73. Utilization. — On rich land rye sown early in the
fall may be cut three or even four times as a soiling crop,
the first cutting being made in December or January. In
order to secure several cuttings, the plant must be cut just
RYE AND BARLEY 73

before the heads appear. - The later the sowing and the
poorer the land the later the date at which rye can first be
used as a soiling crop. Under average conditions this is
from February 15, to March 15 in the central part of the
Gulf States. Southern rye is somewhat earlier in matur-
ing than most varieties of wheat or oats.

Rye for pasturage must be kept rather closely grazed in
the spring or else some of the plants will develop tall stems,
and in this condition these plants will not
be readily eaten by live-stock.

Rye for grain may be harvested with a
self-binder, or if too long for this, with a
self-rake reaper. There is usually about
twice the weight of straw as of grain. Good
yields in the South are from 10 to 18 bushels
per acre.

If rye straw is to be sold at the highest
price in the Northern cities, it should be
threshed on a special machine or rye beater.
This does not tangle the straw, which is
subsequently bound into bundles and baled
in a special press, for which doubtless an
ordinary cotton press could be substituted.

74, Enemies. — Rye, like wheat, is in-
jured by the Hessian fly, but has a smaller p46 94 —Ereot
number of insect enemies than most grains. =! A Heap or
Among its fungous diseases is ergot (Fig. ae
26), which causes the affected grains to enlarge and project
conspicuously from the head, such grain constituting a poi-
sonous food. Preventive measures consist in avoiding the
use of seed rye containing such diseased grains and in sowing

 
74 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

rye on a field where there has not before been ergot on rye,
nor on any of the related wild grasses. Fortunately, ergot
is not very common in the South.

Il. BARLEY — HORDEUM SATIVUM

Barley is an annual grain of comparatively slight im-
portance in the cotton-belt. In regions where it is grown
for seed production, the grain is utilized chiefly in the pro-
duction of beer, and great pains is taken to produce a
grain of the highest quality and free
from weather stain or other injury.
i,| The chief use of barley in the South
is for pasturage and as a soiling plant.
WY) It is sown in the same way as rye.

 

iW . Green barley is considered to be more
i| | | palatable than pastures of any of the
Wy), other small grains, but the amount of

    

| pasturage per acre is usually smaller
than that from rye.
75. Description. — Barley has the

Ss

GEE

———

LE
tale

 

  

i!
Ww shortest straw of any of the small
iY) grains. The heads are usually armed
NY) with strong, long, spreading beards,
i | that grow from the tips of the glumes
Cy | (Fig. 27). In spite of this objection,
Wy barley is used in California as a hay
Xu) plant, but its use necessitates the
SA frequent removal of the beards from

the gums of the horses consuming it.

Fic. 27.—A Heap anp Len pha ‘ :
Grains or Baanpep  _He Clasps at the junction of leaf-
Baruey. sheath and leaf-blade are larger on
RYE AND BARLEY 75

the barley plant than on any other of
the small grains (Fig. 28).

The hull of the barley grain grows tight
to the kernel, and the grain, instead of ;3
being roundish, as in oats, has a dis-
tinctly ribbed or angular appearance.

The weight of barley is 48 pounds per
bushel.

76. Composition. — The following
figures are quoted from H. R. Smith’s
“Profitable Stock Feeding’”’ to show the
relative composition of the seed or grain py.08 Tur Larce
of barley, rye, wheat, oats, and Indian  Craspsor Bartey
corn: — Lear.

 

 

 

CRUDE CaRBO-
Fs y
PROTEL | Fat FIsER HYDRATES

Barley; etain=s <g> a. as-e—:5 9-43) T2Ac 8") 228 69.8
Ryespraim ¢. 2 6 [5- 2. eae |) LOG er a? 72.5
Wheat.prain s 2. 4 «4 = «= +) 120° |-2.0-) 2:0 Ged
Oats; ram's. 2-4 eee a ee A820") O55 | 59.7
Com, dent: .- 2 < «6. «x 5) 10:3> 15.0") 232) | “704

 

 

These figures show that barley is a nutritious grain. In cooler
countries where its yield is greater than in the South it is prized
as a food for hogs, since it produces a firm and excellent quality
of pork.

77. Species and varieties. — Some authorities divide
barley into several species, depending on whether the
grains are arranged in 2, 4, or 6 rows, thus giving the name
of 2-rowed, 4-rowed, and 6-rowed barley. There is also
76 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

a form of naked barley in which the hulls do not adhere
to the kernels; unfortunately, the yield of this kind is
small.

Beardless barley has excited some interest. Its chief ad-
vantage is its earliness and the absence of beards (Fig. 29).
Its disadvantages are small yield of grain,
weak straw, small number of stems produced,
and extreme tenderness, or susceptibility to
winter-killing. Even in the central part of
the Gulf States this variety requires sowing
after Christmas. It is the earliest of any of
the small grains tested at the Alabama Ex-
periment Station, but is scarcely practicable
except on a small scale and on rich land.

78. Soils and fertilizers. — Barley requires
a richer soil than any of the other small
grains. It prefers a limestone soil, and on
acid lands the use of lime is usually advan-
tageous. The fertilizer should be either
stable manure or a mixture of commercial
fertilizers containing nitrogen,
phosphoric acid, and potash.

79. Sowing. —In the central
part of the cotton-belt, barley
may be sown at any date between
September 1 and December 1.
For sowing broadcast to afford
pasturage it is advisable to use
2% bushels of seed per acre. For
grain production, or for sowing in drills as a soiling crop,
1} to 2 bushels per acre is sufficient.

 

Fic. 29. — Heap ANnp SPrKe-
LET OF BEARDLESS BARLEY.
RYE AND BARLEY | 77

80. Enemies. — Since barley is the first of the small
grains to ripen, it is devoured by birds. It is subject to
two kinds of smut. For the prevention of the loose smut
of barley, evidenced by conspicuous black heads, without
grain, the Wisconsin Experiment Station recommends the
following treatment of the seed: ‘Soak for 12 hours in
cold water; then scald the seed at 130° F., for not over
6 minutes. Sow the seed the same day.”

LABORATORY EXERCISES

(1) Make a drawing of a spikelet of rye.

(2) Make a drawing of a spikelet of barley.

(3) Practice the separation of a mixture of grains of barley,
rye, wheat, and oats.

(4) Write out the two most conspicuous differences between
a head of rye and one of barley ; the one most conspicuous dif-
ference between a head of bearded wheat and of bearded barley.

LITERATURE
Rye.
Kiucore, B. W., and others. N.C. Dept. Agr., Bul. Vol. 30, No. 8.
Van Waceman,J., Jr. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. II, pp. 559-563.
SarGent, F. L. Corn Plants. Boston.

Barley.
Sarcent, F. L. Corn Plants. Boston.
Moore, R. A. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. II, pp. 202-206.
CHAPTER IV
CORN OR MAIZE (Zea Mays) —STRUCTURE

Corn belongs to the great family of grasses, which also
includes, besides the ordinary grasses, sorghum, sugar-cane,
and the small grains. It is a large annual plant, making its
growth in the warmer part of the year and is easily killed
by freezing temperatures.

The word ‘‘ corn”’ in Europe means any kind of grain. In
the United States, the word applies only to Indian corn or
maize. Most authorities think that this plant originated
in the southern part of Mexico. It has few near relatives
among either wild or cultivated plants. Its nearest cul-
tivated relative is teosinte, a tropical forage plant which
is of some value in the southern part of the United States.

Corn is the largest and most valuable single crop grown
in the United States, occupying more than twice the acre-
age devoted to wheat and three times that occupied by
cotton. Its most important use is as a food for live-stock,
for which both the grain and all parts of the vegetative
portion of the plant are employed.

Corn also constitutes an important article of human
food. In the South corn-bread is largely consumed, and
in all parts of the United States numerous other articles
for human consumption are made from the corn grain,
such as breakfast foods and cornstarch. The oil extracted

38
 

 
80 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

from the grain is used as a lubricant and for the manufac:
ture of a substitute for rubber. The pith from the stalk is
employed as a packing material in the construction of
warships. Corn and its by-products are also used in
many other ways.

STRUCTURE

81. Roots. — The root system of the corn plant con-
sists of a number of long, slender, branched, fibrous roots.
There is no tap-root. A whorl of roots develops near the
germinating grain, but the main system springs from the
crown of the plant, which usually develops about 1 inch
below the surface. Therefore, the depth of rooting of
corn is largely independent of the depth at which the
grain is planted.

As a rule, most of the main feeding roots originate
in the stratum comprised between 2 inches and 4 inches
below the surface of the ground (Figs. 80 and 31). These
usually grow out almost horizontally for some distance,
and then, if the soil permits, many of them bend down-
ward, while some of the smaller, secondary roots occupy
the surface layer of soil. Corn roots do not penetrate so
deeply in most Southern soils as in other parts of the
country. The depth at which roots feed seems to depend
chiefly on the supply of moisture and air in the soil.

The roots of corn are frequently as long as the plant is
tall. Indeed, the roots may lap across the rows before the
plant is 1 foot high, so that deep cultivation, even at this
early stage, may break many roots.

Besides the feeding roots just mentioned, the corn plant
usually develops, at the first few nodes or joints Just above
  
     
  

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82 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

the surface, a series of brace-roots (Fig. 32). These slope
downward and outward, and on reaching the soil they serve
the purpose of bracing the plant. On enter-
ing the soil, the brace- roots become smaller
and helpto supply the plant with food and water.

82. Stem.— The stem of the corn plant is
solid or filled with pith, and tapers to the top.
The usual height is 5 to 15 feet. A height
above 10 feet is probably an indication of wasted

   
   
    

Fic. 32.— BRACE-ROOTS ON THE CorN PLANT.

On the paper at the bottom of the picture are two detached brace-roots,
showing how they branch in the soil.

energy, the proportion of stem being larger than necessary
to the production of the maximum amount of grain.

Since the corn plant must stand much strain from wind, it
is so constructed as to resist or escape or withstand wind pressure.
For example, devices for this purpose are found in the tapering
stem, the presence of brace-roots, the strength of the outer layer
or rind, the solid partitions at the nodes, and the peculiar form of
the leaf.
CORN STRUCTURE 83

The stem consists of internodes of variable length, separated
by solid partitions at the nodes or joints. The internodes on
certain parts of the plant are grooved, which seems to be a pro-
vision for accommodating the shank, or ear branch. When shoots
or ears arise, they spring from a bud at the base of this groove.
This bud is completely enwrapped by the leaf-sheath, which
serves to protect it.

Under some conditions, partly dependent on variety, character
of season, and distance between plants, ‘“‘suckers’’ or basal
branches spring from the buds on-the main stem near the crown.
These suckers afterwards develop independent root systems.
Removal of such suckers is an important cultural operation in the
South, since they take up water and plant-food needed by the
parent plant. Their removal from Northern corn-fields is less im-
portant, for there several plants may be safely grown in each hill.

The tendency of individual corn plants to sucker is hereditary ;
thus Hartley found that when both the male and female parents
produced suckers, 14} per cent of the offspring developed
suckers; while only 2} per cent of the plants bore suckers in the
case of those stalks neither of whose parents had produced suckers.
Therefore, in selecting corn plants for seed, preference should ke
given in the South to those free from suckers.

83. Leaves. — The corn plant is supplied with a con-
siderable number of long, broad, tapering leaves. The
number is most frequently twelve to eighteen; and a leafy
plant is probably desirable. The main uses or functions of
leaves are (1) to take up from the air its carbon dioxid
for use in building up the tissues of the plant, and (2) to
throw off the surplus water into the air, thus helping to
lift other supplies of soil moisture to the leaves with the
contained plant-food. For these two purposes, the leaf -
is provided with immense numbers of minute openings or
pores (stomata). These stomata are especially numer-
ous on the under sides of leaves; each pore or stomate is
84 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

provided with an arrangement by which, in dry weather,
the size of the opening is reduced, thus decreasing the
amount of water thrown off by the leaf.

The’ corn leaf has also another means of economizing in the
transpiration of moisture. This is seen in the rolling together of
leaves in the middle of a hot dry day. This curling, or rolling,
of the leaves is due to the presence of special cells, which, on
parting with a portion of their moisture in dry weather, cause the
leaf to fold inward.

In the South, the corn plant is especially liable to lose pre-
maturely the use of its leaves through their drying, or ‘‘ firing.”
This may be due to dry weather, to inadequate preparation of the
soil, to lack of proper cultivation, to root pruning, or to other
causes.

The leaf consists of two principal parts: the sheath, or that
part which is clasped around a portion of the stem, and the blade,

 

Fic. 383.— Parr or a Corn Lear, sHowinc Wavy Marcins.

or free part of the leaf. The outer margin of the blade is wavy
or scalloped (Fig. 33). This permits the leaf to turn from the
wind like a windmill thrown out of gear, and thus to avoid
throwing too great a strain on the stem.

84. Ear-branch and shucks. — The shank on which the
ear is borne represents a branch. That this is a branch is
apparent (1) from its position in the angle between the
stem and the leaf-sheath; (2) by the fact that the shank
has nodes similar to those of the main stem; and (3) by
.CORN STRUCTURE 85

the fact that most of these nodes bear a shuck or husk,
which is only a modified leaf, as will readily be seen by
noting that many shucks are tipped with a small leaf-blade
(Fig. 34).

It is supposed that the shank which now bears the ear was once
a long branch, and that shortening of the branches occurred both

 

Fic. 34.—An Ear OF CORN ON WHICH LEAF-BLADES ARE BORNE ON
THE TIPS OF MANY OF THE SHUCKS.

by man’s selection and by natural selection. For example,
those plants with shortest branches would be the ones most likely
to propagate their kind in nature, because these branches would
less frequently break off before maturing the seed. For the
same reason, selection by man would also tend to preserve the
plants with shortest branches,
86 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

85. Number of ears. — The number of ears to a plant
varies greatly, according to the race of corn, the variety,
the soil and fertilization, and the character of the season.
In the ordinary or dent varieties, the number seldom ex-
ceeds seven and is more frequently one or two ears for each
plant.

Many experiments at the Alabama and North Carolina
Experiment Stations have indicated that in the South
those varieties of dent corn are most productive of grain
that ordinarily bear two ears to the plant.

86. Position of the ear. — Large yields of corn are made
from varieties bearing ears at a medium height from the
ground, while equally large yields are made from other
varieties, the ears of which are borne at a greater distance
above the ground. Other things being equal, a moderate
height of ear is preferable, say, four feet above the ground
in the case of a tall plant, or even less in the case of a low
plant (Fig. 35). The chief advantages of a low or medium
position of ear are the following: (1) a decreased tend-
ency for the ear to pull the plant down, and (2) greater
ease in harvesting the ear in the lower position. A low
ear is also apt to accompany a stalk of only medium size,
which is desirable. A low ear, also, usually implies earlier
maturity.

The shank of the ear should be of such size and length
as to let the ear droop, or bend straight down, so as to
protect the tip of the ear from rain and to avoid the tend-
ency exerted by an outward-pointing ear to pull down the
stalk. This means that the shank should be of medium
diameter. It should not be very long.

87. Tassel. — The tassel consists of a panicle, or spread-
 

 

 

Fic. 35.— DIFFERENCES IN HEIGHT AND PosITION OF EAR IN THE
SaMe VARIETY.

On right, ears low and hanging down; next, ears too high; next, ear-
shanks too long; on extreme left, the shank is too short and stocky,
causing the mature ears to point upward.

87
88 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

ing flower-cluster, usually borne at the extreme top of the
plant. This panicle carries the male or pollen-bearing
flowers, which are usually in groups of two flowers in a
spikelet. Each flower, on maturing, pushes forth three
anthers, or pollen cases, from which, on maturing, the fine
particles of pollen are set free, to be borne by the wind to
the silks of other corn plants. It has been estimated that
a single tassel may bear more than 40,000,000 pollen-
grains.

The tassel usually appears two to four days before the
first silks are visible on the same plant; this is a device to
prevent the pollination of the silk by the pollen from the
same plant.

Numerous experiments have shown that the removal
of the tassels on half of the plants in a field does not ma-
terially influence the yield.

88. Silks. — Each silk originates where a grain should
be borne on the cob, from which position it grows until its
outer part reaches the air, beyond the tip of the shuck.
This free part of the silk is supplied with very minute
hairs, the purpose of which is to entangle and hold the
grains of pollen. (See Fig. 36, A.) In case a silk fails to
receive pollen, it may continue to grow to unusual length.
In case no pollen lodges on any particular silk, no grain
is formed at the point on the cob where that silk is
attached.

89. Pollination. — Pollination is the transfer of pollen
to the sticky surface of the stigma, which in this case is
the silk. Along the entire length of the silk grows the
pollen-tube (Fig. 36), thrown out by the pollen-grain
after lodgment on the silk.
on
co

CORN STRUCTURE

EMERTO

      

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B

Fic. 36.— DIAGRAM SHOWING COURSE OF THE POLLEN-TUBE THROUGH
SILK TO OvaRyY.
A, section near outer end of silk, showing pollen-grain and pollen-tube ;
B, section through base of silk and through young grain. (Drawing by
C. S. Ridgway.)

 

The pollination of corn is effected almost entirely by
the wind, which may carry the pollen great distances.
90 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Hence, fields of two different varieties of corn, which
the farmer desires to keep unmixed, should not be planted
at shout the same date, within less than half a mile of
each other, unless there be intervening woods or other
obstacles to the blowing of the pollen.

90. Impregnation or fertilization of the grain. — The
word “‘ fertilization,’ as used in this paragraph, does not
refer to the supplying of food or
fertilizing material to the plant.
Fertilization of the flower consists
in the growing of the pollen-tube
along the entire length of the
silk and into the embryo-sac (Fig.
36), and its union there with the
egg-cell of the mother plant to
produce the seed (Fig. 37). With-
out such a union, no seed is
formed.

After the pollen-grain has lodged
Fic. 37.— Tur Empryo- ‘ ,

sac IN Corn at rum Othe sticky surface of the protrud-

Tims or Fertmization. ing end of the silk, it grows into that

pt. pollen-tube which silk and through its entire length to
eg ae the point where the silk originates.
which, after union with There the pollen-tube enters the
ae of the male elements, embryo-sac and sets free two male
orms the germ; end., nu-
cleus of the endosperm, nuclei. One of these unites with the
ae ee ee ee ege-cell, effecting true fertilization
(Drawing by F.E. Lloyd.) and producing the germ of the grain;

the other male nucleus unites with
the nucleus of the endosperm (Fig. 37). When this second
union occurs, the result is an endosperm that derives

end.

 
CORN STRUCTURE

91

its qualities from the pollen-bearing parent as well as from

the mother plant.

It is this second union of double fer-
tilization, which occurs in some plants,
that enables the pollen of a yellow variety
of dent corn to produce yellow kernels a
few weeks after fertilizing the silks of a
white variety. This is because the yellow
quality has been given by the male par-
ent to the endosperm, or main part of
the grain, which color shows as yellow
through the transparent hull or bran
that covers the grain.

91. The ear. — The ear varies greatly
in length, diameter, and number of rows
of grain. Among ordinary or dent varie-
ties, the usual number of rows ranges
between twelve and twenty-four, four-
teen to eighteen being most common in
productive varieties. A good ear of corn
should bear about a thousand grains.
The number of rows is always even, a
fact which has a satisfactory explanation
in the structure and evolution of the cob
and pistils. (See Hunt’s ‘‘ Cereals in
America,” p. 148.)

The best ear is one having a cob not
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YELLOW VARIETY.

allow a sufficient number of rows. Neither should the
cob be very large, since this tends to late maturity and

to the rotting of the ear in a wet fall.
92 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Many corn-breeders in the Northern States prefer that
the circumference of the ear at one third the distance from
the butt be three fourths the length of the ear. However,
the best proportions of an ear cannot be regarded as having
been determined for Southern varieties (Fig. 38).

Tue Corn GRAIN OR KERNEL

92. Shape. — The kernel of corn varies greatly in shape
and size with the different races of corn. There are even
great differences within the same variety and on the
different parts of the same ear. In the dent varieties,
practically all of the grains are flattened and somewhat
wedge-shaped, their smallest diameter being the one
parallel to the cob. Sturtevant found that in each of the
races of corn there are grains of three different subtypes :—

Subtype A, grain broader than deep ;
Subtype B, grain as broad as deep;
Subtype C, grain much deeper than broad.

The typical grain in the most popular dent varieties has
the last shape; that is, it is much deeper or longer than
broad.

93. The structure of the grain. — The grain is made up
of a number of parts having distinct functions and separate
origins. As a means of simplification, these are here
grouped into three parts: —

(1) the chit, germ, or embryo;
(2) the endosperm, or main bulk of the grain ;
(3) the seed coats or bran.

The embryo, or germ, is situated at the cob end of the
CORN STRUCTURE 93

grain, under the depression or groove, which faces the tip
of the ear. It comprises about one eighth of the weight of
the grain. It is especially rich in fat.

The endosperm (from endon, around, and sperma, a seed)
is that large portion of the seed lying around and between
the embryo and the several outer layers or coats of the ker-
nel. The endosperm constitutes about 73 per cent of the
weight of the entire grain and is that part of the grain
which gives to corn its value as astarchy food. The endo-
sperm consists chiefly of starch, but contains also some
protein, ash, and other materials.

This starch of the endosperm is arranged in two different
ways, giving two very different appearances to the different
parts of the same endosperm. When this starch is loosely
arranged, the color of that part is a pure snow-white, of an
opaque floury appearance. On the other hand, when it is
arranged in compact form, the appearance is that of a horny
or nearly translucent substance, which is called the horny,
or corneous layer.

The coats of the kernel, which are usually together re-
moved in the form of bran, are several in number, each
having separate function and origin.

94. Judging the composition of the kernel by its cross-
section. — The investigations of Hopkins and of Willard
have shown that by cutting transversely through a grain
of corn, one may judge of its probable richness in fat, in
starch, or in protein, by the thickness of the several layers
constituting the germ, the loose floury starch, and the
compact horny starch (Fig. 39). A large germ indicates
a high percentage of fat, which is important when the corn
is used for the manufacture of corn oil. A thick layer of the
94 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

loose floury material indicates a high percentage of starch.
Unusual thickness of the horny layer implies a relatively
high percentage of protein; this is because this compact
layer, though composed chiefly of starch, is also rich in
protein. In the selection of seed corn practical use can

be made of the facts just mentioned.
In spite of these differences in appearance, accompanied
by differences in com-

>, position, in the differ-

IV 2 SE ent grains of the same

Fic. 39.—TRansverse Section Turoucn Variety, analysis shows

Corn GRAIN ; LARGE Gers IN 2 Ker- little difference be-

ties, even when they

differ considerably in the appearance of cross-sections of
their grains.

There is probably no necessity for the Southern farmer
to select corn with special reference to increasing the yield
of protein or of fat. For it is easy for him to grow
legumes for feeding with corn to counteract its deficiency
in protein. The manufacture of corn oil is not important
in the South.

95. Location of the color in the corn kernel. — It is im-
portant to learn in what layer the color is located in the
different classes of corn, so that one may understand that
part of corn breeding which relates to the heredity of the
color of the grain.

The hull, or bran, of the grain of white and yellow
varieties of dent corn is colorless or translucent; hence
the color of white or yellow grains hes deeper, namely,
in the endosperm. The pollen from a yellow variety may
CORN OR MAIZE 95

promptly, or in the current cross, give a yellow color to the
endosperm of the cross-pollinated grains of a white variety
(see Par. 90). Since the huil- in this case is transparent,
the yellow endosperm shows through and the grain appears
yellow.

On the other hand, the red color sometimes appearing
in dent varieties is due, not to a colored endosperm, but to
red color in the hull. Hence the red in the hull obscures
whatever color there might be in the endosperm (for ex-
ample, yellow), and determines the color of thegrain. But
the pollen does not in the current cross affect the hull,
so that impregnation of white grains by pollen from red
varieties does not, like the use of yellow pollen, show a few
months after fertilization, but must wait to show the red
color of the male parent in the next generation.

The color that is responsible for the blue, purple, or lead-
colored appearance of certain kinds of sweet and _ soft
corns, which are different races from ordinary or dent corn,
is located in the outer part of the endosperm, or just be-
neath the hull. The color, being in the endosperm, is sub-
ject to double fertilization, and hence to the immediate
display of the color of the pollen-bearing parent. A lead-
colored corn planted near a white may immediately cause
colored grains to appear on white ears all over the field.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

Roots.

(1) Plant 10 grains of corn 1 inch deep and other similar lots at
depths of 1, 2, 4, and 5 inches below the surface, either in a box
of soil or in the garden or field : —

(a) Record the number of days after planting before each
plant appears.
96 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

(b) In about 4 weeks dig some plants resulting from each
depth of planting, making drawings showing the
position of the principal roots developed from each
depth of planting.

(2) Carefully dig well-grown or even mature corn plants,
washing the earth from around the roots.

(a) At what distance below the surface do most of the
roots originate ?

(b) Count and record the number of main roots.

(c) From how many of the joints or nodes do the true

roots and brace-roots spring ?
(3) Make two sketches, one showing

(a) location of main roots where corn was planted in a
furrow and earth subsequently thrown to it, and

(b) location of main roots on a plant which has not been
planted in a trench nor had earth thrown to it.

Brace-roots.
(4) On well-grown corn plants or on old corn stalks, examine
the brace-roots, noting
(a) their number ;
(b) number of nodes from which they spring ;
(c) diameter just above the ground, and
(d) diameter 1 or 2 inches below the surface.

Stems.

(5) Examine the bent portion of a number of well-grown corn
plants or old corn stalks which have been blown down, and sub-
sequently straightened, to discover how the plant effected this
bending by growing more rapidly on one side than on the other.
Make a sketch of one such uneven node. -

(6) Strip the leaves and leaf-sheaths from a corn stalk and
record the length of

(a) the lowest internode ;
(b) the internode just below the shank of the lower ear,

(c) the length of the internode next to the tassel.
CORN STRUCTURE 97

(7) Record the total number of internodes and their average
length on

(a) a tall plant and on
(b) alow plant in the same field.

Leaves.

(8) (a) Record the number of leaves on an average corn plant.

(b) In how many vertical ranks are these arranged ?

(9) (a) Measure the midrib of an average full-grown leaf
and the margin of the same, to determine how
much longer the margin is.

(b) By moving the leaves about, try to ascertain how the
margin helps the leaves to avoid the pressure of the
wind.

(c) Measure the approximate surface in square inches on
the two surfaces of a grown corn leaf of average size.

(d) From (Sa) and (9c) caleulate the probable number of
square feet of leaf surface on 4000 corn plants borne
on an acre.

Ear-shanks.

(10) (a) Record the number of nodes between main stem
and cob on a long ear-shank.

(b) Record the average length of five short ear-shanks
bearing mature ears, and note whether most of the
ears point up or down.

Grains.
(11) (a) Soak grains of corn and separate the coats, the germ,
and the endosperm.

(b) Cut cross-wise through a number of kernels of dry
corn and compare them as to thickness of the
horny layer and as to size of germ.

LITERATURE

SarGent, F. L. Corn Plants. Boston.
HarsupBercer, J. W. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. II, pp. 398-402.
Hont, T. F. Cereals in America. New York. 1904.
Hopkins, C.G. Ill. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 87.
H
CHAPTER V

CORN —COMPOSITION AND JUDGING

Tus composition of dent and of flint corn, and of yellow
and white varieties of dent, is practically the same. The
corn grain contains a large proportion of carbohydrates,
or starchy material, which constitutes its chief value as
food. The percentage of protein is so low that for
some classes of live-stock corn should be fed in connection
with some food rich in protein. This is specially true for
growing pigs, for working teams, and for poultry. Useful
foods for feeding with corn are the following : —

To growing pigs: skim milk, soybeans, cowpeas, dried
blood, tankage, and pasturage consisting largely of the
clovers and related plants.

To horses: hay of the clovers, alfalfa, cowpea, vetches.

To poultry: beef scrap, cowpeas, and fresh bone.

96. Composition of corn and its products. — The follow-
ing figures represent the average of American analyses : —

 

 

 

 

 

 

r CRUDE NITROGEN —
Water | Ast | PROTEIN Pine alte REN on Fat
Grain, dent varie- | | |
ties) oe ee | OG 15: |, OS 2.2 70.4 5.0
Grain, flint varie-
ties. 2. 10.3} 1.4 |) 10.5 1S? 70.1 5.0
Corn blades 30.0 | 5.5 6.0 21.4 35.7 1.4
Corn stover 40.1 | 3.4 3.8 19.7 31.9 1.1
Corn fodder 42.2 | 2.7 4.5 14.3 34.7 1.6
Corn silage | 79.1] 1.4 1.7 6.0 11.1 0.8
Corn bran. . .| 91/13] 90 | 12:7 62.2 | 5.8
Husks (Shucks) . | 17.2/3.2] 43 | 29.5 44.9 1.0

98
CORN COMPOSITION 99

97. Parts of the corn plant. — Corn stover is the residue
of stalk, leaf, and shuck after the removal of the ear. Corn
fodder is the entire plant when grown thickly and cured for
forage. Corn blades, very generally known in the South
simply as “‘ fodder,” are the leaves stripped from the plant
just before the ears mature. The blades make a very
palatable and nutritious food, but the yield is small, the
labor of harvesting considerable, and the stripping of the
blades reduces the yield of grain.

Corn stover, when shredded, has somewhat the same
value as cotton-seed hulls, the composition of the stover
being superior but the hulls mixing better with concentrated
foods and being eaten with much less waste. Stover
should be fed in connection with cotton-seed meal or other
food rich in protein.

Corn silage consists of the entire plant cut, while still
green but after the roasting-ear stage, into short lengths
and stored in an air-tight compartment, calledasilo. Here
it keeps with but slight loss and in green, succulent condi-
tion until winter. This is the best way to utilize the corn
crop for dairy cattle, and often for fattening cattle.

Silage is the material that is stored; silo is the receptacle in
which it is stored ; ensilage is the verb, as “to ensilage corn,”
with the accent on the middle syllable. The terms are variously
used and confused in current speech and writing, however.

98. Proportion of parts in the corn plant. — The Georgia
Experiment Station (Bul. No. 30) found that in every
100 pounds of the above-ground part of the corn plant,
after being thoroughly air-dried,
the grain constituted . 38.8 per cent, the shucks. 11.1 per cent,

the stalks . . . .29.3 percent, the tassels. 1.3 per cent,
the blades . . . . 9.8 percent, and the cobs 9.7 per cent.
100 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

99. Corn products. — From the corn plant are made
great numbers of products. Among those made from the
grain are corn meal, grits, hominy, and corn flakes, — all
for human food; also whisky, corn oil, glucose, starch, and
many others; and for stock food, gluten meal, corn hearts,
corn bran, and others.

The pith of the stalk is used as a packing material in
the construction of warships. From the stalk cellulose is
manufactured. All parts of the plant are used as food for
live-stock.

100. Draft on soil fertility. — A crop of 40 bushels of
corn and 2500 pounds of stover removes approximately
the following amounts of plant-food : —

 

 

Nirrocen | PHospHoric AcID PorasH

 

40 bu. grain Sy os oe || ot) 15.9 12.8
3000 lb. stover . . . . . | 18.3 11.4 32.7
Total in grain and stover 55.3 27.3 45.5

 

From the above table it may be seen that every bushel of
grain removes about one pound of nitrogen, two fifths
of a pound of phosphoric acid, and about one third of a
pound of potash.

These figures impress the need of the corn plant for nitro-
gen, which is most economically supplied in a preceding soil-
improving or leguminous crop (as cowpeas), or in manure.

It should be noticed that the stover removes about three
times as much potash as does the grain; and also practi-
cally half as much nitrogen. Hence the removal of the
stover greatly increases the need for nitrogen and potash
in the fertilizer for succeeding crops.
CORN JUDGING 101

JUDGING CoRN

101. Score-card. — The object in judging ears of corn is
to select the best seed corn. Various score-cards have
been devised as helps in selecting the best ears by applying
a scale of points to the different features.

The score-cards in use in different states vary somewhat.
Their purpose is to direct attention in turn to each of the points
of merit or demerit of each ear. A perfect ear, if such an ear
existed, would score 100 points. Deductions, or cuts, are made
according to the amount of deficiency in any quality.

In the following table are printed for reference score-cards
used in several Southern and Western States :—

 

 

 

 

 

alé/z/s/e|8/2/é
1. Uniformity of exhibit. . . . . 10) 15} 5) 5] 5] 10
2. Maturity and market condition . 10} 5} 10) 10; 10 5
3. Purity as shown by color of kernel 5) 10} 5} 5} 10) 10] 10) 10
4. Purity as shown by color of cob . 4 | S| 5} 5 |
5. Shape of ear 5 10} 5) 10} 10! 10) 10) 5] 10
6. Proportion, length to eeepuraterenne | 10 os) |
7. Butts 3} 5] 5] 5) 5] 5] a] 5
8. Tips . : 3} 10) 5) 5) 5) 5) 10) 5
9. Space between rows. 5! 10} 5) 5) 5) 5} 10
10. Per cent grain to ear 10 20 10 10 15 10 20 10
11. Trueness to type . | 10 | | 10] 5/10) | 10
12. Space between kernels at bobs 5 | 5] 5) 5 | 10
13. Grain — (a) shape 2 | 10} 5} 5] 10} 5] 5] 5] 5
(6) uniformity . . . .| 5 5) 5) 5) 56} 5) 5], 5
(Jigen s hey eal A 1) 0 5| 10| | 20
14. Length of ear ] ae epee ee hid | 10) 5 10,10 10 5
Weight of ear . . | 20 | |
15. Ginginitarene | ee ee ee ee ae | 5 | 5] 5} 5! 5

100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100

 

 
102 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

LABORATORY EXERCISES

Practice in scoring ears of corn.

Each ear, or each exhibit of 10 ears, should be scored by the
score-card above used in the state nearest the reader’s home, or by

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

res
aa

5

 

es

 

eT TT
b

 

 

4
rere

sbi

ie

per ceecae

a f
Wr Ls

ands

 

 

4
hE hs
tr

a Peers

 

 

 

ba

es

 

 

Ty.

 

 

 

Tic. 40. Fria. 41. Fie. 42,

any other score-card that, may be preferred. Let each student,
after noting the excellencies and defects of all ears shown in this
CORN JUDGING 103

chapter, score a number of ears of corn, entering the figures rep-
resenting his estimate of each quality in the proper space in a table
ruled or printed like the table on page 101. Figs. 40-45 show
defective ears of Henry Grady corn to be criticized by the pupil.

 

 

 

Fic. 44.

The following paragraphs indicate some of the most important
considerations in scoring each character : —

(1) Unirormity. — The ear examined should be like other ears
of the same variety, and all ears of one exhibit should be uniform
in size and appearance. Criticize Figs. 40-45 as to uniformity.

 
104 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

(2) VITALITY AND MARKET CONDITION. —Good germinating
power and market condition is shown by the soundness of the
grain and freedom of the tip of the grains from dark spots, adhering
particles of husk, shriveled appearance, or undue slenderness
at the tip near the cob. Germination tests may be made.

 

 

 

 

 

   
  

 

bs
$90

Fic. 46.— A Goon Ear, Fic. 47.— Too Fic. 48.— Derective

BUT NOT FREE FROM SuHorv. In SHare, Trp, anp
Suicut Derects. Borr.

(3) All grains on an ear should be of the same color.
(4) Coror or cop. — A white cob is preferred for white va-
rieties. Most score-cards prescribe that a yellow variety shall

'
CORN JUDGING 105

have a red cob, which, however, is merely a fancy point. How-
ever, the color of cob should be uniform for every ear in an
exhibit.

(5) SHAPE or EAR. —It is generally assumed that a nearly

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fic. 49.— Too Fic. 50.—Ear witH Fic. 51.—Ear with
SMALL. ENLARGED BUTT AND Bare Tip aND WIDE
Wie Furrows BE- Furrows.
TWEEN Rows.
106 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

cylindrical shape is best; but at the Ohio Experiment Station
tapering ears were quite as productive as cylindrical ears. The

 

Fic. 52.— An Ear roo
Lone AND SLENDER,
WITH AN INSUFFI-
cieENT NUMBER OF
Rows.

 

I'ra. 53. — A roo
SLENDER Ear,
WITH SuHort
Grains, Bare
Trp, AND WIDE
Furrows.

 

itd tee
ct

Tri
Wri ers

Rr ireyy

ae i
POUT eC EET a Eee

oe

MITT er Tr ye
AasOle

BE tendo

 

|

Fic. 54.—An Ear or
ONLY MeEpruM QUAL-
ITy, BUT WELL-cov-
ERED TIP.

ear should be straight and even, without undue swelling at the
butt, and the rows should be straight.
CORN JUDGING 10%

(6) The preferred length at present is about 14 times the cir-
cumference, taken one third the distance from the butt. Yet

    
 
 
  
    
          
          
 

    

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Fic. 55.—Ear wita Fic. 56.—AN Ear Fic.57.— An Ear WITH

CurveED Rows, Barge WITH FLINTY very Harp SwHortT

Tip, AND OTHER Grains OF Ex- GRAINS AND A DEFI-

Fat.Lts. PERIMENT STATION cient NUMBER OF
YELLOW Corn. Rows.

this varies with different varieties. Compare Fig. 46 with Figs.
47, 52, and 53.
108 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

(7) Burrs or Ears. — The grains on the butts should project
slightly and evenly beyond the cob, forming an even, well-rounded
butt, with grains not very variable in shape and size. The place

 

Fic. 58.— Ear witn Lona, WELL- Fic. 59. — Ear witu SHort
FORMED GRAINS. GRAINS.

of attachment of the ear shank should be of moderate diameter.
Compare Fig. 46 with Fig. 50.

(8) Tips or nars. — The grains should as nearly as possible
hide the cob at the tip of the ear and should there be of fair size.

 

Fic. 60.— An Ear HAvING Too Fic. 61.— AN EAR IN WHICH THERE
MUCH SPACE BETWEEN GRAINS Is NO LOST SPACE BETWEEN GRAINS
NEAR THE Cos. NEAR THE Cos.

Some authorities: regard a well-covered tip as rather a fancy
point, while others consider it as closely related to a high yield.
Compare Fig. 54 with Figs. 51, 52, 53, and 55.

(9) SPACE BETWEEN Rows. — The spaces, furrows, or suleiare the
depressions between adjacent rows of grain near the crown of the
kernel. The deeper and wider are these spaces, the more defective
CORN JUDGING 109

is the ear in this respect (Figs. 51, 52, 53, and 54), since deep
furrows imply rounded grains with a low percentage of grain

to cob.

(10) PROPORTION OF CORN ON EAR. — Medium to small cobs and
long grains indicate a high percentage of corn and are desirable.

Compare Figs. 58 and 59.
where the shelled grain constitutes less than
86 per cent of the husked ear.

(11) TRUENESs To TyPE.— Every ear should
possess the qualities common to that variety.

(12) SpAcE BETWEEN KERNELS NEAR COB.
— This is judged by removing several rows of
grains and viewing the remaining rows from a
position showing the edges of the kernels (Figs.
60 and 61). Much space between the grains
near the cob indicates grains of poor shape and
an ear of low percentage of grain, and some-
times this also indicates immaturity.

(13) Kerne ts (Figs. 62,63). — The best shape
is a cut-off wedge, the edges of the grain touch-
ing the adjacent row throughout nearly its
whole length. The shaulders near the tip
should be broad and plump. The kernels
should be long and free from an excessive
amount of beak or shriveled portion at the
crown. Excepting those at the extreme butt
and tip, the grains should be of uniform size
and shape and of nearly uniform denting. The
color of all grains on one ear should be identi-
eal. Yellow varieties should have grains free
from white caps and grains on white varieties
should be free from a yellowish or amber
tint.

A cut or deduction may be made

 

Fic. 62.—SuHow-
ING VARIATIONS
AMONG CORN
GRAINS.

Those in the
upper group are
well-shaped ; in the
middle group, ill-
shaped; the lower
group shows one
very large and one
very small germ.

(14) and (15) LENGTH AND CIRCUMFERENCE OR WEIGHT OF EAR.
—This refers to the weight of grain and cob after thorough air

drying.
the length and circumference of each ear.

In most score-cards this is covered by measurements of
The standard or ideal
110 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

should be a larger ear in the case of one-eared than in the case
of two-eared varieties.

 

Fie. 63.— Various SHAPES OF CorN KERNELS.

Upper kernels have good and all others poor shapes.

Composition of grains.

(1) From a crib of corn select

(a) 2 ears having a high pereentage of protein, as shown by
thickness of horny layer (see Par. 94) in grains near the center
of the ear ;

(b) 2 having a low percentage of protein, and

(c) 2 having a high percentage of fat.

(2) Make drawings of a cross-section of 3 grains representing
the ears selected under (a), (b), and (c).
CORN JUDGING 11)

LITERATURE ON JUDGING OF CORN

Iowa Expr. Sta. Bul. No. 77.

Indiana Expr. Sta. Bul. No. 110.

Missouri Expr. Sta. Cire. No. 19.

Publications of a number of other experiment stations and agricul-
tural colleges.

SHoesmitH, V. M. The Study of Corn. New York, 1910.

Lyon and Montgomery. Examining and Grading Grains.
Lincoln, Neb.
CHAPTER VI
CORN— RACES AND VARIETIES

Maize has varied into almost numberless forms, ranging
from the tall corn of the Southern States to the dwarf of
high latitudes, and has given rise to many shapes and sizes
and colors of kernel and ear. Some corn is very early,
some late; some kinds have flinty kernels and others
have very soft grains.

102. Races of corn. — Corn is divided into at least six
great divisions, or races, which cross freely with each

“s other. These races are
EP ESD (1) dent, (2) flint,

Fic. 64.—Secrions across Gratns or (38) sweet, (4) pop,
Corn, SHOWING ARRANGEMENT OF (5) soft, and (6) pod
Horny (SHapEpD) AND FLoury (DoTTED) — |
Taecne Bkoe corn. These races are
From left to right, dent, flint, pop, swect, distinguished by differ-

and soft corn. ences in the structure

of the grains (Figs. 64 and 65), as well as by other dis-
tinctive characters.

   

Dent corn comprises all the varieties commonly grown in
the fields in the Southern States. Indeed, the bulk of the
American corn crop belongs to this race.

(1) Indent corn a cross-section of the grain shows that the
floury or soft part, consisting chiefly of loosely arranged
starch grains, comes quite to the top of the grain. The
shrinkage of this soft loose starch during ripening causes the

112
CORN VARIETIES 113

depression, or dent, which gives the name to the dent race.
The grains of dent corn are usually much flattened and
wedge-shaped, and longer or deeper than broad. The
plant may be small, medium, or very large, Southern
varieties being almost invariably large.

(2) In flint corn the layer of soft loose starch does not
come to the top of the kernel but is surrounded, over the

 

Fic. 65.—SHowING, FroM Lert To RIGHT, SECTIONS THROUGH GRAINS
oF Dent, Fuint, Pop, SWEET, AND Sorr Corn.

The shaded area represents the horny layer; the dotted portion shows
the floury starch.

top as well as on the sides, by a horny layer, which is also
made up chiefly of starch, compacted into a dense, almost
translucent mass. The difference between the horny and
the loose starch has been likened to that between ice
and snow. The complete arch of horny starch over the
top of the grain insures the ripening of the kernel without
uneven shrinking or denting. The grains of flint corn are
usually less flattened, shorter, and more rounded and
smooth over the top and broader than dent corn. The
stalks are usually small and the ears are borne near the
ground. The flint corns mature quickly and are best
adapted to regions near the northern limits of corn pro-
duction. In the South they are little grown and com-
paratively unproductive.
I
114 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

(3) Sweet corn may be known by its wrinkled, horny
grain, due to the presence of sugar in the endosperm,
and by the absence of floury white starch. The plant
is very small and bears many small ears, which mature early.
Sweet corn is generally grown in Southern gardens, but is
less productive here than in higher latitudes.

(4) Pop corn may be recognized by the entire absence of
floury starch, the whole endosperm being compact and
horny. This compactness explains why the grain swells
or pops so completely. The plant is extremely small, the
ears numerous and of diminutive size, maturing early.

(5) Soft corn bears a grain in which all of the endosperm
is soft and white. This is the original kind cultivated by
the Indians. It suited their needs by reason of the ease
with which it could be ground. It is not now cultivated to
any extent in the United States. The ears are small and
the grains usually small and rounded, without dents.

(6) Pod corn is rather a curiosity than a race of any
value. Each single grain is inclosed in a small shuck,
while the whole ear or collection of grains is wrapped in an
outer shuck. This is probably nearer to the original form
of the plant than are any of the other races.

103. Characters needed in Southern varieties. — Varie-
ties of field corn in the South must be chosen within the
dent race. The primary consideration is a large yield of
grain per acre. Among the other desirable qualities of a
variety for the South are the following : —

(1) Medium or late maturity, in order that there may
be a maximum yield and to escape the great injury done
by grain weevils to the early varieties.

(2) At least a medium degree of hardness of kernel to
CORN VARIETIES 115

 

lid
Fic. 66. — SHow1nc aN Ear WITH Fic. 67. —SHow1ne an Ear TIP
TIP WELL COVERED BY SHUCKS. NOT WELL COVERED BY SHUCKS.

A condition unfavorable to A condition favorable to injury
injury by weevils. by weevil.
116 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

avoid the excessive injury inflicted by weevils on varieties
with very soft grains.

(3) Tight and complete covering of shuck around the
tip of the ear, to retard the entrance of weevils and to
prevent injury from wet weather (Figs. 66 and 67).

(4) Ears falling or bending down, so as to escape severe
injury from wet weather.

(5) Ears at medium height from the ground, so that the
stalk may not be so easily blown or pulled down as if the
ears were high.

(6) Small or medium-sized cobs, to decrease the danger
from rotting in the field or in the crib.

(7) Ear-shank of only moderate length and size.

(8) Uniformity in character of plant and ear, this being
usually an indication of purity and of careful breeding.

104. Qualities accompanying high yield. — The follow-
ing characteristics usually accompany large yields of grain
in varieties adapted to the South : —

(1) A tendency to produce two ears per stalk ;

(2) A small or medium-sized cob, long grains of a wedge
shape, and a rather high percentage of grain;

(3) Medium or late maturity.

105. General considerations regarding varieties. —
The color of the grain is not of importance in the case
of a variety intended for stock-food. However, for the
making of corn meal, the Southern markets prefer white
corn. Among white corns, there is a slight preference
among millers for the varieties having white cobs. The
reason for this is the experience of some millers that in
the case of varieties with red cobs, the reddish scales from
the tip of the grain are not all removed by cleaning machin-
CORN VARIETIES 117

ery, and that those remaining make discolorations in the
meal, which are undesirable.

The color of the grain does not affect the composition,
in spite of the preference of some feeders for yellow corn as
stock-food. Color probably has no relation to yield;
yet a summary made by the Mississippi Experiment Sta-
tion, relative to 490 varieties tested at 7 experiment sta-
tions, showed that white varieties averaged 2.5 bushels
more per acre than the yellow varieties.

Regarding the best degree of hardness or softness of the
grain, there is a wide difference of opinion. Soft grains are
more readily eaten by horses, but are subject to greater
injury from weevils. Hard grains, while more resistant to
weevils, are not weevil-proof. There is a tendency for
hard grains to be of a shorter, more rounded form than
soft grains. Soft grains of the long shoe-peg type have
an undesirable amount of roughness on the top of the
grain.

106. Shapes of grains. — Sturtevant (U. 8. Dept. Agr.,
Office Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 57) has divided varieties of
dent corn into three classes, according to the width of
the grain compared with its length. In his first class, A,
having grains broader than long, there is not mentioned
a single variety that has been productive in the South.

In his second class, B, having grains as broad as long, the
only two varieties that have generally proved in the
South even near the first rank in productiveness are Cocke
Prolific and Blount Prolific.

His third class, C, having grains longer than broad, in-
cludes three times as many varieties as are listed in classes
A and B combined. In this long-grained group, we find
118 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

the names of a number of varieties that have ranked
high in tests at Southern Experiment Stations.

Yet it must be added that in tests made in the South
since 1899, the year of the publication of Dr. Sturtevant’s
descriptions, the most productive kinds have included a
number of varieties not mentioned in his list. Many of
these new, so-called varieties probably represent merely
new names for old kinds; others are the result of such an
amount of selection and improvement as to deserve their
new and separate names. Unfortunately, in the renaming
of varieties of either cotton or corn, there has too often
been a failure to regard the rights of the originators and of
the public, and an unjustifiable duplication of names for
the same variety. 5

More than 1000 names of varieties have been listed.
Many of these are merely names for the same variety; yet
there are enough possible combinations of qualities to
justify the naming of several hundred varieties, each differ-
ing from every other in at least one easily recognizable
character.

107. Yields of varieties. — An examination of the
yields of corn made in variety tests at the Southern Experi-
ment Stations shows that there is no one best variety of
corn for all conditions of soil and climate, even within the
limits of the cotton-belt. However, it appears that in
the greater number of experiments, but by no means in all,
the most productive varieties belong to the class of prolific
corn; that is, having a tendency to produce from 160 to
more than 200 ears for each 100 plants.

For example, in four years’ tests at the Alabama Experiment
Station, the prolific varieties averaged 33.8 bushels per acre:
CORN VARIETIES 119

the varieties of medium prolificacy averaged 27.7 bushels; and
the non-prolific varieties averaged only 27 bushels per acre.
It we should exclude from the two latter classes all the early
Northern varieties, which have proved decidedly unproductive
in this climate, the yields of the three classes would come closer
together, but the average would still favor the prolific kinds.

In North Carolina, a prolific variety, Cocke, at all distances
yielded more grain than one of the best of the one-eared, large-
eared kinds, Holt Strawberry. This superiority ranged from
9.6 to 14 bushels when the single plants stood 30 inches apart
or nearer, and between 3 and 9.9 bushels’ when the distance
between plants was 35 or 40 inches.

In the following catalogue are brought together the names of
the varieties which have most frequently stood at or near the head
of the list in yield of grain at the various Southern Experiment
Stations : 1 —

STATE OR STATION VARIETY
Alabama (Auburn) Sanders
Mosby
Marlboro

Henry Grady

Experiment Station Yel-
low

Cocke Prolific

MecMackin

Bradbury

Arkansas (main and branch stations) Johnson County White
White Wonder
Boone County White
Southern Beauty
Marlboro
Williams Prolific

1 Data obtained chiefly from correspondence, and partly from publica~
tions of the Experiment Stations.
120 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

STATE OR STATION

Georgia

Louisiana

Mississippi (Agricultural College Sta-

tion)

Mississippi (Delta Branch Station)

Mississippi (Coast Region, McNeill

Branch Station)

North Carolina (Piedmont Section)

VARIETY
Marlboro
Sanders
Cocke Prolific
Boone County White
Mosby
MeMackin
Bradbury
Stone

Mosby

Hasting Prolific
Shaw

Calhoun Red Cob
Laguna

Georgia Gourd Seed
Heard

Mosby
Cocke
Marlboro

Mosby
Cocke
Sanders

Cocke

Eureka

Early Breadfield
Holt Strawberry
Blount

Mosby

Biggs Seven-ear
Sanders

Weekly

Cocke
Marlboro
CORN VARIETIES 121

STATE OR STATION VARIETY
North Carolina (eastern North Caro-
lina) Cocke Prolific
Biggs Seven-ear
Weekly
Sanders
Hickory King
North Carolina (above 2800 feet) Flint varieties

Oklahoma (eastern and central parts) Mammoth White
Boone County White
Hildreth Yellow Dent
Golden Eagle

Oklahoma (western part, with defi-
cient rainfall) Dwarf Mexican June

Hickory King

South Carolina (Piedmont Section) McGregor
Hayes
Marlboro

Tennessee

Knoxville (poor upland) Hickory King

Leaming
Iowa Silver Mine
Reid Yellow Dent

Knoxville (fertile land) Webb Improved Watson
Hickory King
Huffman
Boone County White
Albemarle
Cocke
Knoxville (rich bottoms) Huffman
Webb Improved Watson
Cocke
Albemarle
Hickory King
Boone County White
122 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

STATE OR STATION VARIETY
Texas (College Station) McGaillard Yellow Dent
White Superior
Munson
Virginia (Mountain Section) Boone County White
Leaming

Collier Excelsior
Virginia (Tidewater Region, bottom
land) Cocke
Virginia (poor uplands) Hickory King

108. Southern varieties by classes (Figs. 68 and 69). —
Among the productive varieties mentioned in the preced-
ing list and belonging to the prolific type are the follow-

ing : —

Mosby Sanders Blount
Albemarle Cocke Marlboro
Weekly

All the above varieties usually bear between 160 and 200
ears for each hundred plants. The cobs are small, the ears
small, and the grains usually rather long and slender,
but somewhat shorter in Albemarle and Blount.

Among the large-eared varieties with red cobs are

Henry Grady Tennessee Red Cob
Arnold St. Charles White

Among the large-eared or medium-eared varieties with white
grains and white cobs are the following : —

Shaw MeMackin Boone County White
Renfro Bradbury

Among the large or medium-eared varieties with yellow grains
are the following :—

Experiment Station Yellow, having a short, flinty grain, and
usually a white cob; and Evans.
CORN VARIETIES 123

>
.

j, Cock

c, Sanders; d, McMakin; e, Local White ; /, Henry

Yellow ;
g, Mosby ; 7, Marlboro

ation

Fic. 68.— Varieties or Corn.
>

Grady

a, Riley’s Favorite ; b, h, Experiment St:

 
1

+

 

 
  
  

 

SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

  
   

erent
LTT

ie

Tic. 69.— Varieties oF Corn.

 

RA

Poe) ~

 

         
 

WA Wes

eee ee N
gonaseesoans UudubGS wANEDOLY
SOM eey Tt

k, l, m, n, Boone County White ; 0, Leaming; p, Experiment Station Yellow ; g, Reid Yellow Dent; r, No. 77

g

s, Iowa Silver Mine; t, Hickory
CORN VARIETIES 125

Among the early-maturing varieties, but not extremely early
and better suited to the South than most early varieties, are
the following : —

Hickory King St. Charles
Blount Prolific Cocke (some strains)

Mexican June corn is in a class by itself. It is chiefly
valuable because of its strong root and leaf systems and its
notable endurance of the heat and drought of late summer.
The stalk grows to immense size, usually 11 to 15 feet.
The stem is of large diameter and rich in sugar. The
strain of Mexican June most commonly grown east of
Texas has a small, white ear with soft grains, loosely ar-
ranged on the cob. It is not very productive of grain, but
when the ears are in the hard dough stage, the entire plant
makes a good green food for hogs or horses. This variety is
recommended only for late planting; that is, in May or
June, usually on land where small grain has been harvested.

There are other forms of Mexican June corn, among
them a dwarf variety.

LABORATORY EXERCISES
Races.
Make drawings from nature of the cross-sections of the grains
of as many races as can be found, especially of dent, flint, pop, and
sweet corn.

Main characteristics of varieties.

Study and write descriptions of as many as practicable of the
most important Southern varieties, recording especially, —

(a) habit of bearing one, or two, or more ears;
(b) form of ear ;

(c) shape and size of grain;

(d) size and color of cob.
126 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

LITERATURE

Duaear, J. F. Ala. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 111 and 134.
Wiuuiams, C. B. N.C. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 204.
Kiueorg, J. B., and others. N.C. Board Agr., Bul. Vol. 29, No.

2, and later.
Sturtevant, E. L. U.S. Dept. Agr., Office Expr. Sta., Bul. No.

59.
CHAPTER VII
CORN — BREEDING OR IMPROVEMENT

Corn breeding is concerned with determining (1) what
qualities of grain, ear, or plant are hereditary; (2) the
best method of finding hereditary qualities; and (3) the
means of improv-
ing or modifying
hereditary qualities.

In other words,
the plant-breeder’s
task is to maintain
desirable qualities
now in existence,
and to add to them
or so to combine
them as to make
subsequent crops

more productive,
or otherwise bet- Fic. 70.—SuHowine THE IMMEDIATE EFrrects
F : (IN THE CURRENT CROSS) OF CROSSING A
ter suited to the Wuite Por Corn (on Lert) witH Potten
farmer’s needs FROM a YELLOW Dent Corn (oN RIGHT).
The resulting hybrid ear with both white and
109. Im prove- yellow grains is shown in the center.

 

ment of varieties.

—Corn is so easily cross-pollinated and mixed with

inferior kinds (Fig. 70), that few of the so-called varieties

are strictly pure or uniform. Indeed, until within the
127
128 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

past few years but few attempts have been made in the
South to improve varieties by breeding or even to keep
pure the best existing varieties. Almost any local kind,
now found to be productive and otherwise valuable in its
special locality, is worthy of being improved by careful
and scientific methods of breeding.

The first effort of the breeder should be directed towards
increased yield, to secure which he should select chiefly
those plants which carry the greatest weight of grain.
Next he should aim at uniformity, and at the other quali-
ties usually considered desirable. Rather than to attempt
to create an entirely new variety by crossing two existing
kinds, he should start with one existing variety that is
nearest to his ideal, or that best suits his local needs.

110. Selection and crossing. — The plant-breeder im-
proves plants by two means: (1) by selection and (2) by
crossing. Selection is generally more important for the
breeder, and this is the only means of improvement that the
average farmer can advantageously practice. Crossing oc-
casionally serves a useful purpose in the hands of a skilled
breeder; but it usually destroys uniformity and must
always be followed by years of selection before its results
become of practical value.

Selection of seed corn should be practiced by every
farmer, and it gives results even in the first crop.

111. Qualities needing improvement.— Among _ the
qualities for which selection should be made in developing
varieties of corn for the Southern States are the following: —

(1) Increased yield.

(2) Production of two ears per plant.

(3) Improvement in the shape of ear and kernels.
CORN BREEDING 129

(4) More uniformity among kernels, ears, and plants.
(5) Increased closeness and firmness of grains on the cob.
(6) Strength, or power of the plant to stand up.

(7) Lower position of ear on the plant.

(8) More complete covering of the tip by shucks.

(9) Tendency for the mature ear to turn downward.

(10) A decrease in the size of the plant in some varieties.

112. Hereditary qualities.— Among the stalk charac-
ters which have been found to be hereditary are the fol-
lowing : —

Height of plant; height of ear; length of shank; direc-
tion in which the mature ear points; number and width
of blades; tendency to bear more than one ear; tendency
to produce suckers; and ability of the mature plant to
stand erect instead of being blown down. Practically
all the peculiarities of ear and grain are hereditary.

113. Height of ear.—It is desirable that the ear or
ears be borne at a medium height above the ground (Fig.
35). It has been found in breeding experiments (Ill.
Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 132) that the height can be raised or
lowered by selection with this definite end in view. In the
fourth generation the average position of the ears was
twice as high where selection had been made for high ears
as in the strain selected for low ears, the difference in
height of ears being about three feet.

Accompanying the lower position of the ears was earlier
maturity, a decreased number of internodes and leaves,
a decrease in the length of the internodes, and a decided
diminution in the height of the plant.

114. Angle of the mature ear.— The [Illinois Experi-
ment Station has determined (Bul. 132) that the tendency

EK
130 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

for the mature ears to remain erect or to bend downward
is an hereditary quality, and that this tendency can be
intensified by selection. The drooped ear, which is prefer-
able because of its increased protection against rain, was
found to accompany along shank. One strain had shanks
averaging 12 inches in length, the other 7 inches. The
diameter of the shank did not, in this case, determine the
direction in which the mature ear pointed.

115. Barren plants. — Barrenness, or the tendency for
a considerable proportion of the plants to bear no ear,
is usually regarded as hereditary.

Hartley (U. S. Dept. Agr. Year Book, 1902, p. 549)
found that the removal of barren stalks from the field
where seed was saved reduced the percentage of barren
stalks in the next crop from 8.11 to 3.43. Since barren-
ness is difficult to detect before tasseling, it is advisable to
remove the tassels from all poor stalks before they shed
any pollen, whether these plants are entirely barren or
merely weak and poor. The remaining tassels will fur-
nish an abundance of pollen.

116. Influence of size of ears. — At the Virginia Ex-
periment Station (Bul. 165, p. 170), the crop from large
ears averaged 5 bushels more per acre than that from
small ears of the same strain of corn. Likewise greater
yields were obtained from large ears at the Ohio Station;
the percentage of germination was higher for the grains
on the larger ears, and the young plants from the larger
ears grew more rapidly.

117. Selection in the field better than in the crib. —
Selection of seed ears can better be made in the field than
in the crib, especially in the case of two-eared or prolific
CORN BREEDING 131

varieties. Selection in the crib tends to reduce the pros
portion of plants bearing two ears, and thus it may even
be the means of reducing the yield. This is because in
the crib, the largest ears are chosen, and these are most
frequently from plants that produced only one ear. Selec-
tion in the crib is of more value when only one ear per
plant is desired. But even in this case, crib-selection may
serve to perpetuate plants with ears borne too high on the
stalk or having other serious faults.

118. Selection without an ear-to-row test. — Those
who cannot take the pains and time needed to plant an
ear-to-row seed patch (see Par. 120) will profit by paying
to some one else even a high price for corn thus improved.
Such seed corn should be bought on the ear, so that all the
qualities of the ear may be known.

It may be possible to maintain the excellence of a variety,
but scarcely to effect rapid improvement, by simply select-
ing in the entire field ears from the best and most produc-
tive plants. To do this, the farmer should himself go
through his field before harvest time and in a bag or basket
gather as many ears as will be needed for seed. In making
these selections, harvest the ears from the most produc-
tive plants, but not from those the productiveness of which
is due to richer soil, to unusual distance from the next
plant, or to other temporary advantage. Excellence due
to these accidental causes is not transmitted to the next
generation.

119. Accidental versus inherited excellence. — Great
improvement in the yield cf corn may be effected through
the process of selection with a view to identifying and
propagating those individual plants that have strong
132 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

hereditary qualities. The
separation of such worthy
individuals is by no means
as easy as it may seem,
for individual excellence
may be due merely to
favorable surroundings, as
extra space or heavy fer-
tilization, in which case
the superiority is not
transmitted to the off-
spring. On the other
hand, it may be due to
inherent power in the
plant itself, independent
of environment; such
inherent excellence is
hereditary.

The breeder’s first task,
then, is to devise a system
by which he can determine
which plants are acci-
dentally productive and
which are in themselves
superior. In other words,
he must find which good
plants are able to transmit
their good qualities. This
is best done by means of
the ‘“ear-to-row’”’ system
of field testing.

Fic. 71.— RewativE YIELDS OF THE SAME VARIETY OF CORN FROM 2 BREEDING Rows or SAME LENGTH.

 

 
CORN BREEDING 133

120. Ear-to-row system.— This method consists in
planting in one row only the seed from a single ear or from
part of a single ear. At harvest time the yield of each
row is determined separately. The best rows indicate
which parent ear was best able to transmit its good quali-
ties (Fig. 71). By selecting for seed the best plants on these
best rows, and again planting each ear on a separate row, im-
provement is rapid, — provided the breeder, year after
year, aims at the selection and perpetuation of the same
good qualities.

Moreover, since self-fertilization year after year causes
corn to deteriorate, it is advisable to prevent this by re-
moving, as soon as they appear, the tassels from the rows
on which seed-ears are to be selected.

In a breeding-patch in which this system is pursued
proceed as follows : —

121. Details of ear-to-row system of corn breeding. —
Select about 100 of the best ears obtainable from the given
variety. From these discard all except 48, or other
larger number, of the heaviest, best, and most uniform.
Secure very uniform land and lay off as many rows as
there are ears to be planted, say 48, noting that the two
ends of all the rows are of apparently uniform fertility.

On each row, plant the greater part of a single ear, plac-
ing the best ears near the center of the plot (Fig. 72). The
rows should be of uniform width and of such length as to
contain at least 150 hills, the hills being in checks at a uni-
form distance apart. If practicable, preserve until after
harvest time the unplanted grains on cach ear, as the best

of these remnants may be needed for planting the next
year.
134 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Around the edges of this breeding-plot, plant the best
ears not used in the breeding-plot, these ‘‘ general-crop
rows ” serving partially to exclude pollen of inferior plants
and of other varieties. If practicable, let this breeding-plot

 

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28.26.24.22.20,18. 16.74/20. 8.6.4 2.7.3.5. 7. 9. 19.I3/5I7.19. 24.23.2537 29,

Fic. 72.— DiacramM SHOWING ARRANGEMENT OF Rows IN CoRN
BREEDING-PLoT.

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3

Dotted lines represent detasseled parts of each row, from which seed
corn is selected ; continuous lines represent parts of each row not detas-
seled ; the best ears (1, 2, 3, ete.) are planted near the center of the plot.

be at least a quarter or half of a mile from any other field
of corn, and preferably separated from any other corn by
woodland.
CORN BREEDING 135

If necessary, fertilize each half of each row with uniform
weighed amounts of fertilizer.

As soon as the tassels show, and before they have dis-
charged any pollen, remove the tasse]s on one half of every
odd-numbered row (let us say the north half) and on the
other (or south) half of every even-numbered row (Fig. 72).
Seed is to be saved only from the detasseled plants,
thereby insuring cross-fertilization.

From time to time as the crop grows, make note of and
reject those rows on which the plants show undesirable
qualities, as excessive growth of suckers, tendency to fall
down, excessive height of ears above ground, and the like.
At harvest, weigh the husked ears of each row separately
and on each of the best ten rows place a label or tag on
a number of ears from the best plants. On this tag should
be entered the peculiar excellence, if any, of each selected
plant.

For planting the breeding-patch of the second year, save
the ears from the best plants on the 8 or 10 best rows. Use
the remaining good ears from these best rows to plant larger
fields next year. These steps are usually all that are neces-
sary in the improvement of corn by most farmers.

The method of conducting the ear-to-row breeding-plot is the
same year after year, obtaining seed each year from the best
plants of the 8 to 10 best rows. All other good ears from de-
tasseled plants of the most productive rows may be used as seed
for a seed patch of several acres or for the general crop.

The limits of this book preclude an explanation of systems of
numbering the ears and their offspring, for which the reader
is referred to Illinois Experiment Station Bulletin, No. 100;
Connecticut Experiment Station Bulletin, No. 152 ; and Bailey’s
Cyclopedia of American Agriculture, Vol. II, p. 424.
136 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

The multiplication-plot.— The ears from the most productive
rows inherit productiveness on the side of the female or pistillate
parent; but the pollen that fertilized these ears may have come
from one of the most inferior rows. In order to insure the best
pollen, careful plant-breeders sometimes take the additional step
of planting each year a special multiplication-plot, or mating
area of corn.

In this they plant the remnants of the best original ears saved
from the planting of the preceding spring. These original
ears in the intervening year have shown their ability to transmit
productiveness to their offspring. These remnants of ears are
pure ; that is, free from admixture of pollen from inferior strains.

Hence, most rapid progress in corn breeding is made by having
in the second year an isolated multiplication or mating-piot,
in which are planted in alternate rows two or more of the best
remnants of ears, as judged by the yields of the offspring of parts
of the same ears in the ear-to-row test.

Half of the rows in the multiplication-plot should be de casselted.
Thus self-fertilization is avoided and the union by cross-fertiliza-
tion of two productive strains is insured.

When it is feasible to plant such a mating-patch, the ears
from its detasseled rows constitute the seed foraseed patch of the
third year, the product of which will plant the entire general crop
of the farm, or be sold for seed. Since special equipment of venti-
lated, insect-proof jars or cases is needed in the South to preserve
the remnants of the original ears for one year, mos* breeders omit
the mating-plot, planted with such remnants of ears.

122. Breeding for composition. — Hopkins and Smith,
at the Hlinois Experiment Station (Bul. Nos. 119 and 128),
have proved that the composition of corn can be varied
by selection of seed-ears. They selected for many years
in succession kernels rich in the chemical constituent
desired, as fat, protein, or starch. After co itinuing this
work for a number of years, great variations vere found in
the resulting strains. For example, afte’ ten years of
CORN BREEDING 137

breeding, the strain continuously selected for its high
percentage of oil contained 7.37 per cent of fat, or nearly
three times as much as the strain selected for a low per-
centage of oil. The increase in oil makes this high-oil
strain more valuable for the manufacturers who produce
from it corn oil, and also gives to the grain a higher feeding
value, but a tendency to produce softer, less desirable
pork.

In ten years, the average percentage of protein in the grain
was raised from 10.92 per cent at the beginning, to 14.26 at the
end of the decade. The high-protein strain was then nearly
twice as rich in this constituent as was the strain continuously
selected for a low percentage of protein. The high percentage
of protein gives to corn a higher feeding value, of a kind specially
desirable when corn must be fed without being combined
with other foods richer than itself in protein. Apparently, this
strain was less able to resist drought, making a lower yield in a
dry year than did the low-protein strain. It is highly probable
that the high-protein strain more rapidly exhausts the soil.

In breeding for a high percentage of protein, the breeder should
not be deceived if the percentage of this constituent should run
abnormally high in a very dry season, a result which Hopkins and
Smith found to be due to the failure of the grain, under these
conditions, to assimilate its usual quantity of starch.

123. Other effects of breeding for composition. — The
strain continuously selected in Illinois for low prote‘n
made larger ears and a larger yield of grain per acre than
the higher protein strain; likewise, the strain poor in fat
generally yielded more grain per acre than the strain rich
in fat, and had larger ears than any other strain whatso-
ever. Its grains were broader, due to the larger proportion
of starch, and consequently there was a smaller number
of rows of kernels than on the ears of other strains.
138 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

124. How to select grains according to composition. —
Those kernels, which, in cross-section, show a large pro-
portion of germ, are rich in fat; those with an abundance
of horny material are rich in protein; while those with
the greatest proportionate development of loose floury
material are richest in starch. It has been found that the
composition of the kernels of the entire ear is about the
same as that of any row of grains on the ear.

125. Germination test. — Care should be taken to select
for planting only those ears on which nearly every grain
will germinate. In a good sample, 97 per cent of the
grains should sprout. A germination test of the ears
planted is important, even when a larger number of grains
is planted in each hill than will be left to grow there. This
test becomes doubly important when thinning is to be
avoided by planting in each hill only the number of grains
expected to grow and to remain.

Many ears, apparently sound, afford but a low percent-
age of germination. Among the signs of poor germination
are a dark area near the tip of the grain, or a shriveled tip ;
but many grains that appear to be sound fail to sprout.

Some farmers have found it profitable to test for germination
every ear planted. The method used is the following : —

The seed-ears are spread out on the floor in order and a number
attached to each by means of a small nail driven through a small
pasteboard label and into the butt end of the cob. Each ear
is given a number, and from each ear six or ten grains are removed,
these being taken from different parts of the ear.

A germination-box is made by taking any shallow box of proper
size, placing in it one or more inches of damp sand or damp
sawdust (Fig. 73). Thesand is covered with a white cloth, which is
marked off with a pencil into squares about two inches each way,
CORN BREEDING 139

each square bearing a number corresponding to the number on one
of the ears. Six or ten grains taken from different parts of each
ear are placed on the square bearing the same number as the ear.
Another cloth (or cloth bag containing damp sawdust) is laid over
the squares containing the grains to be tested, and over this second

 

Fic. 73. —GERMINATOR MADE FROM A SoAP Box, AND READY TO
RECEIVE THE SEED.

cloth is spread about an inch of moist sand or damp sawdust.
The box is placed in a warm room, and in seven to ten days
a count is made to determine which ears sprout properly. Donot
use for planting any ear which bore a grain that failed to sprout.

126. Crossing versus selection. — Crossing two dis-
tinct varieties results in variation (or a lack of uniformity)
in the plants; uniformity may not again be completely
established even after five or ten years of subsequent
selection. Hence it is usually better for the farmer to
improve his corn by selections among the individual plants
of a single variety than to attempt to cross two dissimilar
varieties.

However, since crossing in certain rare cases is advisable,
and since it often takes place accidentally, a few of the
simpler effects of crossing are briefly discussed.

127. Definitions of degrees of relationship between
corn plants. — Self-pollination or in-breeding consists in
placing the pollen of one plant on the pistil (silks) of the
140 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS ;

same plant. This relationship is too close for best yields,
especially if the process be continued for several years.

Close-breeding consists in crosses made among the silks
and tassels of plants all of which sprang from grains borne
in the next preceding generation on one ear. This rela-
tionship is so close as to incur the danger of reducing the
yield of grain.

Cross-breeding consists in crosses made between plants
that are not related. This may be

(a) Between unrelated plants of the same variety; or

(b) Between different varieties of the same race, as
yellow and white dent corns; or

(c) Between different races, as sweet and dent corn.
As a rule, the most desirable relationship is cross-breeding
between unrelated plants of the same variety.

128. Effects of in-breeding and of cross-breeding on
yield. — Experiments have shown that continued self-
fertilization of the corn plant reduces the yield; and when
self-fertilization is practiced for several successive genera-
tions, it may dwarf the stalk and finally result in some
measure of sterility (Figs. 75, 76). Halsted (N. J. Expr.
Sta., Bul. No. 170) found that self-pollination in sweet
corn tended to increase the percentage of albino plants;
that is, those with white foliage — an undesirable quality.

Cross-breeding, on the other hand, invigorates the strain,
and some recent experiments show that it may greatly
increase the yield in the first generation of cross-bred
plants. But it should be remembered that cross-breeding
of dissimilar types has the serious disadvantage of destroy-
ing uniformity. It should be confined chiefly to plants
of the same variety, or to very closely related varieties.
CORN BREEDING 141

 

 

13. 74.—SHowine Bap Errects oF Continvots IN-BREEDING.

Compare with Fig. 75.

 

Fic. 75.—Suowine LarGer YIELD AND BETTER Ears
FROM CORN NOT IN-BRED.

Compare with Fig. 74.

129. Inheritance of color. — Any part of the ear or grain
that develops when pollen is excluded is obviously merely
the outgrowth of tissue from the mother plant. By in-

\
142 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

closing the young ear-shoot in a paper bag, it is found
that among the parts that develop in the absence of
pollen are the cob and the hull (or seed-coats) of
the grain. These parts (cob and seed-coats) cannot be
changed in the current cross (that is, in the generation
in which the cross is made) by pollen from a plant having
a different character in these parts (see Pars. 90 and 95).

Now whenever grains of corn are red, the red color is located in
the hull. Proof of this is shown by the fact that meal from red
corn is white, after the bran has been carefully sifted out. Hence
if the female parent has red grains, the grains maturing soon after
a cross is made will be red, no matter whether the pollen used
be from a plant with yellow, with white, or with bluish grains.

Jn the same way if pollen from a red variety be placed on the
silks of a white or yellow variety, the grains of the current cross
will all be of the same color as that of the silk-bearing parent.

Very different is the way the yellow color of the corn grain
is transmitted. The yellow color resides, not in the hull, but
deeper in the structure of the grain; that is,in the endosperm.
Proof of this is shown in the fact that meal from yellow corn is
always yellow, even after the most complete removal of the bran.

Those parts of the kernel inclosed inside of the hull, that is,
the germ and the endosperm (including the aleurone layer), may
be visibly influenced by the pollen used in the current cross, that
is, by ‘‘double fertilization’’; these inner portions of the grain
may display in a few weeks after the cross is made the color
derived from the sire or pollen-bearing plant. Now the yellow
color is located in the endosperm. The purple color is located in
the thin aleurone layer just under the seed-coats. Both the en-
dosperm and its aleurone layer are subject to double fertilization
by pollen, and thus they are at once influenced in color by the
male parent. Hence pollen from a pure yellow variety, falling on
silks of a white kind, promptly makes the grains thus fertilized
yellow. Likewise pollen from a lead-colored corn, falling on silks
of a white variety, promptly makes the hybrid grains lead-colored.
CORN BREEDING 144

This is because both the yellow and the lead colors, being in the
endosperm, which may be influenced by the male parent, display
their color through the transparent hull or bran of the white
mother plant.

But in the next generation, these hybrid seeds produce grains of
various colors or shades.

130. Dominance of certain qualities in hybrids. — Ac-
cording to Mendel’s law, certain pairs of opposite quali-
ties are not inherited in mixtures or blends, but separately,
every individual descendant showing one or the other of
these opposing qualities. The quality that shows in the
greater number of the descendants is called dominant,
while the quality showing forth in the smaller number of
descendants of the cross is called recessive.

Experiments have shown, according to East (Conn. State Agr.
Expr. Sta. Rept. 1907-1908, Part VII, p. 41), that in corn the
following characters are dominant over their opposites :—

Yellow is dominant over white color of kernels.
Red is dominant over white color of kernels.
Purple is dominant over white color of kernels.
Flint quality of grains is dominant over dent.
Flint quality of grains is dominant over sweet.
Dent quality of grains is dominant over sweet.

Certain dominant qualities show in the current cross; among
these are yellow or purple color of grains (when crossed cn
white varieties), and flintiness of grains, whether crossed on dent
or on sweet corn. Asarule, the recessive grains, or those showing
no effect of the cross in the second hybrid generation, are practi-
cally pure as to that quality, and these pure white or pure dent
grains of the second hybrid generation subsequently come ‘‘ true to
seed.”” But the grains showing the dominant quality, yellow
color or flint structure, cannot thus be selected as pure, because
many of them have been influenced, though imperceptibly, by the
recessive character (white color or dent structure). In other
144 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

words, of the seed showing dominant qualities some are pure
dominants and some are mixed, though having the same appear-
ance as the pure dominants.

131. Practical results. — Practical application may be
made of the somewhat technical statements in the last few
paragraphs in the following way, and in other operations
in plant breeding : —

(1) After crossing pollen of a pure yellow variety on
silks of a pure white variety, say in 1910, practically all
of the grains of the current cross in 1910 may be expected
to be yellow or yellowish; all the pure white grains found
in the second generation among the descendants of, this
cross may be considered as pure-bred so far as concerns
color, and these white grains may be expected in all future
years to produce only white grains.

(2) After crossing pollen of a pure white variety on
silks of a pure red variety, all the grains of that current
cross will be red (because the hull of the grain is furnished
by the mother parent, uninfluenced by the pollen used in
the current cross) ; when these red grains are subsequently
planted, the crop will contain a majority of red grains,
most of which will be impure, as shown by their descend-
ants, bearing both red and white grains.

On the other hand, the white grains, found in the second
generation in smaller number among the red grains, are
pure; and when these white kernels are planted, their
offspring will consist entirely of white kernels.

132. Relative value of top and bottom ears for planting.
— When there is any considerable inequality in size be-
tween two ears growing on one plant, the upper ear is
generally the larger.
CORN BREEDING 145

Using plants of identical parentage, Hartley! found that the
yield of grain per plant grown from lower ears was equally as great
as the yield from plants grown from upper ears. He found the
plants grown from middle ears (on three-eared plants) to average
0.65 of a pound of ear corn per plant, as compared with 0.70 of a
pound from the offspring of both upper and lower ears borne by
the same parent plants.

Redding (Georgia Experiment Station, Bul. No. 55) obtained a
slightly larger yield of grain from the offspring of bottom ears
than from those of upper ears. The Alabaraa Experiment Station
(Bul. No. 134) obtained in 1903 with St. Charles White a greater
yield from upper ears, but in 1905, in a more extensive test with
the Experiment Station Yellow variety, there was practically no
difference in the grain yield of plants tracing to upper and to
lower ears. At the Rhode Island Station (Bul. 116) Card found in
sweet corn a tendency for the seed from upper ears to produce
a greater number of ears per plant than seed from lower ears.
This he assumed to be due to the more complete maturity and
greater size of the upper ears of sweet corn.

On the whole, available evidence is not sufficient to show
any material difference between top and bottom ears for
planting; and on theoretical grounds we should expect top
and bottom ears, if equally developed in size and matur-
ity, to be equally valuable for planting.

133. Seed from different parts of the ear. — It is cus-
tomary in the South to remove the grain tor about an
inch both at the tip and at the butt of the ear. Numerous
experiments show little or no difference in yield of corn
produced by planting grain from the tip, butt, and middle
portions of the ear. Even when the experiment extended
through a number of successive generations, there were
no notable differences in the yields.

1 American Breeders’ Association, Vol. II, p. 124.
L
146 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Hartley found that the small kernels, usually on the tip, gave
a higher percentage of weak and unproductive plants than larger
kernels. Jeffrey (Mich. Exp. Sta., Cire. 3) found that in most,
but not in all varieties, the butt kernels germinated more slowly
and the tip kernels more promptly than those from the middle of
the ear (Fig. 76).
The Illinois Experiment Station has shown (Bul. 55, and Bul.
28, p. 460) that the tip kernels contain a slightly lower percentage

 

Fig. 76.— Youna Corn PLAnts.

On left, from tip kernels; in center, from middle grains; and on
right, from butt kernels.

of protein than the middle or butt kernels, and that the butt
kernels are slightly the richest in this constituent. The tip
kernels contained a slightly larger proportion of starch than
the others. Kernels from the tip, middle, and butt were prac-
tically alike in percentage of oil and ash.

On the whole, it seems advisable to remove the tip
grains of the seed-ears : (1) so as to secure seed of more
uniform size, an important consideration where a constant
number of grains must be dropped by the planter in each
CORN BREEDING 147

hill; and (2)-so as to avoid injured and very small grains,
which would either fail to germinate or else cause the
young plants produced from them to grow off slowly.

134. Grading the seed grains. — When extreme care is
taken to get all kernels of as nearly a uniform size as pos-
sible, in preparation for machine planting, each ear, after
being “nubbed” and ‘tipped,’ may be shelled sepa-
rately into a pan, and the resulting grain grouped into
kernels of three different sizes or shapes. This is more
conveniently done by shelling all nubbed and tipped ears
together and then separating the grains into three sizes by
passing them through a series of sieves with meshes of
different sizes.

135. Effects of change of climate.— Corn brought
into the South from a cooler climate acquires year by year
in its new home greater height of stalk and later maturity.
With many highly improved varieties the grains apparently
become shorter and the number of rows may be reduced.

As arule, varieties from the corn-belt are not adapted to
the cotton-belt. They mature too early, make a smaller
yield of grain and stover than native varieties, and the
grain is often unmarketable, being weevil-eaten and
chaffy.

Among the relatively few varieties from the corn-belt which
have in a few experiments shown fair yields of grain are Boone
County White and St. Charles White. Even these afford a better
grade of grain when the date of planting is rather late.

In the region just north of the cotton-belt, the Western varieties
are nearer an equality with the native kinds.

As a general rule, the best seed corn is that produced in nearly
the same latitude where it is to be grown. Usually corn of
Southern varieties produced south of the Ohio and Potomac
148 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

rivers succeeds anywhere in the cotton-belt. Corn growers
just north of the cotton-belt are able to use seed from a still higher
latitude, but here, too, native improved varieties and locally
grown seed are usually more satisfactory than seed corn from a
widely different climate.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

Comparison of ears.

(1) Select 5 or 10 plants with ears high above the ground and
record the average height above ground of the node bearing the
upper ear.

(2) Make the same record for 5 or 10 plants in the same field
with ears low on the stalk.

(3) If practicable, compare the maturity and weights of the
shucked ears on the two types of plants just mentioned. ~

Upper and lower ears.

(4) Select ten plants, each bearing two well- developed ¢ ears.
Shuck and compare the weights of

(a) the ten upper ears and
(b) the ten lower ears.
(c) Does the upper or the lower ear “dev elop and mature first?

(5) Tip, BUTT, AND MIDDLE GRAINS. Make germination tests
of 100 tip grains, 100 butt grains, and 100 from the middle of
the -ear.

(6) Varration. Record for two plants of the same variety as
many points of difference as you ean discover.

What does this suggest as to the advantages of seed selecting
and breeding ?

Color of grains.

(7) Soak kernels of red and yellow corn, separate the coats, and
determine in what part of the grain each color is located.

Barren plants.

(8) Determine in any field the percentage of barren stalks.
CORN BREEDING 149

Silks.
(9) Provided any corn in silking stage is available.

(a) With a magnifying glass examine the fresh silk sticking
out beyond the shuck for hair-like branches and for
pollen grains that have lodged on the silk.

(b) Tie large, strong paper bags over several young ear-
shoots before any silks appear.

(c) A few days after the silks appear under the bags, note
how much longer they are than silks which have re-
ceived pollen.

(d) While the silks under one bag are still fresh, and before
any pollen has reached them, cut all the silks on one
side of the ear, just inside the shuck; apply corn
pollen onthe remaining silks. In three weeks note the
number of grains of corn developed on each side of the
injured ear. \

LITERATURE

East, E.M. Conn. (State) Expr. Sta., Rpt. 1907-1908, Part VII,
p. 41, and Conn. (State) Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 158.

SmiryH, L. H. Ill. Expr. Sta., Bul. Nos. 128 and 132.

Wiuurams, C.G. Ohio Expr. Sta., Cire. No. 71.

Hartiey, C. P. U.S. Dept. Agr., Farmer’s Bul. No. 229.

Soutz, A. M., and Vanatrer, P.O. Va. Expr. Sta., Bul. No.
165.

Davenport, E. The Principles of Breeding. New York, 1907.

Davenport, E. Ill. Expr. Sta., Bul. No 119 and Cire. No 101.

Weszser, H. J. Plant Breeding. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. II,
pp. 53-69; and Xenia (double fertilization), U. S. Dept.
Agr., Div. Veg. Phys. and Path., Bul. No. 22.
CHAPTER VIII
CORN — SOILS, ROTATIONS, AND FERTILIZERS

WHILE corn will grow on an extremely wide range of
soils, yet good yields can be expected only on rich or highly
manured land. The corn plant, with its abundant fol-
age, actively engaged in transpiring moisture, needs large
supplies of water. Therefore, the best soil for corn is one
which can furnish a large and regular supply of water during
periods of dry weather. Such a soil is usually a deep,
rather rich loam, well supplied with vegetable matter. As
a rule, bottom lands afford larger yields of corn than up-
lands.

136. Bottom lands and uplands for maize. — Bottom
lands on which corn makes its best yields should be well
drained, since the corn roots need a constant supply of
oxygen from the air, and air cannot penetrate saturated
soil. Neither can the roots range to sufficient depth when
the line of saturation is near the surface. The more poorly
the land is drained, the later must the corn be planted and
the greater the risk of failure, should the subsequent season
be unfavorable. Uplands can be fitted for a maximum
development of corn by gradually increasing the depth of
plowing and by constantly adding vegetable matter, by
judicious rotation of crops, or by the application of barn-
yard manure.

150
CORN SOILS 161

137. Poor and acid soils. — It is doubtful whether land
so poor as to produce without fertilizers only 10 bushels of
corn per acre is in condition to produce a profitable crop
of corn, even when fertilized. It will usually be more
profitable in such cases to grow first a crop of cowpeas or of
some other soil-improving plant before planting the land
in corn.

Corn makes a fair yield even on land that is slightly
acid ; but on such soils, the yield is usually improved by an
application of about half a ton of slacked lime per acre.
Corn is more intolerant of dryness in the soil than of any
other condition. A dry or thirsty soil may cause the
leaves to “ fire’ and the plant to be undersized, with only
one ear or nubbin per plant. Moreover, on thirsty land,
the distance between plants must be wide, resulting in a
small yield per acre.

138. Other corn soils. —In selecting land for corn,
deep sand beds should be avoided, as being too poor and
dry. The stiffest clays are also not desirable, since they
are often too compact for sufficient penetration by the
roots and for thorough preparation, cultivation, and drain-
age. Corn is a favorite crop on new ground or land from
which the timber has just been cleared.

RotTaTION

139. The place of corn in a rotation. — On cotton farms
there is too frequently no effort to practice rotation or sys-
tematic change of crop from field to field. Especially is
there a failure to alternate any other crop with corn, for the
reason that in the sandy and hilly country corn is generally
planted on the narrow bottoms, which constitute the best
152 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

corn land of these regions. In these cases (on the richer
bottoms), so long as the yield is satisfactory, and no undue
amount of disease appears, it is probably better to violate
the usual rules of rotation and to grow corn continuously
than to change it to the shallow, dry soils of the hills.
However, tracts that must for this reason be cropped an-
nually with corn should be carefully supplied with vege-
table matter by one of the following methods: (1) Either
by sowing cowpeas thickly each summer among the grow-
ing corn plants, or else (2) by growing each winter a crop
of crimson clover, bur clover, hairy vetch, or other winter-
growing legumes, to be plowed under in April or May as
fertilizer for the corn crop of the same year.

140. A three-year rotation.— When possible, corn
should enter into the regular farm rotation. In the rota-
tions best suited to the average cotton plantation corn
usually follows cotton, and is followed by fall-sown oats
or by wheat. This position is given to corn, not for its own
advantage, but because corn can easily be removed in time
for the fall sowing of the small grains, while cotton is not
generally removed at so early a date.

Incidentally, corn grown after cotton gets the advan-
tage of the clean and late cultivation given the latter, and
this starts the young corn plants promptly into growth.
Corn, following cotton on a field comparatively free from
the seeds of weeds and grasses, can be produced with less
labor than corn after corn. A good three-year rotation
is the following : —

First year: cotton;

Second year: corn, with cowpeas between the rows;

Third year: oats or wheat, followed by cowpeas.
CORN FERTILIZELS 153

This places corn on one third of the cultivated area
each year. When this rotation is repeated through the
fourth, fifth, and sixth years, it is plain that cowpeas or
cowpea stubble, following the small grains, is plowed under
just a full year before corn occupies the land.

141. A four-year rotation. — The above scheme may
readily be changed into a four-year rotation by growing
two successive crops of cotton, the first of which may well
be followed by a catch crop of crimson clover, plowed under
about April 1, as fertilizer. This places corn on one fourth
of the cultivated land and on fields where cowpeas were
plowed under two years before and where, perhaps, crimson
clover was plowed under one year before the corn was
planted.

FERTILIZERS

142. Need for a fertilizer rich in nitrogen. — Corn must
make a rapid development of stalk, leaf, and ear, and for
this purpose there must be present in soil or fertilizer a
large amount of plant-food.. The rapid growth scems to
make especially necessary largesupplies of nitrogen. Those
soils richest in nitrogen almost invariably produce the
largest yields of corn.

In unpublished experiments made on a wide variety of poor
soils in Alabama, nitrogenous fertilizers have increased the crop to
a much greater extent than any other kinds. In these tests,
potash was usually of far less value than when applied to the
cotton plant. Acid phosphate was intermediate in value be-
tween the nitrogenous and phosphatic fertilizers. However,
the results of fertilizer experiments vary greatly according to the
nature and previous history of the soil.
154 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

143. Leguminous plants an economical source of ni-
trogen. — Recognizing the great need for nitrogen, the wise
farmer will provide it in the most economical and effective
manner. This is best effected by the use of cowpeas or
other leguminous crops, grown on the land, and either
plowed under as fertilizer or used as fertilizer after having
been consumed by animals. When nitrogen is supplied
in these bulky forms, the plant-food is accompanied by a
large mass of vegetable matter, which has the effect of
making the land more retentive of moisture in periods of
drought. Thus fertilization with nitrogen, through rota-
tion with leguminous plants, supplies the two greatest
needs of the corn plant, namely, nitrogen and moisture.

144. Suggestive fertilizer formulas. — Proper fertiliza-
tion is governed by soil, kind of tillage, previous treat-
ment of the land, and other considerations. No one fertil-
izer formula therefore fits all conditions, but the following
are suggested : —

(1) By the Georgia Experiment Station (Bul. 74). For corn
on worn uplands, —

Acid phosphate, 1000 lb.
Cotton-seed meal, 1218 lb.
Muriate of potash, 32 lb.

Total, 2250 lb. (for several acres).

This fertilizer analyzes about 10 per cent available phosphorie
acid, 5 per cent nitrogen, and 2 per cent muriate of potash.

The author suggests the following as often applicable for loam
and clay soils, —

(2) 100 to 200 Ib. acid phosphate per acre ;
100 Ib. nitrate of soda, the latter applied when the plants
are 2 to 4 feet high, on one side of each row; or,
CORN FERTILIZERS 155

(3) 100 to 200 lb. acid phosphate,
200 lb. cotton-seed meal.

(4) For very sandy soils, —
100 to 200 lb. acid phosphate,
100 Ib. nitrate of soda (or 200 lb. cotton-seed meal),
50 to 100 Ib. kainit.

For land that has been enriched in nitrogen by the plowing
under of cowpeas or similar growth, it will usually suffice to
fertilize with 200 lb. per acre of acid phosphate or of an ordi-
nary cotton guano. But even here, it will often be profitable to
add 50 or 100 Ib. of nitrate of soda when the plants are 2 to 4 feet
high.

When corn is grown in rotation on fairly good loamy or clay
soil, it appears to be better policy in most cases to withhold potash
from the corn, which is often unresponsive to it, and to apply if
necessary an additional amount to the cotton crop grown in the
same rotation, — thus getting the benefit of its specific effect in
restraining cotton rust on soils subject to this malady.

145. Time to apply fertilizers. — When ordinary amounts
of commercial fertilizer, say 200 to 400 pounds per acre,
have been used, most experiments have shown at least as
large yields from applying the whole before planting as
from applying a part before planting and a part during the
cultivation of the crop. This conclusion is summed up in
a quotation from Bulletin No. 74, Georgia Experiment
Station, by Redding: ‘‘ The experiments conducted on
this station long since proved that . . . (inter-cultural
fertilization) is not profitable as arule. On the other hand
it is often advisable to withhold a part of the fertilizer
for inter-cultural application, when the total amount to be
applied is large; for example, 500 to 1000 pounds per
acre.”
156 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

In the Williamson method of corn culture (see Par. 175),
all of the fertilizer is applied comparatively late in the life
of the plant.

Whenever nitrate of soda is the nitrogenous fertilizer,
it should be applied wholly or in part after the plants have
begun growth and before they shoot, preparatory to tas-
seling. It is believed that nitrate of soda is more effective
if applied when the plants are between 1 and 4 feet high
than if placed in the soil at a later stage of maturity.

146. Methods of applying fertilizers. — When com-
mercial fertilizer is applied to corn, it is usually drilled in.
The Georgia Experiment Station found that about the
same results were obtained from half a pound of fertilizer
in the drill as from one pound sown broadcast. The
method of distribution in the drill before the planting of
the seed is by hand application or by the use of a fertilizer
distributor, or by the use of a combined fertilizer dis-
tributor and planter, which performs both operations at
one time.

When fertilizer is applied to corn after planting, it is usually
placed in a furrow 2 to 4 inches deep and a few inches from the
line of plants. With most fertilizers, it is desirable that this
later application, when made at all, be at a depth of 2 to 4 inches,
so that this layer of fertilizer and the roots congregating around it
may not be disturbed by subsequent shallow cultivation.

When nitrate of soda is applied after the corn is 1 to 4 feet high,
it is drilled 6 to 8 inches from the plant, the depth being of little
consequence. Indeed, nitrate of soda requires no covering when
applied on damp soil. However, it is generally advisable for it
to be covered slightly by the next cultivating furrow, so that if a
sudden heavy rain should occur, this fertilizer would not be so
completely washed away as if it were caught by rain while still
on the surface.
CORN FERTILIZERS 157

147. Quantity of fertilizer. — Until the recent agitation
about the Williamson method of corn culture, it was the
general opinion that it was ordinarily not advisable to
use very large amounts of commercial fertilizer for corn,
400 pounds per acre being then considered a rather heavy
application for this crop.

Experience shows that corn does not, as surely as cotton,
pay a large profit on a large quantity of commercial fer-
tilizer. There is more risk with the corn crop because its
bearing season, from silking to hardening of the kernels, is
shorter than the fruiting season of cotton; and drought
at this critical time in the life of the corn plant is apt to
ruin the crop, regardless of the amount of fertilizer em-
ployed.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

(1) Compare 10 corn plants grown: on a rich bottom soil
with 10 others of the same variety grown on a dry upland,
recording :—

(a) average height of plant ;

(b) average height of upper ear above ground ;

(c) average number of square feet of ground occupied by
each plant, and

(d) average weight of shucked ear or ears per plant.

(2) Apply a teaspoonful of nitrate of soda to each corn plant
on one row and each week afterwards compare the size and
color of plants on this row with those that received no nitrate
of soda. .

LITERATURE
Duaaar, J. F. (Rotation.) Ala. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 134.
Dopson, W. R. (Rotation.) La. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 111.

Wuirney, Mitton. (Fertilizers.) U.S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Soils,
Bul. No. 64.
CHAPTER IX
CORN — THE TILLAGE OR CULTIVATION
SouTHERN lands are usually in extreme need of vegetable

matter. Too often the stalks of corn or cotton are burned
in preparation for the next crop. Whenever possible,

 

Fic. 77.— A SraLk-cutTrer.

the stalks and weeds, instead of being burned, should be

plowed under. To do this properly, it is often necessary

to use a stalk-cutter (Fig. 77), which is usually drawn
158
CORN TILLAGE 159

by two horses. At each trip it cuts into bits, about a foot
long, the stalks on one row. In the absence of the stalk-
cutter, corn stalks are cut into two or three sections with
the hoe, and large cotton stalks are chopped with a
stalk-cutter or broken by beating them with a heavy
stick, preferably on some frosty morning in winter.

In plowing under weeds or other litter, the work can be
much better done by dragging the loop of a heavy chain,
one end attached to the beam and the other end to the outer
end of the single-tree on the same side as the moldboard.
The loop of this heavy chain runs just in front of and above
the share of the plow and bends the weeds down so that
they can be completely covered by the inverted soil.

148. Time of plowing. — The time must vary with
conditions. The stiffer the soil and the larger the amount
of vegetation to be plowed under, the earlier should plow-
ing be done. On stiff soil plowing may well begin in
November and be completed before Christmas. While
land plowed at this time will have become compacted on
the surface by planting time, this surface crust can easily
be lightened by the use of a disk-harrow just before planting.

There is considerable leaching, or waste of fertility, from
plowed soils left bare during the winter, especially from
sandy soils. This loss is greater the earlier in the fall the
plowing is done. Hence the preparation of sandy soil
may be postponed until the stiffer soils have been prepared,
but even sandy soils should be prepared for corn before the
teams are monopolized in the preparation of land for cotton.

149. Ridging versus flush plowing. — The main systems
of preparing land for corn may be classified as follows : —

(1) Ridging, or forming beds on which the rows of corn
160 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

are to be planted; (2) plowing land on the level, which is
called flush or broadcast plowing; (3) preparing the land
so that corn may be planted in the water-furrow or de-
pression between the beds.

Ridging, or bedding, is confined to a few regions where
the drainage is deficient ; for example, the prairie or stiff,
waxy lime lands of Alabama and Mississippi. Even
here, while bedding is perhaps generally necessary for corn
planted early on poorly drained soil, it can often be dis-
pensed with, or the height of the beds can be reduced. The
disadvantages of planting on elevated ridges are great,
among them being the following : —

(1) More surface is exposed to evaporation and the row
dries out more rapidly ;

(2) The depth of soil left in the water furrow is insuffi-
cient to support plant roots, thus confining them largely
to the limited area immediately under the ridge.

The one. purpose and advantage of ridging is to secure
increased drainage and warmth. Hence, even in the re-
gions where usually regarded as necessary, the ridging of
corn that is planted late is usually undesirable.

150. A modified ridging system. — A system that has
not come into general use but that has been recommended
for stiff, poorly drained soil, is the following, which affords
drainage on one side of each row, and on the other side
all the advantages of level planting.

Prepare the field by back-furrowing so as to make eight-
foot lands, or lands of double the width desired for a single
row. Plant two rows 4 feet apart on this eight-foot land.
This places each row 2 feet from a water-furrow on one
side. The other side of the same row can be tilled level.
CORN TILLAGE 161

151. Level preparation and planting. — There are
numerous advantages in plowing the land level rather than
into ridges. As a rule, the soil is thus more completely
turned and a greater variety of improved implements
can be used, — for example, the disk-plow, the row marker,
and the check-rower, or two-horse corn planter. More-
over, except on very wet soils, the yield of corn is usually
greater from level planting than from ridging. This is
due to the greater ability of the level land to retain mois-
ture during periods of drought and to the wider range of
the roots, and to their more uniform covering with moist
soil. Level planting is preferable for corn tilled in checks
and for many loamy soils, whether the crop be checked
or drilled.

152. Planting in the water-furrow. — On sandy upland
soils in most parts of the Gulf States, it is the custom of
many farmers to plant corn in the water-furrow formed by
first bedding the land, thus placing the seed in a deep
depression. It is asserted for this method that by placing
the plants deeper it brings their roots into a moist layer
of soil and increases resistance to drought. It also makes
tillage easier, saving part of the work with the hoe, for
the reason that the filling of the furrow by the cultivating
implement readily covers and smothers young grass.

In a comparison of this method with that of planting
on beds (doubtless low beds), the Georgia Station found
no advantage from planting in a water-furrow on reddish
clay-loam — a soil which is somewhat stiffer than in the
regions where planting in the water-furrow is most cus-
tomary.

At the Alabama Experiment Station (Bul. No. 111), on

M

 
162 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

permeable gray sandy soil (Norfolk sandy loam), the
yield was one year favorable and one year unfavorable
to this method as compared with level planting.

Planting corn in water-furrows is not to be commended
for stiff soils; but for permeable sandy soils, this course
seems to be aclvisable.

153. Preparation for planting in the water-furrow. —
This system is the most popular one on sandy uplands and
other dry soils. When the preparation is to be thorough,
ridges are made by back-furrowing in such a way as to
leave the water-furrows about 5 feet apart. The bed is not
quite completed, but a narrow strip or balk, 6 to 8 inches
wide, where the water-furrow will be, is left unplowed
until the farmer is nearly ready to plant corn. Then with
a shovel plow, he throws out this balk and plants the seed
in the freshly broken furrow, often by means of a com-
bined fertilizer distributor and planter, which places both
fertilizer and seed at the bottom of the newly made water-
furrow and 5 to 8 inches below the level of the highest part
of the ridge.

During tillage, the soil of the ridge is worked toward
the plants in the water-furrow, so that, when the crop is
laid by, the field is practically level.

“Listing” is a special method of planting in a deep
furrow; it is common in the dry regions of the Southwest.

154. Depth of plowing. — Naturally this should vary
with the character of the soil and the depth of the pre-
vious plowing. In general, it may he said that most
Southern corn fields are not plowed deep enough. The
increase in depth is best made gradually, plowing each
year one inch deeper than the preceding, until the desired
CORN TILLAGE 163

depth is attained. The earlier in the season the land
is plowed, the greater is the increase in depth that can
properly be made. Hence, fall plowing or early winter
plowing may be deeper, sometimes an inch deeper, than
plowing done in February or March. Usually the yield is
decreased by bringing to the surface, especially near
the time of planting, any very large amount of clay from
the subsoil. But while this may reduce the first crop,
the increased depth is apt to incréase the yields of sub-
sequent crops.

155. Subsoiling.— A method of suddenly increasing
the depth of plowing consists in running a special subsoil

 

Fic. 78.—A Supsoit Plow.

plow in the bottom of every furrow made by an ordinary
turn-plow. This may double the depth of soil stirred.
As a rule, subsoiling is best done in November or Decem-
ber, or before the beginning of the rainy season of winter.
After the winter rains begin, the subsoil of most fields
is usually too moist for the advantageous use of a sub-
soil plow. If subsoiling is done when the subsoil is too
wet (and this may be the case while the surface soil is
164 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

abundantly dry for plowing), more harm than good will
result.

Since the subsoil is compact, much power is needed to pull
a subsoil plow (Fig. 78), making this a rather expensive
operation. While there are many exceptions, the majority
of experiments in subsoiling land subsequent to January 1
have shown no immediate increase, or not enough to pay
for the extra cost of subsoiling. Subsoiling, when needed

 

Fic. 79.—A Turn-pPiow.

at all, should not be done more frequently than once in
two or three years. It is usually more practicable to in-
crease the depth of ordinary plowing than to practice sub-
soiling.

Implements used in preparation for corn. — Besides the stalk
cutter, the implements for preparation are usually either the turn-
plow (Fig. 79), which may be of various sizes and patterns, or the
disk-plow (Fig. 80). The latter is suited only to level plowing but
does its work more completely than the turn-plow, though appar-
ently at greater expenditure of horse power. Use is sometimes
CORN TILLAGE 165

 

Fic. 80.--A Disk-PpLow.

The disk which turns the soil shows only dimly beyond the frame.

made of a double moldboard plow or ‘‘ middle burster,’’ and, in the
semi-arid Southwest, of a somewhat similar ‘‘lister."” Doubtless
some of the labor-saving implements of the latter region, such as
“Jisters’’ and ‘‘combined listers and planters’”’ (Fig. 81) could be
effectively used on sandy soils in the South. Various forms of

 

 

Fic. 81.— ComBInep LISTER AND CORN PLANTER.
LO6 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

harrows (Fig. 85) are used by the best farmers to pulverize the
clods after plowing.

Partial preparation. — Two methods of preparation deserve
notice here, both involving the performing of only a part of the
work before planting. Much of the corn in the limestone prairie
region of Alabama and Mississippi is planted by making a list,
or slight ridge, with two turn-plow furrows thrown on the seed
dropped in the old water-furrow. Then theridge is completed by
throwing two or more additional furrows of a turn-plow against
this ‘“‘list.””. This method places the seed deeper in the ground
than is probably advisable in such stiff soils but gives opportunity
for a practice not yet in common use in that region, namely, the
partial pulling down of the ridges and the cultivation of the field
by using the spike-tooth harrow before the corn comes up.

Another system of partial or deferred preparation is practiced
to some extent in the sandy or hilly region. A deep furrow is
opened, in which the seed and fertilizer are placed; then a fur-
row on each side is thrown toward the seed, the greater part of the
land remaining unbroken until cultivation begins. The combined
breaking and cultivation is done gradually with a small, deep-
running plow or shovel. This is obviously a laborious method,
requiring the use of small, unsatisfactory implements. Its chief
excuse is the occasional occurrence of continued wet weather at a
time when land for corn should be prepared.

156. Planting. — Much corn is still dropped by hand,
and in this case it may be covered by any kind of a plow.
Much is planted by one-horse or single-row planters
(Fig. 82), with which fertilizer distributors are often com-
bined. The use of check-rowers (two-row planters) is
restricted in the South to a rather limited number of
localities where the land is comparatively level. Planters
save labor, usually afford a more even and prompt
germination, and leave the young plants in straighter
lines, thus making tillage easier.
CORN TILLAGE 167

157. Depth of planting. — Corn may be planted and
come up well at almost any depth between 1 and 4 inches.
The general rule is to plant it just deep enough to insure
a continuous supply of moisture. Hence, planting late
in the season on a dry, loose seed-bed may require the seed
to be covered with 3 or even 4 inches of soil. In the

 

Fic. 82.— A One-Row CorRN PLANTER.

earlier part of the season 14 to 3 inches may be considered
the best depth for most conditions.

The depth of rooting is not strictly governed by the
depth of planting, since the few roots thrown out near the
sprouting kernel are not the ones from which the plant draws
most of its water and food (Fig. 83). Most of tne perma-
nent roots originate at the crown, which is usually about 1
inch below the surface of the soil, regardless of the depth
of planting.
168 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

158. Date of planting. — In the southern part of the
Gulf States, east of Texas, corn planting becomes general
about the first of March; and in the central part of the
Gulf States it is in full progress about the middle of March.

 

 

Fie. 83. — DraGram oF YounG Corn PLANTS.

Showing that the depth of the crown, where most roots originate, is
nearly the same with shallow, medium, and deep planting.

In the northern part of the same states most of the planting
is done in April. The corn planting season in all states
of the cotton-belt practically extends from about the first
of March to nearly the first of July. Bottom lands are
frequently not planted until May or later, while in the same
locality the preferred date for planting the uplands may
be some time in March. Plantings made in June, even
on bottom lands, are usually less productive than those
made in May or earlier. A part of the corn is sometimes
planted late, in order to distribute the labor of cultivation
through a longer period.

Only the seasons can determine whether in any given

a
CORN TILLAGE 169

year it is better to plant uplands very early or at a medium
date. The general belief inclines to the advantage of
the very early planting of uplands, or as soon as danger
of killing frost is past. However, success is sometimes
made by planting at almost any date between the last
killing frost and the first of June.

Incidental considerations sometimes govern the date of planting:
For example, on land that is especially
liable to the injury of young corn plants
by the small budworm (see Par. 189), it is
regarded as advantageous either to plant
very early, or still better, to postpone
planting until about the first of May.
The common idea in postponing plant-
ing is that the soil becomes so warm as
to discourage the insects. Probably a
truer explanation is found in the more
rapid growth of the late-planted corn,
which sooner grows beyond the stage in
which it is attacked by the budworm.

Early planting has a tendency to pro-
duce a smaller stalk than late planting, a
desirable result. Corn planted early re-
quires a greater number of cultivations.

Late planting, while making a very
tall stalk, reduces the injury from weevil
by reason of the late date of maturity.
Late-planted corn, if harvested before
becoming thoroughly dry, requires more py. 84, —Hanp Corn
ventilation of the cribs than is generally Prpanrer, For ReE-
necessary with early-planted corn. PLANTING.

 

159. Replanting. — This is generally done by dropping
the seed by hand and covering with a hoe. This involves
many unnecessary motions and much waste of time. An
170 SOUTHERN FIELD UROPS

improvement consists in using the rotary or other hand
planter (Fig. 84), which, when thrust into the soil, leaves
several grains covered at the proper depth.

The yield from hills that have been replanted is often
unsatisfactory, probably because of their being crowded
by the older plants and partly, perhaps, because of an in-
adequate supply of pollen for the few plants which produce
their silks after most corn has ceased to tassel. Hence if
the stand of corn is poor, it often pays better to plow up
the remnant and plant again, rather than to replant the
vacant spaces.

160. Harrowing before and after planting. —In the
preparation of land for corn in the South, the harrow is
not so generally used as it should be.

The disk-harrow can be advantageously used to slice
large clods left by the plow. Another use to which it is
seldom put, but which it serves admirably, consists in
running it over crusted land to break the surface crust
so that when plowed, large clods do not form. <A large
part of the tillage should be given to corn land before the
seed is planted, and this is readily done by employing some
form of harrow after plowing.

The best time to use any kind of harrow is within a few
hours after plowing, so that there may still be enough
moisture in the clods to cause them to pulverize readily.
Harrowing not only breaks the clods, but also makes the
land retain moisture better.

The spike-tooth harrow (Fig. 85) may often be used
advantageously to pull down or flatten ridges or beds
which have been thrown up higher than necessary, as is
the custom in the prairie region of the South and on bottom
CORN TILLAGE 171

lands. The use of the harrow several weeks after plowing,
and either just before planting corn or soon afterwards,
kills young weeds and grass and thus reduces the subse-
quent cost of tillage. The principal change needed in
the tillage of corn in the South is the more general use of
the weeder or harrow. Its use should be begun about the

 

 

 

Fic. 85.—A Spikse-rootH Harrow.

time of planting and be continued as long as possible. The
harrow may be used until the corn plants are 4 to 6 inches
high and the weeder (Fig. 86) until they are 8 to 12 inches
high. The broadcast tillage with these implements is
the cheapest method of cultivating young corn, since with
either a harrow or a weeder 10 to 12 acres of corn can be
cultivated in a day. This economical broadcast har-
rowing permits delay in beginning cultivation with other
implements.

It is usually best to run the harrow or weeder diagonally
12 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

across the rows, though the direction is not always im-
portant.

161. Usual tilling or cultivating implements. — The
implements most generally used in corn tillage in the South
are such as can be drawn by one horse or mule. Among
these are the following: heel scrapes, sweeps, cultivators

 

Fic. 86.-—A Woreper.

with many small points, and one-horse spring-tooth culti-
vators (Fig. 87). Too often the cultivating implement is a
scooter, shovel or other implement tilling or cultivating but
a narrow strip of ground and running so deep as to cut
many of the corn roots.

The general rule should be to till corn shallow, that is,
to a depth of 14 to 2} inches, unless there are special
reasons for deeper tillage. Sometimes comparatively deep
tillage may be justifiable while the corn is less than one
foot high, especially on land that contains much clay and
CORN TILLAGE 173
that has been baked or run together by heavy rains, or
that was imperfectly plowed in the beginning.

When ‘‘scrapes”’ or similar implements are used, it is custom-
ary for the first working to be made with scrapes of the smaller

 

Fic. 87.— A ONE-HORSE, SPRING-TOOTH HARROW, WITH FENDERS.

sizes, usually 10 to 12 inches in width, gradually increasing the
size up to 30 inches or wider. The first tilling of corn can be much
more rapidly done if the cultivating implement is supplied with
fenders (Fig. 87), which are usually strips of metal attached to the
plow beam and trailing along the ground between the implement
174 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

and the young plant to protect the latter from being covered by
the upturned soil.

It is usually cheaper to kill young grass along the line of the
drill by smothering it with earth thrown on it than by the use of
the hoe; yet this working of the soil towards the plants should
not be carried to such an extent as to form high ridges along the
line of the row.

As a general rule, tillage implements with small points answer
well for the destruction of very young grass and weeds and for
forming a surface mulch. But, if crab grass or other tough
vegetation attains considerable size, it is usually necessary to
destroy it with some form of culling implement, such as a scrape
or sweep.

162. Two-horse cultivators. — These implements are
used to a considerable extent by the most progressive
farmers. They are of two general types: first, disk cul-
tivators, and second, cultivators armed with shovels,
scrapes, or small points. The former are more apt to
leave the land in high ridges and to cut rather deep.
When two-horse cultivators constitute the main reliance,
it is often advisable to give the last working with some
form of one-horse cultivator, after the plants are too large
to be straddled by the double cultivator.

163. Use of the turn-plow.—In the early years of
Southern agriculture, the turn-plow was an ordinary im-
plement of cultivation. As methods of farming have im-
proved, farmers have largely discarded the use of the
turn-plow as a cultivating implement. There are excep-
tional cases when its use is justifiable, for example, (1)
where grass is too large to be uprooted by ordinary tillage
and where it needs to be thrown away from the plants, and
to be killed by smothering with earth; (2) when the land
is cold and when budworms are injuring the young plants,
CORN TILLAGE 175

under which conditions the use of the turn-plow to “ bar
off ”’ the corn rows, that is, to throw the earth away from
the row, is justifiable. In such cases, the soil should be
returned to its original position as soon as the grass has
been killed.

164. Checking corn. — Checking consists in planting
corn in such a way that it can be worked or plowed in two

 

 

 

 

Fic. 88.— CuEeck-row Corn PLANTER, wiTH DovuBLe DIsKs TO OPEN
A Deep FurRRow.

directions. Most of the corn in the cotton-belt is not
checked, because the land is too rolling to be cultivated in
more than one direction. However, checking is in common
176 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

use on the less rolling lands, especially on the northern
edge of the cotton-belt; and its use on level and gently
rolling land should become more general throughout the
South.

The chief advantage of checking consists in the saving
of hand labor or hoeing. In order to practice checking,
the land should be nearly level or very gently rolling and
well drained, since checking cannot well be practiced where
it is necessary to plant on ridges, as is done on poorly
drained land. The yield of checked corn is nearly the
same as that from drilling, provided the number of plants
per acre be the same in each case.

Corn can be checked either by using a check-row planter,
(Fig. 88), or by carefully marking off rows at uniform dis-
tances and opening the planting furrows at regular inter-
vals and perpendicular to the first marking. The seed corn
may be carefully dropped by hand in the furrows where
they are intersected by the cross marks. In using a check-
row corn planter, two rows are planted at once at uniform
distances. This is done either by means of a wire at-
tached to the planter and stretching across the field, or by
having a second man to ride on the machine and regulate
the distance for dropping the seed.

165. Number of kernels to plant in a hill. — It is cus-
tomary throughout the cotton-belt to plant about three
grains in each hill, even though only one plant is to be
allowed to live. This thick planting is chiefly due to the
fear of the budworms, which kill many young plants when
3 to 10 inches high. It is also partly due to the use of seed
that germinates poorly and to insufficient preparation of
the land. Attention to these points will often make it
a

CORN TILLAGE 177

practicable to plant only one or two kernels in a place,
thus reducing the labor of thinning.

166. Thinning corn. — Since an excessive number of
grains is planted, subsequent thinning becomes necessary.
This should usually be postponed until after the plants are
10 to 12 inches high, by which time the young plants will
have ceased to die from injuries inflicted by budworms.

Thinning is usually done when the ground is too wet for
other work, by pulling the young plants, with the assistance
of a long paddle to uproot any that may break. Some
soils are injured if the thinning be done while the land is
very wet. Thinning is also done with a hoe, in which case
care must be taken to cut the young plant below the crown,
else it will again grow out.

167. Number of plants per hill. — Throughout the
greater part of the cotton-belt, except in its northern edge
and occasionally on rich bottom lands elsewhere, it is cus-
tomary to leave but a single corn plant in a hill, while in
the North and West it is usual for from 2 to 4 plants to
grow inone hill. |

The Southern practice of leaving only one plant in a hill is

‘due to the following conditions usually found in the South :—

(1) A thirsty soil;

(2) Comparatively shallow range of roots;

(3) The large size of Southern corn plants and their consequent
greater need for moisture; and

(4) The fact that but little corn is planted in checks.

Under ordinary conditions and on land producing not more
than 25 bushels of corn per acre it is doubtless best to leave only
one stalk in a hill. However, where the land is capable of produc-
ing 35 or more bushels per acre and of being planted in checks,
it will sometimes be advisable, in checking corn, to leave twa
plants in a hill.

N
178 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

168. Distances between rows and between plants. —
With corn, the general rule as to distance between rows
is the following: the poorer the land, the farther apart
must be the rows and the individual plants; while the
richer the land, the more closely may both rows and plants
be crowded together. This rule is exactly the opposite of
that for spacing cotton.

Varieties with small or medium-sized stalks may be
planted more thickly than those with large stalks. On
poor upland, where the yield is expected to be about 25
bushels per acre, it is best to allow not less than 15 square
feet for each plant. This is equivalent to rows 5 feet apart
and plants 3 feet, or to rows 6 feet apart and plants 23
feet apart. On richer uplands, fairly retentive of moisture
and where the yield is ordinarily from 25 to 40 bushels per
acre, the Georgia Experiment Station found advantageous
distances to be 43 feet by 32 inches, which gives 3630
plants per acre in a perfect stand. Other distances that
give practically the same number of plants per acre are 4
feet between rows and 3 feet between plants, or checks

1 feet apart both ways.

Experiments at the Georgia and Alabama Stations indicate
a slight advantage from so dividing the space allotted to each
plant as to give practically the same distance between plants
as between rows, that is, making the plants form a square.
_ However, economy of cultivation requires that this slight increase
be sacrificed in order that the rows may be made as wide as practi-
cable. Wide rows and closer planting in the drills save hoeing.
For example, one laborer ean hoe 5 acres of eorn planted in
5-foot rows in about the same time that he ean hoe four acres
if the rows are 4 feet wide. Horse cultivation is also econo-
mized by wider rows. Wide rows also permit the sowing and
CORN TILLAGE 179

cultivation of a row of cowpeas halfway between each pair of
corn rows.

While the spacing best for any particular field must be
decided by the farmer’s judgment, the following distances
are widely applicable in the cotton-belt : (1) for poor land,
rows 5 feet apart and plants 2} to 3 feet; (2) for good
upland, rows 4 to 5 and plants 2 feet apart, or checks 34
feet apart each way; (3) for good bottom land, rows 4
feet apart and plants at intervals of 1 to 2 feet. With
improvement in preparation and in fertilization and in
prize patches, corn may be planted considerably closer.

168a. ‘Laying by”’ the corn crop. — ‘‘ Laying by”’ is the
name given to the last cultivation or tilling. Most farmers
cease tilling corn just before the first tassels appear. Ex-
periments indicate that a later tilling, if quite shallow, is
often profitable. On the other hand, if the last cultivation
must be deep, or even moderately deep, it should not be
late. Deep tillage doubtless explains the prejudice against
late tillage.

In giving the final cultivation, care should be taken to
leave the surface as nearly level as practicable. In this
condition, there is a larger and more equally distributed
supply of moisture for the plant roots than would be the
case if the earth were heaped in ridges along the line of
plants. Among suitable implements for the last cultiva-
tion of corn are scrapes and one-horse spring-tooth cul-
tivators (Fig. 87).

169. Planting other crops with corn. — In the southern
parts of Alabama and Georgia and elsewhere, corn and
peanuts are often grown together by the following
method : —
180 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Two corn rows are planted early at distances of 3 or 34
feet; an interval of 6 or 7 feet is left, and then two more
corn rows are planted. In this interval is planted a row
of peanuts.

The Allison method of growing corn and cotton together consists
in the planting of two rows of corn and two rows of cotton,
the rows all being narrow, that is, of the usual distance for cotton
rows. Corn is planted more thickly in the drills than usual, the
rule being, in this method, to grow on each half acre occupied by
the corn rows as many hundred stalks as the number of bushels
of corn that one acre of this soil would be expected to yield in
solid corn, planted as usual. This alternation of the two crops is
advantageous to the corn, which receives additional light, and
probably more than its share of moisture and plant-food. There
are corresponding losses to the cotton crop. Moreover, should the
corn be blown down, the late cultivation of cotton would be pre-
vented.

The same criticisms apply, but to a less extent, to the occasional
practice of planting two adjacent rows of corn and then either six,
eight, or ten rows of cotton, repeating this indefinitely.

‘Crossed corn’’ is a method that seems to be localized in the
waxy lime lands of Alabama and Mississippi. It consists in the
planting in fields of cotton of a row of corn across or perpendicu-
lar to the cotton rows, at intervals of 16 to 30 feet, leaving 3 to 4
corn plants in each hill. This usually insures a crop of 4 to 10
bushels of corn per acre, in addition to the cotton crop. However,
the presence of the corn greatly reduces the yield of cotton. Ina
test at the Georgia Station, ‘‘crossed corn” in a cotton field
resulted in a financial loss, as compared with cotton grown
alone.

Another objection to ‘‘ crossed corn”’ is its interference with
late cultivation of the cotton, should the corn be blown down.
The principal justification of this practice lies in the fact that
many careless renters fail to cultivate their corn properly when
planted alone, but are more careful of the cultivation of cotton,
and hence of the corn grown in the cotton field.

6“
CORN TILLAGE 181

170. Sowing cowpeas in corn fields. — It is customary
among the best farmers throughout the cotton-belt to sow
cowpeas during the cultivation of corn. The objects
aimed at are : —

(1) Soil improvement, or an increase in the next year’s
crop on the same land;

(2) The production of cowpeas for seed or for pasturage;
and

(3) The making of cowpea hay, which is rarely the main
object and which usually requires that the corn rows be
about 6 feet apart.

There is need of investigation to determine whether
there are any disadvantages resulting from the planting of
cowpeas between the corn rows. In at least one experi-
ment in a very dry year, the yield of corn was materially
reduced by the presence of broadcast cowpeas. This in-
dicates the possibility of cowpeas making undue demands
for moisture in a year of scant rainfall. With ample rain-
fall cowpeas in the corn apparently do not reduce the yield
of the latter. As a rule cowpeas should be sown in the
corn field, using one of the customary methods.

171. Broadcast planting versus drilling of cowpeas in
corn. — Both broadcasting and drilling are extensively
used, but drilling is much more prevalent. The advantages
of drilling are the following : —

(1) It permits earlier sowing of the cowpeas;

(2) It permits later cultivation of the corn;

(3) It economizes seed, 1 to 2 pecks sufficing for an acre,
or less than half the seed necessary for broadcast sowing ; and

(4) The cowpeas are more certain to produce a crop of
seed.
182 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

 

Pig. 89. — CowWrnas GROWING BETWEEN Rows or CoRN.

182.
CORN TILLAGE 183

The disadvantages of drilling are noted below : —

(1) The smaller amount of hay or pasturage pro-
duced and the smaller amount of vegetable matter and
nitrogen left on the soil for the next year’s crop;

(2) Drilling cowpeas between corn rows may interfere
with the use of certain cultivating implements.

The advantages of broadcast sowing (Fig. 89) are the
larger amount of hay or pasturage and the greater amount
of fertility left onthe soil. Broadcast sowing has the follow-
ing disadvantages : —

(1) Corn must be “ laid by ” early, sometimes too early ;

(2) The cowpeas must be sown rather late;

(3) A much larger amount of seed is required, about 1
bushel of cowpeas per acre being customary ;

(4) The stand of cowpeas may be poor, due to the en-
forced shallow covering and to the lateness of planting.

A good general rule is to give preference to broadcast
sowing when cowpea seed are cheap and abundant, and to
practice drilling this legume when a large yield of seed is
desired.

172. Method of sowing broadcast cowpeas in corn.— In
broadcast sowing, the work is usually done by hand, or with
a broadcast seed-sower slung over the shoulder. Covering
is effected by giving the usual last cultivation to the corn,
which sometimes covers the cowpeas to an insufficient
depth. It is not customary to fertilize the cowpeas grown
in corn fields, whether sown broadcast or in drills. This
is probaby because there is no easy method of applying
fertilizer in this case, unless it be found practicable to use
between the corn rows a one-horse grain drill with fertil-
izer attachment. However, fertilizers are usually helpful
184 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

and they can be sown broadcast by hand, though the dis-
tribution is irregular and inconvenient.

173. Methods of planting cowpeas in drills between
corn. — The methods employed in drilling cowpeas are
numerous. Among them are the following : —

(1) Dropping a hill of cowpeas between each pair of
corn hills, covering the seed either with a hoe or with the
earth: thrown toward the corn in cultivation. The use of
a hand planter should supplant this method.

(2) Drilling cowpeas by hand in one of the siding fur-
rows near the corn row, covering the seed with soil thrown
by the next outer cultivating furrow. The chief incon-
venience of this method is the inability in later tillings
to run the cultivator close to that side of the corn row.

(3) Drilling by hand or planter a row of cowpeas in the
water-furrow ae halfway between the two adjacent
rows of corn.

Of all drilling methods, the last mentioned is apparently
the most common and practicable. It is usually done at
the next to the last or even at the third from the last cul-
tivation. The subsequent tillage of corn serves also to
cultivate the cowpeas.

(4) A combination may be made of plan 3 with either
1 or 2, or with both, thus giving several rows of the legume
between the two adjacent corn rows.

By using a combined planter and fertilizer distributor for
sowing cowpeas, the crop can be fertilized at the same time. It
will probably be profitable in most cases thus to fertilize cowpeas
in the corn fields wherever they would profit by fertilization if
sown alone; 100 to 200 pounds of acid phosphate per acre will
usually be sufficient.
CORN TILLAGE 185

In the third method mentioned above, the rows should be at
least 42 feet apart. The first and second methods permit nar-
rower Corn rows.

174. The Williamson method of cornculture.— Recently
a system of corn culture bearing the name of its originator,
McIver Williamson, of South Carolina, has come into
prominence on account of some of the large yields that have
been produced by it or by modifications of it. The dis-
tinctive feature of this method consists in the stunting or
dwarfing of the young corn plant (1) by withholding a part
of the usual cultivation in the early period of the plant’s
life, (2) by postponing the application of any fertilizer until
the plants are thoroughly stunted, and (3) by the root
pruning of the young plants by means of deep cultivation.

While the intentional stunting belongs exclusively to
this method, the Williamson system of corn culture in-
cludes many good features that form a part of the practice
of the best farmers employing various methods. Among
the strong points of this method, and of other methods as
well, are the following : —

(1) Deep and thorough preparation ;

(2) Frequent use in the rotation of cowpeas sown broad-
cast in the corn field, the effect of which is to enrich the
land ;

(3) The use of large amounts of fertilizers ;

(4) Thick planting along the line of the row, which is
rendered especially practicable in the case of the William-
son method by the small size of the plants, the abundance
of the fertilizer, and the thoroughness of preparation.

The following condensed directions are quoted from an article
by the originator of this method : —
186 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

“Lay off the land in rows six feet apart, and bed on these furrows
with turn-plow until only a five-inch balk is left between these
beds. When ready to plant, break out this balk with six-inch
shovel or scooter, and follow deep in furrow with narrow plow.
Ridge on this furrow with one round of same narrow plow.
Plant in this ridge twice as thick as corn is to be left, one grain in
a hill, and cover shallow. Plant as early as your seasons and the
nature of the land will permit.

““When your corn first needs work, run on both sides with har-
row or small plow (Fig. 90) ; when itis about eight inches high, give
second working by running
around it on both sides, if
on sandy land, with ten-
inch scrape, or sweep, set on

; rat : point, and if on stiff land
sie ne anita Be ied A ase atoyel, Thin not
Melver Williamson.) Leave these furrows

open and do not work corn
again until it is so stunted as to prevent its ever growing larger
than is necessary to make what corn the land is able to produce.
On poor or cold land from ten to twelve days may be enough,
while rich soil may take twice as long. When you think that it
has stood long enough apply one half of mixed fertilizer in the
open furrows next to corn, of every other middle, and cover by
breaking out this middle with turn-plow. And side the eorn at
once in this middle with fifteen-inch scrape, pushing dirt around
it, and covering any grass that turn-plow has left. Corn should
now be about knee high.

“Within a week give other middle same treatment, then go
back to first middle as soon as possible, and sow half of nitrate of
soda in scrape furrows next corn, and cover as fast as sown with
one round of turn-plow, shallow. Then sow peas broadeast
in this middle at rate of a bushel per acre, unless very searee,

when they may be dropped, and cover by breaking out middle
shallow.

     

 

Fic. 90. —Tae WiILuramMson MrrHop
F Corn CULTURE.

 

‘A few days later treat the other middle same way, which
lays by corn on slight bed with dirt around the feed roots, before
CORN TILLAGE 187

bunching for tassel. Lay by early... (Fig. 91). No hoeing
should be necessary.

“On sandy soils i would use for a 25-40 bushel yield, 100
pounds acid phosphate, 100 pounds cotton-seed meal and 200
pounds kainit per acre, mixed, and 75 pounds nitrate of soda at
last plowing, leaving corn 16-20 inches in drill, rows 6 feet apart.

 

Fic. 91.—Conpition oF SURFACE AFTER ‘‘ LAYING BY’’ CORN ACCORD-
ING TO THE WILLIAMSON PLAN.

(Redrawn after Mr. Williamson's diagram.)

For 40-60 bushel yield, I would double the amount of mixed
fertilizer, and also use 125 pounds of nitrate of soda, leaving corn
14-16 inches in drill, rows 6 feet apart. Clay land is said, to
require more phosphoric acid and less potash.”’

In the majority of experiments published prior to 1910,
and made at the South Carolina, Alabama, and Georgia
Experiment Stations, the yield of corn was less under the
Williamson method than with the best of the methods with
which it was compared and in which equal amounts of
similar fertilizers were employed. However, when various
modifications of the Williamson method have been applied
by farmers, frequently without notably stunting the corn,
large yields have often resulted, — as has likewise been
the case when farmers have employed any other system
188 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

of corn culture involving the use of higher fertilization than
usual.

Apparently the best lessons impressed by the Williamson
method are (1) the special value of nitrate of soda as a fertilizer
for corn and (2) the possibility, under favorable conditions, of
planting corn much thicker than is the custom in the cotton-
belt.

It also possesses whatever advantages belong to the common
system of planting corn in the water-furrow on well-drained sandy
land. As before pointed out, the tendency is for most varieties of
Southern corn to grow a larger stalk than is necessary for the
production of the maximum amount of grain. A slight diminu-
tion is size in doubtless desirable, so as to reduce the demand on
the soil for water and to increase the number of plants that may
be grown advantageously on an acre; but whether this decrease in
size of stalk should be brought about gradually by selection or
suddenly effected by moderate checking of growth is yet to be
determined by accurate investigation.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

(1) If corn plants are available for this purpose, study the
effects of root pruning on four sets of plants, by running a knife or
hatchet or axe three inches on each side of the row and to depths
of 2, 3, 4, and 5 inches respectively. This may be repeated with
plants of different heights between 6 inches and 6 feet.

(2) Most of the practice to accompany this chapter should
consist of observations and note-taking on such experiments as
may be at hand, or on methods in local use by farmers.

LITERATURE

Myricx, H. The Book of Corn. New York.

Hunt. The Cereals in America, pp. 218-242. New York, 1904.
Duaear, J. F. Ala. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 111 and 134.
Wiuuiams, C. B., and others. N.C. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 204
Reppina, R. J. Ga. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 55, 58, and 62,
CHAPTER X
CORN — HARVESTING

In the Southern States the usual methods of harvesting
corn and corn forage are the following : —

(1) Pulling or jerking the ears, afterwards stripping the
blades ;

(2) Pulling the ears, leaving the blades to be grazed by
live-stock ;

(3) Pulling the ears, and cutting the tops for forage ;

(4) Cutting and shocking the stalks with ears and leaves.

175. Pulling the ears.— The first three methods of
harvesting require the pulling of the ears from the standing
plant, after they are thoroughly mature. It is customary
in the cotton-belt to pull the ears with the greater part of
the shuck attached. Here corn is usually placed in the
crib without being shucked or husked. However, in some
communities, the unshucked corn is thrown under a shel-
ter adjoining the crib, and when other work permits, it
is husked and thrown into the crib.

176. Handling the ears.—In the South, the most
usual method is for each laborer to pull two rows of corn
as he advances across the field, and to throw the ears into
flattish heaps or piles on every sixth or eighth row; the
ears are picked up later and thrown into a wagon driven

between two heap rows. This is a laborious method.
189
SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

190

‘NUOD PNILSTAUVH NI Gasn AGOA-NODVA, NO ,,dUVOd-MOUNT,,, ONIMOHS — "7G OL

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
CORN HARVESTING 191

An improvement consists in throwing the corn directly
into the wagon as it is pulled. This is more readily done
if a “‘ throw-board,” or side-board, 2 to 3 feet high, is placed
on top of the side of the wagon-body farthest from the men.
This necessitates loading the wagon from but one side
and keeps the ears from being thrown beyond the wagon
(Fig. 92). ;

The wagon should also have a hind-gate that is readily
removable so as to permit the use of a grain shovel in
unloading the ears.

When it is advisable to husk the corn as it is pulled from
the stalk, a husking-pin, buckled to the hand, is helpful.
The shucking of the corn before storing it is probably
useful in reducing the number of weevil introduced into
the crib.

177. Stripping the blades. —In order that the forage
or “fodder,” for which the blades are sometimes used,
may be of good quality, the blades are usually stripped
while most of the leaves are still green. The effect is to
reduce the yield of grain. The loss, as shown in many
tests, averaged nearly three bushels per acre. This reduc-
tion in yield of corn is due to the fact that some of the
material in the green leaf, if it had been left on the plant,
would have been carried in the circulation of the plant to
the ear, which is not mature at the time of “ fodder pull-
ing.”

Another objection to the common custom of pulling fod-
der is the cost of the labor. The usual yield of cured leaves
ranges between 300 and 600 pounds per acre, or about
one fourth as many pounds of dry leaves as of shelled grain.
Fodder pulling is slow and extremely disagreeable work.
192 SOUTHERN FIELD UROPS

Usually it pays much better to employ the same labor in
curing hay, in which operation a day’s work will provide
several times as much forage as one day spent in fodder
pulling.?

178. Topping corn. — Occasionally corn stalks are cut
just above the ears. The yield of tops is but little more
than the yield of blades or ‘“‘ fodder ’’ would be, and the
quality of tops is poorer, while the labor is about the same.
Topping does not greatly reduce the yield of grain, if post-
poned until quite late. On the whole, it is a very un-
profitable operation.

179. Cutting and shocking corn. — When performed
at the proper time, this does not materially reduce the
yield of grain. The time to cut corn is when practically
all outer shucks have turned straw-color, at which time
the grains have hardened. This is usually about ten days
later than the stage at which “ fodder ”’ is ordinarily pulled.
The advantages of this method of harvesting corn are the
following: (1) all the forage is saved; (2) the use of the
land for the next crop, except a small space occupied by
the shock, can be had at an earlier date; (3) it frees the
land from corn stalks and hence puts it in better condition
for seeding to small grain; and (4) it permits the harvesting
of the corn crop by machinery.

180. The extent of the saving by cutting and shocking
corn. — It is often stated that the stover (that is, the
leaves, shucks, and stalks) are nearly equal in feeding
value to the ears produced on the same area. This is not
true for ordinary Southern corn, so large a proportion of

1For a financial statement relative to fodder pulling, see Georgia
Experiment Station Bul. No. 74, page 278.
19

CORN HARVESTING 19:

Q

which consists of a coarse stalk having but little nutritive
value. It would probably be a high estimate to say that
30 per cent of the total feeding value of the entire plant
of large Southern corn is found in the stover. Yet corn
stover is a source of forage well worth saving, especially
where hay is scarce or expensive.

There is usually about one ton of stover for every 25 or 30
bushels of grain produced by large Southern varieties. If this
stover is shredded, it may have a higher feeding value than
an equal weight of cotton-seed hulls. In composition, corn stover
is superior to cotton-seed hulls, but the former is less convenient
for feeding in connection with cotton-seed meal.

In one experiment in South Carolina, the cost of cutting and
shocking corn was no greater than the cost of pulling the ears from
an equal area of standing plants. However, the usual experience
is that the former operation generally requires somewhat more
labor than merely pulling the ears.

Whether it is advisable to cut and shock corn or merely to pull
the ears, leaving the blades to be grazed by cattle, depends upon
(1) the abundance and cheapness of hay, and (2) the cost of
shredding, including labor, cost of power, interest and depreciation
on shredder, ete.

Cutting corn and subsequently shredding it will generally be
profitable where the cost of shredding is less than $2.50 per ton of
stover in regions of cheap hay; or where it is less than $4.00 per
ton in regions of scarce and high-priced hay. To this rule
there will obviously be many exceptions.

When no shredder is available, it is doubtful whether there is
any advantage in cutting and shocking corn as compared with
merely pulling the ears and grazing the field. The basis for this
statement is the fact that it requires more labor to pull the ears
by hand from the shocked corn than from the standing plants, and
the further fact that quite a large proportion of the stover of
large Southern corn, if fed without shredding, is not eaten by
live-stock.

oO
194 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

181. Methods of cutting corn. —Corn may be cut
(1) by hand implements, as with a hoe or corn knife,
(2) by a sled cutter, or (3) by a corn binder or harvester.
The choice between these is chiefly determined by the cost
of each method and by the acreage to be cut. Even when
the cost of cutting by hand and by machinery is identical,
the harvester has the advantage of making the owner less
dependent upon hired labor, and of enabling him to do
the work promptly and with less exertion.

182. Cutting corn by hand. — The usual implement for
cutting corn is a heavy corn or cane knife. Sometimes

 

Fic. 93.—Suockine Horse.

b is a broom handle or gas pipe; the stalks of corn are leaned in the
four angles where it passes through the long board ; after the shock is
tied the broom handle is pulled out and the ‘‘ shocking horse withdrawn.

a sharp hoe is used. To form the shocks, one may either
use a shocking horse (Fig. 93), or he may form a support
for the shock by tying together the tops of plants on four
hills, which plants are not cut. The row on which shocks
are to be located is usually every tenth or twelfth row.
CORN HARVESTING 195

As each armful of plants is cut, it is carefully placed on
the shock in a nearly upright position. Some farmers
prefer to cut first the rows adjoining the shock row, so
that after placing the plants from these rows on the
shock, a few minutes are allowed for these to dry slightly
before the layers of plants from rows farther out are
added to the shock.

In the South shocks should not be very large, but should
usually contain between 150 and 200 plants. One that
is too large is lable to fall and to result in the molding
of some of the immature ears in the center of the mass.
A very small shock, on the other hand, exposes too
large a proportion of its forage to injury from sun and
rain.

The shock (Fig. 94), when completed, should be tied
tightly with binder twine, about two feet from the top.
The shock can be drawn together by a short rope, in one
end of which is a hook. The other end of the rope is
passed through this hook and by means of a slip-knot
the shock is tightened while the string is being tied. About
ten days later, after the plants have settled together, the
tie should again be tightened in the same way. In making
shocks, great care must be taken so to construct them that
they will not later fall. This is best done by care in placing
the plants against the shock, an equal number on all sides,
and in a nearly upright position, and by keeping the top
of the shock from twisting, when pulled together by a
rope.

The corn should stand in the shocks or in a rick at
least one month before it will be dry enough to be
shredded.
SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

196

(TONLE JUUILIAd XA] BMTOYR[YAO)

“daYDOHY TIAM NIOD — "FH ‘DIY

 

 

 
CORN HARVESTING 197

 

Fic. 95.—Siep Corn Cotter, witH AUTOMATIC KNIFE GUARDS.

183. The sled cutter (Fig. 95).— This implement consists
essentially of a sled on wheels; on one edge of this sled or
low platform is attached a long, sharp knife, sloping
backward at an oblique angle to the row of corn.

The sled is driven
near enough to
the row for the
slanting knife to
cut the corn with
a sliding cut.

A man, standing
on the platform,
catches the cut corn
in his arms; when
he has an armful,
he stops the team
and places the corn
on the nearest
shock. The cost of

 

Fie. 96.—A Home-mapm Simp Corn CUTTER.
198 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

this cutter made at home from a long seythe blade may be as
low as $10.00 (Fig. 96), while the cutters on wheels, with every
facility for better work, cost about twice as much.

The sled cutter is drawn by one animal or by two, hitched
tandem. If it be equipped with a blade on each side, soas to cut
two rows at once, two men catch and shock the cut corn. For
the convenient use of such two-row cutters, corn rows should be
of a uniform width, suited to the width of the cutter. This is
one of the cheapest methods of cutting corn.

184. The corn binder or harvester (Fig. 97). — This ma-
chine cuts the corn and binds it into large bundles. It is
usually drawn by three horses or mules. The ordinary
cost is about $125. This limits its use to those farmers
or groups of coédperating farmers who can use it each year
to cut a considerable acreage, say 30 acres or more. It
cuts a single row at a time and may cut 6 or 8 acres in a
day. Ifa charge is made for the team, the cost of cutting
and shocking and of twine is often about equal to the cost
of cutting by hand and shocking. But the machine per-
mits prompt work and economizes human labor. Where
the height of the corn is excessive or the rows short, hand
cutting is preferable.

The bundles from the machine must usually be stacked by hand.
Some binders have a bundle-earrying attachment, which reduces
the jabor of shocking. In any case, it is easier and more satisfae-
tory to shock bundles than to shock unbound corn eut by hand.
The corn binder usually breaks off a sufficient number of ears to
require that these be picked up by hand.

A shocker is a machine more complicated and costly than the
eorn binder. It carries on a platform all of the unbound corn
plants, until it gathers enough for a shoek, when the team is
stopped and the driver, by means of a hoisting device or frame,
transfers the corn from the machine to the ground, where it forms
199

CORN HARVESTING

 

AAUVE, NUOY Y—'L6 “OWT

 

 

 
200 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

a complete shock. This stopping of the machine greatly reduces
the area of corn harvested. For this reason, and because of the
greater cost and complexity of the machinery, the shocker cannot
yet be generally recommended to Southern farmers. The latter
criticism applies also to the recently invented machine for pulling
the ears of corn from the standing plants.

185. Shredding corn. — A shredder is a machine that
tears the stover into small fragments and which, at the

     

: A, cs t
Fic. 98.— Corn Husker AND SHReDDER AT Work.

same time, removes the ear and takes from it nearly all
of the shuck (Fig. 98). To drive a shredder requires con-
siderable power.

The following are among the advantages of shredding
stover as compared with feeding it whole ;—

(1) The removal of the ears from the stalks and the
partial shucking of the ears ;
CORN IARVESTING 201

(2) The larger proportion of shredded stover that is
eaten ;

(3) The greater economy in handling shredded stover,
which can either be baled at once or blown by the shredder
into the barn;

(4) The finer condition and greater value of the manure
that is free from long corn stalks, and the cleaner condition
of the field from which corn stalks have been removed.

Against these advantages must be placed the cost of
shredding, including cost of power, labor, and interest,
depreciation, and repairs on the shredder. These several
charges have sometimes been found to range between
$1.50 and $3 per ton of stover.

186. Corn cribs. —In cribs, or buildings intended for
the storage of corn, three aims should be kept in mind:
(1) ventilation, (2) prevention of injury by rats and mice,
and (3) minimizing the injury from attacks of weevil and
other grain insects. In most Southern cribs, the only care
is usually to provide ventilation. This is done by making
the sides of slats, or narrow planks nailed on the inside of
the framing, in a horizontal position. Such a slatted con-
struction is probably best for the storage of large amounts
of unhusked corn, where there is the chance that some of
it may be wet or immature when harvested. Even the
slatted cribs can be made rat-proof by lining them through-
out, on sleepers, studding, and joists, with strong wire
netting, usually with meshes about one fourth inch in size.
The additional expense is considerable, but in the end this
expenditure is profitable.

Sometimes a small, detached crib is rendered rat-proof
and mouse-proof by placing it on tall pillars, the upper
202 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

portion of each pillar being wrapped with new tin, or else
each pillar being topped with an inverted tin pan, having
no rim. An objection to this form of construction is the
greater height to which the corn must be thrown in un-
loading the wagons.

187. Prevention of injury by weevils in cribs. — Weevils
cause a greater loss than do either defective ventilation
or rats and mice. The remedy for weevils is the vapor of
carbon ‘disulfide (Par. 194), which can only be applied
ina tight crib. Yet the double provision for ventilation
and for prevention of weevil injury cannot well be pro-
vided in a single crib of any of the ordinary kinds.

Probably the need for an extreme amount of ventila-
tion has been overestimated. For many years the Ala-
bama Experiment Station has stored annually several
hundred bushels of unshucked corn in a tight crib made
of 12-inch boards, with as small cracks between them as
possible. In this crib it is practicable to destroy most of
the weevil in unshucked corn by the use of carbon disul-
fide. In using such a tight crib, it would be necessary
to store elsewhere, in some slatted crib, that part of the
crop that is not thoroughly mature, or that is put into
the erib when very wet.

It would probably also be advantageous, when practicable, to
shuck the corn before storing it in such a tight crib, for the
following reasons: (1) The crib would hold about twice as many
bushels of shucked as of unshucked corn; (2) The weevils could
be killed with a smaller amount of carbon disulfide.

In the case of a farmer putting part of his corn in a slatted erib
and part in a tight crib, that from the slatted crib should be used
first, since the corn in the tight erib could be kept sound through
the next summer by the occasional use of carbon disulfide, while
CORN HARVESTING 203

the corn in the slatted crib would be severely attacked by weevils
on the approach of warm weather, or earlier.

Single loads of corn, whether shucked or unshucked, that can
be left in the wagon for three hours or longer, for example over

 

 

 

 

Fic. 99.—A Fretp of Corn IN ALABAMA THAT YIELDED 103} BusHELS
PER ACRE.

night, may be rendered weevil-free by the following plan, which
is recommended by Dr. W. E. Hinds: Make the wagon-body
204 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

tight, preferably reénforcing it by folding a large grain sheet of
osnaburgs over the bottom, sides, and top. Place about three
pounds of carbon disulfide in shallow cans near the top of a
large load of unshucked corn, or a smaller amount in each load
of shucked corn. Such loads of fumigated corn should be placed
in separate and detached cribs to be kept as the last corn used
the next spring or summer.

Keep lighted pipes and all lights away from carbon disulfide,
since the fumes are highly combustible.

188. Yields of maize. — The average corn crop of most,
Southern States is below 20 bushels per acre. Yet indi-
vidual farms in the South sometimes average more than
50 bushels per acre. There are a number of authentic
records of yields of more than 100 bushels of corn per
acre made by Southern farmers on upland soil (Fig. 99).

Two of the largest yields on record were made in the
South. These were 254 bushels and 49 pounds of shelled
corn (or “ 239 bushels of crib-cured corn’’) per acre, made
by Z. J. Drake in South Carolina (IKKan. Board Agr., Dec.,
1905, p. 208), and 2262 bushels per acre obtained by
J. F. Batts in North Carolina in 1909.

In the first case the manure, cotton-seed, and other
fertilizers cost about as much as the value of the corn at
the prices then prevailing. In the latter case also, very
large amounts of manure and fertilizer were employed.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

When practicable, students should spend several laboratory
periods in the field comparing different methods of harvesting, for
example : —

(1) Determine the proportion of the weight of the shucked ear
to the aggregate weight of shuck, leaves, and stalk, all thoroughly
air-dried.
CORN HARVESTING 205

(2) Practice cutting and shocking corn; or if the crop is al-
ready in shocks, open and remake several of them.

(3) Examine a number of mature ears to ascertain whether
the completeness of the covering by the shuck has any relation
to the amount of injury by weevils.

LITERATURE

Dvueear, J. F. Ala. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 134.

Reppine, R. J. Ga. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 74.

Hays, W. M., Parker, E. C., and others. Minn. Expr. Sta.,
Buls. Nos. 97 and 117.

Mooreuouse, L. A. Okla. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 87.

Hartiey,C. P. U.S. Dept. Agr., Farmer’s Bul. No. 313.

ZINTHEO, C.J. U.S. Dept. Agr., Farmer’s Bul. No. 203.

Bowman, M.L., and Crosstry, B. W. Corn, pp. 202-211 ; 370-
381. Ames, Ia., 1908.

Scuutte, J. I., and others. Rpt. Office Expr. Stas., 1904, pp.
523-533; and Kan. Board Agr., Dec., 1905, pp. 105-113
and 218-238.
CHAPTER XI

CORN — ENEMIES

Maize suffers from a number of insects and fungous
diseases, although farmers usually do not find it necessary

to treat the crop in the field.

The most important corn

enemies in the South are described in this chapter.

INSECTS

189. Budworms. — This is the larval or grub stage of a

small beetle,

  

Fic,

100.— THE
(Diabrotica 12-punctata).

OF CoRN

Bupworm

On right, adult beetle ; in center, grub
which bores into young plants; and on
left, base of a young corn plant showing
holes made by budworms. (Beetle and
grub magnified.)

206

the twelve-spotted lady-bug

(Diabrotica
12-punctata). The beetle
or mature insect feeds on
almost any form of green
vegetation and may spe-
cially be noticed early
in the season on alfalfa,
clover, and early vege-
tables. It is only about
one fourth of an inch
in length; its color is a
greenish yellow, and on
its wing-cases, or back,
are twelve black spots
(Fig. 100). The egg is
laid on or near the young
corn plant soon after
germination, at a point
CORN INSECTS 207

just under the surface of the ground. The egg develops
into a small white grub, with a darker head, which bores
into the central part of the young stem. As a result, the
bud, or group of central leaves of the plant, wilts and
usually dies. The injury is practically confined to the
young plants between the heights of 2 and 12 inches.

No direct remedies have thus far been found for the
budworm. The injury is worse in low wet land and in
fields where weeds, corn, or certain other crops have grown.
Rotation may be of some value, but the main reliance is
in very late planting. Corn planted very early is also
less apt to be seriously injured than when planting is done
in mid-season. “There seems to be an advantage in caus-
ing the plant to pass as rapidly as possible through the
earlier stages of growth, during which it is subject to this
injury. To this end, small amounts of nitrate of soda,
applied at time of planting near each hill, are believed to
be helpful. Fields where injury from budworm are ex-
pected are usually planted quite thickly. When many
of the young plants are being injured by budworms it is
sometimes considered advantageous to “bar off” the corn
rows and thus warm the soil.

190. Cutworms.— There are many species of cut-
worms, all of which cut the young corn plant. They are
worse where clover, weeds, or other rank vegetation has
grown the preceding year. It is sometimes recommended
that cutworms be poisoned just before the time of planting
corn by scattering over the field the following preparation :
1 pound Paris green, 1 bushel wheat bran, thoroughly
mixed and moistened with sufficient water to which has
been added one quart of molasses.
208 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

.
Vira. 101.— Eaas or Corn EAr-worm on Corn SILKS.
CORN INSECTS 209

191. Grasshoppers. — The usual means of combating
these consist in driving special catching devices, called
“ hopper-dozers,” through surrounding areas of meadow
or weeds, where the grasshoppers congregate.

 

 

 

Fic, 102.— Tue Corn Ear-worm At Work IN THE TIP OF AN EAR
Pp OF GREEN CORN.
210 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

192. Corn ear-worm, or cotton boll worm ( Heliothis
obsoleta). — This is the same insect as the cotton boll worm
(see Par. 359). The eggs
are laid by a large grayish
brown moth, which, es-
pecially towards evening,
may be found hovering
over fields of corn, cotton,
and cowpeas. The eggs
are placed on the silks
(Fig. 101), leaves, or
other parts of the corn
plant. After these hatch,
the young worms, or lar-
vee, find their way into the
tip of the ear and destroy
the tip grains. Their in-
jury consists, not only in
the grains destroyed (Fig.
102), but in admitting
rain to the ear and possi-
bly in giving easier access
to weevils. The remedy
usually recommended is
plowing the land in the
late fall or winter. The
object in this is to break
& up the burrows under-
Xi ground in which this in-

TTa. 03.— Tur Cor? WAR-WORD . .
Hic: 103.—"Tan CORN HAR-WORM coot in the chrysalis, or
PREYING ON THE TrNnpeR LEaves x

or Corn. pupal condition, spends

 
CORN INSECTS 21)

the winter (see Par. 360). This insect sometimes seriously
injures the ‘‘bud”’ or upper leaves of corn plants several
feet high (Fig. 103).

193. Chinch bugs (Blissus leucopterus). Fortunately
this pest, which is serious in the corn belt and sometimes
in the Southwest, seldom occurs in the southeastern part
of the United States. When present, chinch bugs crawl
in hordes from the wheat fields toward the growing corn.
The corn field may be pro-
tected by surrounding it by
a narrow strip of plowed
land, kept constantly culti-
vated, so as to form a deep
layer of dust; or by sur-
rounding the corn field with
a deep furrow, the bottom
of which is kept dusty by
frequently dragging through
it a heavy log. At inter-
vals in the bottom of this
furrow deeper holes may be
made. When the small in-
sects accumulate in these
holes, they are killed by the
use of kerosene. ; ,

104. Weevils (Colne 0 1 Bae serio
oryza (Fig. 104), and grain Greatly enlarged. (Photo by W. E.
moths. — The rice weevil Hinds.)
attacks the matured corn grain in the fields and con-
tinues its depredations in the crib, during almost every
month in the year. Some eggs are laid while the ears

 
212 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

Pic. 105.— An Ear or Corn
INJURED BY WEEVILS.
(W. Ie. Hinds.)

are still in the field; and later
generations develop in the crib.
Early varieties and those with soft
grains are most susceptible to in-
jury (Fig. 105). Late planting of
medium or late varieties escapes
injury, or reduces the number of
weevils finding access to the ears
in the field. Doubtless much can
be done to lessen the weevil injury
by selecting corn with a view to
weevil resistance. The qualities
tending to decrease the number of
weevil, but not entirely to avoid
them, are (1) a shuck that. fits
tightly over the end of the ear and
(2) agrain that is quite hard. Any
means that decrease the number
of corn ear-worms would indirectly
reduce the injury from weevils,
which often enter the ear through
the openings made by the former.

However, the chief reliance must
he on fumigating the stored grain
with the vapors made by carbon
disulfide. This liquid’ readily
evaporates, or changes from a
liquid to a gaseous form. This
imphes the necessity for tight
eribs, or for other means of treat-
ing the grain in tight compart-
CORN INSECTS 213

ments. A larger amount of carbon disulfide is needed
for the treatment of unshucked corn than in treating an
equal volume of shucked or shelled corn. The amount of
liquid to use for each thousand cubic feet of space in a bin
of shelled corn is from 10 to 20 pounds if the crib is very
tight and the weather warm.
Since these fumes are heavier
than air, the liquid may be
placed in shallow vessels near
the top of the pile of grain;
or it may be poured directly
on the top of the pile of corn.
It is best to cover the pile
while under treatment with
grain sheets or other heavy
cloth, leaving it thus tightly
covered for twenty-four hours.

The vapors of carbon di-
sulfide are very inflamma-
ble, so that it is dangerous
for a lighted pipe, cigarette, :
or lantern to be brought into Fre. 106.— Larva or ANGOUMOIS
the barn or crib while the _ Mor 1n 4 Grarn or Corn.
odor of carbon disulfide ig Pulareedfivetimes. (W. B. Hinds.)
present. This liquid should be handled as carefully as
gasolene. The fumes should not be inhaled for many
minutes, but a few breaths of this gas do not injure
men or domestic animals.

The larve of several tiny grain-moths, among them the
Indian meal moth (Fig.107), injure stored corn. The rem-
edy for all of these consists in the use of carbon disulfide.

 
214 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Funacous DIsEASES

While the corn plant is subject to a few diseases, these
are not known to cause much injury in the South, with
the exception of those mentioned
below, which injure chiefly the ear.

195. Corn smut ( Ustilago may-
dis). — The presence of this disease
is first shown by a large swelling
on the ear, the stem, the tassel, or
the leaf (Fig. 108). At first, this
protruding mass is covered with a
whitish skin, which later bursts,
setting free clouds of black powder.
These powdery particles are the
spores, or bodies answering the

Fic. 107. — Tue INDIAN purpose of seed, and serving to
Meat Morn.

 

Fis i spread the disease to the next year’s
Enlarged. (Photo by W. crop. These spores gain entrance
K. Hinds.) to the young plant after it has
appeared above ground. The spread of this disease 1s
due to smut masses left in the soil by a preceding corn
crop, or blown in by the wind from surrounding corn
fields. No treatment of the seed is effective.

The method of spread of the disease suggests the means
of decreasing it im subsequent crops, by gathering and
burning the smut masses before the whitish skin breaks
and sets free the spores. On the same principle, rotation
of crops is advisable, especially if this results in growing
corn on land where no surrounding fields in the preceding
year matured smut spores.
CORN INSECTS 215

196. Ear rots of corn.— These have been found to be
due to minute organisms, most of them belonging to two
groups of fungi
(Diplodia and
Fusarium), and in
rarer cases to un-
identified bacteria.

In some of the ear
rots, the shuck, as
well as the grain and
cob, is discolored,
while in others only
the grains and cobs
are reduced to a
shriveled mass cov-
ered with white,
pink, or reddish
mold-like threads.

The Illinois Ex-
periment Station
(Bul. 133) has found
these fungous rots
to be spread by
spores left on the
shanks of the corn
crop of the two pre-
ceding years. Hence,
the remedy is plant- Fic
ing of corn on a field
on or near which no corn, injured by these diseases, has been
grown for the last two years. Doubtless the burning of the dis-
eased stalks promptly after harvest would tend to prevent the
spread of ear rots to subsequent crops.

 

. 108.— Corn Sauovr.
215 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

LABORATORY EXERCISES

(1) Examine the tips of a number of ears of corn and make an
estimate of the percentage of ears injured in that field by the corn
ear-worm.

(2) Make germination tests, preferably in the open ground,
of 100 weevil-eaten and of 100 sound kernels; determine

(a) the percentage of each that germinates, and
(b) the difference, if any, in the size of the young plants
when a few weeks old.

LITERATURE

Burrett, T. J., and Barrett, T. J. (Ear rots.) Ill. Expr. Sta.,
Bul. No. 133.

Stevens, F. L. (Ear rots.) N. C. Expr. Sta., Rpt. 1907-’8,
pp. 37-39.

Bisuop, F. C., and others. (Corn ear-worm.) U.S. Dept. Agr.,
Farmer’s Buls. Nos. 212 and 290.

Bowman, M. L., and Crosstey, B. W. Corn (Diseases and
insects), pp. 229-260. Ames, Ia., 1908.

CHITTENDEN, F. H., and others. U.S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Ent.,
Cire. No. 59; and Kan. Board Agr., Dec., 1905, pp. 258-264.
CHAPTER XII
RICE — Oryza SATIVA

Rice is one of the grains included in the great family
of the grasses. Its seeds are borne in loose heads or
panicles at the top of each stem somewhat as in oats
(Fig. 109). The root system is shallow and fibrous. Rice
is grown along coasts, from the Carolinas south, and also
in certain irrigable, low, inland regions. It is grown only
in tropical and subtropical regions and in the southern
part of the temperate zone. It is cultivated in practically
all countries having such climates.

Rice serves as the principal food for a larger number
of human beings than any other crop. In the densely
populated countries of Asia, especially in China, India,
and Japan, it is the principal article of human food.

Rice was introduced into South Carolina near the close
of the seventeenth century. Until quite recently rice pro-
duction in the United States was centered in South Caro-
lina and in the adjacent coastal regions of North Carolina,
Georgia, and Florida. After the civil war, rice culture
developed in the Mississippi bottoms in Louisiana, where
a small amount had been grown before the war. In the
eighties, the rice industry was established in the south-
western part of Louisiana. At the present time, this latter
region, with the adjacent portion of Texas, produces the
greater part of the American crop, which, in recent years,

217
 

 

 

 

Fic. 109.— Bunptes or Two Varieties or Rice,
218
RICE 219

has been about 600,000,000 pounds of rough rice annually.
In the early years of the twentieth century, a third rice-
growing area has been developed in the prairies in the
southeastern part of Arkansas. In the United States the
area devoted to rice increased threefold in the sixteen
years ending in 1905, the area reported that year being
nearly half a million acres, and the yield more than
13,600,000 bushels.

197. Composition. — Rice is a very starchy grain. <A
human diet made up largely of this cereal should also
include foods rich in nitrogen, such as seeds of cowpeas
and other legumes, fish, lean meat, eggs, or milk. The
composition of rice and its products is shown below : ! —

 

 

 

; NItRoO-

| WATER | AsH | PROTEIN paeae yas || eas

| ExtTracr
- i % | % | % % ia G | ao
Prepared rice | 12.79} 0.40] 7.33! 0.33 | 78.84 0.24
Rice polish 9.73 Fal) | 12:73 2.20 | 59.40 | 10.44
Rice bran. . 10.05") 11.17 | 11.35 | 16.10 | 89:76 TL 57.
Rice hulls. . | 10.11 | 14.95 1.88 | 39.11 | 33.62 0.83
Rough rice. 5.73 5.89 Tilo 8.25 | 70.13 2.31
Rice straw. . | 6.76 _ 12.88 3.00 38.98 42.11 1.27

 

 

 

McDonnell’s analyses? indicate that a rice crop of 35
bushels (nearly 9 bags) and 1800 pounds of ripe straw
removes from the soil, in round numbers,

12 pounds of phosphoric acid,
29 pounds of nitrogen,
35 pounds of potash.

1La. Expr. Sta., Feed Stuffs Report, 1908-1909.
2$. C. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 59
220 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

198. Uses. — The chief use of rice is to feed mankind,
for which purpose it is specially prepared by the removal of
the hull and by other manufacturing processes. However,
the polishing of the grains results in removing some of the
most nutritious part.

Rice polish, one of the flourlike by-products of the rice
mill, is a nutritious and palatable food for any class of
live-stock. Rice hulls have but
little food value and even when
ground, their use is undesirable.
Rice bran usually consists of the
seed coats to which adheres much
of the nutritious layers of the

 

Fics. 110 anp 111.— Two : 3 _
Types or Rice. grain, mixed with some ground

The Honduras on the left rice hulls and polish. It is inferior

and the Japanese on the : : _ : 23
right. The short kernels of 1 feeding value to rice polish.

Japanese rice do not break 199. Varieties. — In oriental
in polishing so readily asthe gountries there are hundreds of
long grains of Honduras. re 3 :

varieties of rice, but few kinds are
grown in the United States. Chief among the latter are
types known as Honduras, Japan, and Gold Seed (Figs.
110 and 111).

The types generally grown in our southwestern rice
fields are Japan and Honduras, which are described as
follows: “The Japan has a short, thick kernel, a thick
hull, and heavy grain. It is not so tall as the Honduras,
and the straw is smaller and green when the grain is ripe.
The percentage of bran in the Japan is small. Since the
grains do not break so badly, it will mill more head rice
(high-grade unbroken grains) than the Honduras. The
market price for Japan, however, is a little less than for
RICE 221

Honduras, but the yield is greater. The Honduras has a
large grain, a tall, stiff stalk, and is not so easily blown
down.” (S. A. Knapp, in Farmer’s Bul. No. 110, U. S.
Dept. Agr.)

200. Soils and fertilizers. — Since rice is usually grown
on land subjected to irrigation and thereby enriched,
fertilizers are seldom employed in the United States on
this crop. Hence relatively little is known of the fertilizer
requirements of rice. In oriental countries, rice is highly
manured.

Experiments in Louisiana indicate that phosphate in-
creases the yield and that potash probably helps to harden
the grain and straw.

201. Sowing. — While broadcast sowing is not unusual,
the best and most common method consists in planting rice
with a grain drill. This causes the seeds to be covered to
a more uniform depth than is possible by broadcast sowing.
The quantity of seed generally employed is one to two
bushels or one fourth to one half barrel per acre. Usually
the grain drill should be preceded, and not followed, by the
roller.

Occasionally in sowing rice that is to be irrigated im-
mediately, South Carolina farmers mix the seed with clay
and water, so that when water is admitted to the land, the
seed will not float.

202. Implements and labor. — Only where preparation
has been made for draining the land, can labor-saving
implements be used in preparing for and sowing the crop
and in harvesting. Plowing is usually done in spring, but
a preliminary plowing is often desirable in the early part of
the preceding fall. The depth of plowing must be governed
222, SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

by local conditions. While deep plowing might otherwise
be desirable, it risks inconvenience in harvesting, since in
fields deeply plowed the wheels of the binder sink too deep
if much rain falls just before harvest time. The land must
be further prepared by harrowing (Fig. 112).

In the rice fields of South Carolina, which are very small
and poorly drained, planting is done chiefly by hand labor.

 

 

Fic. 112.— Preparine ror Rice in Lovurstana.

The employment of hand labor in this region for planting
and harvesting the crop has caused the decline of the rice
industry here, where the cost of production is necessarily
much higher than on the prairies of Louisiana, Texas, and
Arkansas, where machinery is used for all of these opera-
tions,
RICE 228

203. Irrigation. — No extensive rice industry has de-
veloped in the United States except where irrigation was
possible. Irrigation is necessary to large yields and to
the most economical production. Lands must be chosen
that can easily be irrigated. For this purpose the main
qualities desired are slight, if any, slope of the surface, and
a retentive subsoil. The latter is important so that irriga-
tion water may not be lost too rapidly through the soil, and
also because such soils, after being drained, best permit the
use of heavy machinery in the planting and harvesting of
the crop.

Water for irrigation is supplied in the Louisiana and
Texas rice districts by pumping, the source being either
adjacent bayous and rivers or an underground supply,
found in southwest Louisiana at no great depth. In the
new Arkansas rice-growing region, water is secured from
bored wells. In South Carolina, irrigation is accomplished
by admitting the water of the rivers when the fresh water
is raised by the high tide, while the drainage of rice fields
is accomplished at periods of low tide.

After a supply of water has been provided and brought
to the highest part of the fields by a system of canals, low
levees must be constructed, chiefly with the plow, so as to
maintain the water at almost a uniform depth through-
out a given section of the field. This should range
between 3 and 6 inches on any one section of the field
(Fig. 113). Variations in the depth of irrigation water
cause unevenness in the time of maturing and hence injury
to the quality of the product.

204. Irrigation practice. —In Louisiana, the drained
fields having been sown by the use of a grain drill, the
Ory

ee r “CLT
e q 7 Ha NY
xX
d
) 113 |
q TaN
VIN?
V
2 aor Tf
A 1a
da
oO
V u
T Lv
J
MO
d
‘AG
A

 

 

 
RICE 225

young plants are allowed to grow, if practicable, without
irrigation until the rice is 8 inches high, since the very
young plants are liable to scalding in shallow water. How-
ever, it is sometimes necessary to irrigate in order to cause
the seed to germinate. When the plants have reached a
height of 8 inches, the field is covered with water to a
depth of 3 to 6 inches. Care should be taken that the
water does not become stagnant, which is prevented by
providing for a continuous inflow into the high part of the
section and for a continuous outflow from the lower part of
each section of the field.

Irrigation in rice culture largely takes the place of cul-
tivation, since it prevents the growth of many weeds
and encourages the growth of the rice plant.

Near the time of harvest, the water is drawn off so that
the fields may become firm enough for the teams and
machinery engaged in harvesting.

The practice in South Carolina differs from the above.
The water is admitted as soon as the seed is sown, and it is
kept on the land 4 to 6 days to sprout the grain. The field
is then drained. When the plants are a few inches high,
another brief watering is given and the land again drained.
Soon afterwards, irrigation is repeated, the water being
kept on the land 20 to 30 days. It is then drawn off and
the field hoed. No more water is admitted until jointing
of the plants begins, when they are hoed and the water
again turned on, to remain until about 8 days before the
harvest, when it is withdrawn. Care is taken to secure
a constant change of water so as to avoid stagnation.

205. Upland rice. — There are upland strains of rice
that have become accustomed to being grown without

Q
226 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

irrigation, but. which cannot be distinguished from lowland
rice. This so-called upland rice succeeds better when
irrigated. For the culture of rice without irrigation, the
best soils are drained ponds or moist bottom lands.

Since the crop must be kept free from grass and weeds by
tillage, upland rice should be sown in drills, as close to-
gether as practicable without preventing the use of culti-
vating implements. The usual distance between rows is
two and one half to three feet. Custom varies as to the
thickness of planting in the drill. It is most convenient for
the seeds to be dropped, a number in a place at distances of
seven to twelve inches apart.

Several cultivations and one or two hoeings are usually
given. The yields are generally much less than on irri-
gated land, and the expense of tillage is greater than that
of irrigation. However, on soils especially suited to this
crop and where labor is not expensive, it may be advisable
to introduce the culture of rice, especially for use in the im-
mediate neighborhood.

The quality of upland rice is regarded as somewhat in-
ferior to that of irrigated rice, probably because of imper-
fect filling of some of the grains, and differences in the time
of maturity among the different plants. Moreover, the
small rice hullers which are usually employed (in connec-
tion with a gin or grist mill), in localities where only small
areas of rice are grown, do not turn out a product as highly
polished as that obtained in the large and well-equipped
rice mills. However, the dark and unpolished rice of the
small mills is more nutritious than the pearly-white article
of commerce, for the reason that the former contains more
of the outer layers, which are the richest in protein.
RICE 221

Upland rice should usually be fertilized with acid phos-
phate, and, if thought best, with potash and nitrogen.

206. Harvesting. — The nature of the soil in Louisiana
and Askansas permits the drainage of the fields, so that the
rice crop is there harvested by the use of self-binders.

After the grain has been somewhat further cured, it is carefully
shocked (Fig. 114). ‘* First, shock on dry ground ; second, brace the

 

 

 

 

 

Fic. 114.— A Rice FIeLtp aFTeER Harvest.

bundles carefully against each other, so as to resist wind or storms;
third, let the shock be . . . capped carefully with bundles. ... Slow
228 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

curing in the shade produces the toughness of kernel necessary to
withstand the milling processes. In the shock every head should
be shaded and sheltered from storm as much as possible. The
rice should be left in the shock until the straw is cured and the
rice is hard.” (S. A. Knapp, in Farmer’s Bul. No. 110, U. S.
Dept. of Agr.)

Threshing is done in the same way as with other grains,
usually in Louisiana, directly from the shock. The rough rice,
usually in bags or barrels of 162 pounds, is sold to the rice
mills.

Rough rice weighs 45 pounds per bushel and yields about half
its weight of marketable rice, besides cracked rice, polish, and
other by-products.

A fair yield in irrigated regions is 10 to 18 barrels or bags per
acre.

207. Weeds. —.The rice planter encounters his great-
est difficulties through the invasion of the field by a mul-
titude of troublesome weeds. The general methods of
control are plowing at opportune times and flooding. The
most troublesome weed is red rice.

Red rice is frequently accidentally sown with seed rice. Itisa
strain different from the types of rice cultivated in the United
States and comes only from red rice seed; but this plant is capable
of crossing with cultivated rice. A method recommended for
ridding the land of this and of other weeds is to plow the field
soon after harvest, so as to cause the seed of red rice and of
other weeds to germinate. The young weeds are then killed by
frost, or, in some cases, mowed and burned.

Another method of fighting true weeds, other than red rice and
other members of the grass family, consists in mowing the mass of
young rice and weeds in the late spring or early summer, with the
expectation that the rice will then develop a central shoot while
the weeds will not make further growth.

Early spring plowing is sometimes practiced to induce the weed
seeds to germinate; the young plants are then killed by culti-
RICE 229

vation before the rice is sown. But this may result in making
the date of planting too late for best yields of rice.

Another method of fighting weeds consists in applying no water
for a year or more, meantime not using the land for rice or even
for any crop. In this way, the dry-land weeds crowd out the
water-loving weeds, which latter are the most serious enemies of
the Louisiana rice grower.

Insect enemies. — Rice is not greatly injured by many insects.
Among insect pests is the larva or grub of a small gray beetle,
the water weevil (Lissorhoptrus simpler). The grubs in summer
feed on the roots of the plants, giving to the clumps of plants
affected a yellowish appearance. The remedy consists in pre-
venting the stagnation of the water and, if practicable, in the
temporary withdrawal of the water and the drying out of the land.

Fungous diseases. — Rice blast, also called ‘‘ rotten neck,”’ is
thought to be caused by afungus (Piricularia oryze@). The sheath
node is attacked, that is the node in which the head is forming, and
the head may fail to fill out or may break off. Experts are not
agreed as to any practicable treatment for this disease.

Rice rust causes the leaves to die and the grain to be light. The
cause is not definitely known. This trouble has been prevented
by using 400 pounds of kainit per acre.

Rice smut ( Tilletia horrida) occasionally occurs, filling the kernel
with a mass of black spores. According to Anderson, it can be
prevented either by (1) scalding the seed for 10 minutes in water
kept at a temperature of 133° F., or (2) by moistening the seed
for about 2 hours in a solution of one ounce of formalin to 3
gallons of water.

Rice birds or bobolinks (Dolichonyx oryzivorus).—These birds
prey on the ripening grain. Men and boys armed with shot
guns are employed in some localities to frighten these birds from
the rice fields.

LABORATORY EXERCISE

If seed heads or rough (unhulled) rice can be obtained, write a
description of the seed and its covering, and of the arrangement
of seeds on the branches.
230 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

LITERATURE

Knapp, 8. A. Rice Culture in the United States. U.S. Dept.
Agr., Farmer’s Buls. Nos. 110 and 417.

Knapp, 8S. A. Rice Culture in the United States. U.S. Dept.
Agr., Div. Bot., Bul. No. 22.

Knapp, 8. A. Rice. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. II, pp. 534-539.

Sruspss, W. C. La. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 24.

Dopson, W. R. La. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 50, 61, and 77.

Dopson, W. R. Red Rice, La. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 50.

Anperson, A. P. Rice Blast and Rice Smut. S.C. Expr. Sta.,
Bul. No. 41.

Mercatr, H. Blast of Rice. S.C. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 121.

McDonnell, C. C. A Chemical Investigation of the Rice Plant.
S. C. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 59.

Netson, R. J. Rice Culture. Ark. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 94.

VINCENHELLER, W. G. Rice Growing in Arkansas. Ark. Expr.
Sta., Bul. No. 89.

Beat, H. W. Extension of Rice Culture. U. 8. Dept. Agr.
Farmer’s Bul. No. 305.

Austin, A. Rice. U.S. Dept. Agr., Div. Sta., Rpt. No. 6.
CHAPTER XIII

THE SORGHUMS— ANDROPOGON sORGHUM (OR Sor-
GHUM VULGARE)

THE sorghums comprise a very interesting group of
diverse sub-species grown over a wide range and used fora
variety of purposes. Some kinds or races are used for the
making of sirup, and are sometimes erroneously known as
“ sugar-millet’’; some are grown for the grain in the top or
head; one provides the material from which brooms are
made; they all yield forage, of different degrees of excel-
lence. The group belongs to the Graminee, or grass family.

THE SORGHUMS IN GENERAL

208. Groups of sorghum.— The sorghums may be
divided into three groups, all of the same botanical species.
These classes are: (1) saccharine or sweet sorghums, grown
for forage and sirup; (2) nonsaccharine or grain sorghums,
including kafir and milo, which latter are important grain
and forage crops in the dry climate of the southwestern part
of the United States; (3) broom-corn, from which brooms
and brushes are made. There are a number of varieties of
each class, only the most important of which can be men-
tioned here.

209. General description. — The sorghums are giant
grasses with stout, solid, pithy stems. The leaves are long
and broad, but smaller than those of corn. The heads are
of considerable size and varying shape and are borne at the
top of the stems. The sorghums have strong root systems,
made up of numerous fibrous parts.

231
232 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

All kinds grow slowly during the first few weeks of life,
at which time they are easily overrun by weeds; therefore
they make their best growth on clean land.

210. Effects on the soil. — The sorghums are generally
regarded as the most exhaustive among the ordinary crops
of the farm. They leave the land in an unfavorable
mechanical condition, which is due chiefly to the following
causes : —

(1) The presence of clods held together by the matted
roots of the stubble ;

(2) The slowness with which the stubble and other re-
mains of the crop decay ;

(3) The dry condition in which the soil is left, due to the
large amount of leaf surface engaged, up to the time of har-
vest, in throwing off moisture derived from the soil.

211. Composition. — In all classes of sorghum, the stems
and leaves, which are the parts used for green or cured forage,
are rich in carbohydrates (starch and sugar), and poor in
protein. Likewise, the seeds of all sorghums are rich in
carbohydrates and slightly richer than corn in protein.

Composition of Forage and Seed of Various Sorghums

ASH

 

Saccharine sorghum,
cured plant .

Kafir, cured stover .

Kafir grain .

Milo grain . ae

Saccharine sorghum
seed .

Oe
Woawo

y
a

 
THE SORGHUMS 233

212. Origin and crossing. — All three classes of sor-
ghums are thought to trace back to the same ancestor and
to be natives of tropical Africa. In some eastern countries,
the seeds of some of the sorghums are important human
foods.

The various sorghums were introduced into the United
States in 1853, and at intervals throughout the next few
decades.

Sorghums of all kinds freely cross with each other, the
light pollen being spread by the wind. Therefore, varieties
from which seed is to be saved should not be planted
near any other variety or allowed to bloom at the same
time.

213. Enemies.—In the Southern States, especially
from Louisiana eastward, the yield of seed from any class
of sorghum is quite uncertain, and complete failures to
mature seed are not infrequent. The usual cause of such
failures is the attack on the flowers and kernels by a minute
insect, the sorghum midge (Diplosis sorghicola). For this
no effective treatment is known. Probably some advan-
tage would result by planting this crop in fields remote
from where sorghum was grown the previous year.

Sorghum kernel smut (Sphacelotheca sorghi) is a disease
caused by a fungus which destroys the individual grains.
It is easily prevented by either of the following methods:
(1) by soaking the seed for planting for one hour in a solu-
tion of 1 ounce of formalin for each 2 gallons of water; or
(2) by scalding the planting seed for 10 to 12 minutes
in water kept at a temperature between 134° and 140°F.
Either of these treatments kills the germs of the disease
without injuring the seed.
bo
oo
He

SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

SACCHARINE OR SWEET SORGHUMS

214. Description and uses. — The sweet sorghums are
8 to 12 feet high, and are distinguished from other classes of
sorghum by the great abundance of sweet juice in the stem.
“Sugar millet’ is a local name sometimes given to the
sweet sorghums, although this plant is not a millet. When
the word “sorghum” is used alone, it usually refers to the
sweet sorghum.

This group is used for the production of sirup as well as
for green and cured forage. It is treated in this book

 

 

 

 

 

Fia. 115.—On Lert, THree HeAps or AMBER SORGHUM; ON RIGHT,
Two Heaps or Rep Karir.

only as a sirup crop, its cultivation and curing for feeding
purposes belonging to books on forage plants. Sorghum
has been used to a very limited extent as a source of sugar,
THE SORGHUMS 235

but in this respect it cannot compete with sugar-cane and
sugar-beets.

As a sirup plant, sorghum is most extensively grown in
the northern part of the cotton-belt and in the regions a
little farther north. Even in the region where sugar-cane
succeeds, some sorghum sirup is made, for two reasons:
(1) that sorghum grows on poorer land than does sugar-
cane, and (2) that it affords sirup 1 to 2 months earlier in
the fall than does sugar-cane. The sirup
from the latter is superior both in yield
and quality.

215. Varieties. — There are many vari-
eties, which may be divided into four
sub-groups differing chiefly in the form
of head and the color and covering of
the seed :—

(1) Amber sub-group, having large loose
heads with seeds borne on long, slender,
flexible branches; seeds almost completely
covered by black chaff (glumes), making
seeds and head appear black (Fig. 115) ;
one variety has red chaff. Fic. 116.—On-

(2) Orange sub-group, having heads **°* een
neither very open nor very compact; seeds yellowish, pro-
jecting beyond the dark chaff (Fig. 116) ;

(3) Sumac, or Red-top, sub-group, having short, very
compact heads; seeds small, brownish red, projecting con-
siderably beyond the very small glumes.

(4) Goose-neck sub-group, so called because the top
of the stem curves, permitting the head to hang down
(Fig. 117). The stalks of this variety near the ground

 
236 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

sometimes attain a diameter of 14 inches. Where known,

this is a favorite variety for the production of sirup, by
reason of the large size of stalk, the large
yield of cane, and the smaller amount of
labor required in stripping it.

The Amber varieties are early, requir-
ing only about three months to reach
maturity. The Orange is two or three

* weeks later, the stems larger and the
yield somewhat greater than in the

Amber varieties.

Sumac, or Red-top, sorghum is about
as late as Orange.

The richness in sugar of any variety
may be greatly increased by selecting
seed a few years from those plants which,

fee Giese aoe by chemical tests, show the highest per-
neck Sorcuum. centages of sugar. The usual amount of
sugar in the juice is 12 to 16 per cent.

216. Soils and fertilizers. — Sweet sorghum may be
grown on soils of almost any character. Because of its
drought resistance, it is often assigned to poorer soil than
that given to any other crop outside of the class of legumes
or soil-improving plants.

Sorghum is often grown without fertilizer; but on soils
where it is necessary to fertilize other crops, this responds
profitably to moderate applications of manure and to
any commercial fertilizer suitable for corn on the same
soil. Nitrogen seems to be the most important con-
stituent in a fertilizer for sorghum, but it is often advis-
able to add moderate amounts of phosphoric acid and

  
THE SORGHUMS 237

potash. Fertilizer should be applied in the same way as
to corn.

217. Preparation and planting. — Because of the slow
growth of the young plants, preparation of the land should
be thorough, to promote as rapid growth as possible of the
young plant and to free the soil from all growing weeds and
grass. On well-drained land, planting is usually practiced
without ridging, which, however, may be necessary on poorly
drained bottoms. In the dry climate of the Southwest,
sorghum is sometimes ‘‘listed’’; that is, planted in an un-
filled furrow, considerably below the level of the field.

A customary distance between rows is 34 feet, and
between single plants grown for sirup, 3 to 8 inches. Seed-
ing is performed with a planter, a few quarts sufficing for
an acre.

When practicable, tillage should be given with a weeder
or harrow before the plants appear and again when they are
large enough to escape injury. Several cultivations or till-
ings with one- or two-horse cultivators, and in the Gulf
States one or more hoeings, are usually given.

Sorghum should be planted several weeks later than the
earliest corn. The greater part of the crop is planted in
May. However, in the cotton-belt sorghum for forage
may be planted as late as July, though such late planting
reduces the yield.

218. Harvesting. — When the plant is thoroughly ma-
ture, as shown by the sweetness of the juice and the ripening
of the grain, the heads are cut for seed, the leaves stripped
from the stem and utilized for forage, and the stalks cut and
made into sirup in practically the same way in which sugar-
cane is handled.
 

 
THE SORGHUMS 233

Karirn

219. Description and uses. — Kafir, also called ‘‘kafir
corn,” has shorter stems, 5 to 8 feet in height, and more
compact heads than have the saccharine sorghums (Fig.
118). The heads are always erect and the grain projects
well beyond the chaff. There are red and white varieties;

 

Fic. 119.—On Lert, Two Heaps or Mito; anp on Ricut, Two oF
Buiack-HvULLED Wuite Karir.

the one most extensively grown is Black-hulled White kafir

(Fig. 119).

The most valuable quality of this plant is its drought
resistance, which makes it an important grain and forage
crop in the dry climate of the western part of Kansas, Okla-
homa, and Texas, where it is largely grown as a substitute for
corn, which it exceeds in yield of grain in regions where the
rainfall is scant. East of Texas the crop of grain, though
240 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

sometimes large, is uncertain, as a result of attacks by
insects.

In feeding value, kafir grain is nearly equal to a corre-
sponding weight of corn. It is fed to all classes of live-stock
and is especially prized for poultry. There is more need to
grind kafir than to grind corn. The forage remains green
up to the time of the ripening of the grain.

Kafir requires about four to four and a half months to
reach maturity.

220. Soils and planting. — The kafir plant thrives on a
variety of soils. It succeeds especially well on sod land
never before cultivated. Its cultivation is nearly the same
as that of sorghum grown for sirup. In the Southwest,
kafir is often listed, which is considered to be advantageous
in a dry season. There it is sometimes planted with a
two-row corn planter. The plants are left 3 to 5 inches
apart in the row and the rows are ordinarily 3} feet
apart.

221, Harvesting. — This is usually done with a corn-
binder, but sometimes with a header or device attached to a
wagon and intended to cut and lift into the wagon body
only the heads. Heads thus cut must be kept in thin layers
to prevent heating. The seeds are threshed from the stalk
by the use of an ordinary grain thresher.

Mio

222. This crop is also called “milo maize.’ The stems
resemble those of kafir; the heads are shorter and more
rounded and the seeds are more flattened than those of
kafir (Fig. 119). Miloiseven more drought resistant than
THE SORGHUMS 241

kafir and may make a crop where the rainfall is only 10
to 14 inches,

Other advantages over kafir are its earlier maturity and its
freedom from attack by kernel smut. The disadvantages of milo
as compared with kafir are: (1) the leaves are fewer and the
stems more pithy; (2) the fact that the leaves of milo do not
keep perfectly green up to the time of the ripening of seed,
making its forage less palatable.

The methods of planting, cultivating, and harvesting milo are
the same as for kafir. In experiments made in the northwestern
part of Texas, a distance of 6 inches between plants in the row
afforded the largest yield of seed. :

Selection has resulted in a dwarf variety and also in strains
having erect heads, thus making harvesting easier than with the
pendant heads, usual in the plants of milo.

BROOM-CORN

223. Description. — Broom-corn is a tall, nonsaccharine
sorghum. It is distinguished from other sorghums by the
great length and toughness of the branches that make up
the panicle (Fig. 120). The valuable part of broom-corn
consists of these long heads after the removal of the im-,
mature seed; this useful part is called the “ brush,” and
from it brooms and various kinds of brushes are made.

A fair yield of cured and prepared brush of the standard varie-
ties is about one third of a ton per acre. The dwarf varieties
ordinarily yield about one fifth of a ton of brush per acre, but
this dwarf brush commands a higher price. The price of broom-
corn is subject to violent fluctuations; eighty dollars per ton of
brush may be taken as an average, but the price sometimes sinks
below this and sometimes rises to about double this figure. The
fluctuations in price are largely due to the fact that only a rela-
tively small area (usually less than 40,000 acres and some years
less than 20,000 acres) is required to furnish the entire American

R
242 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

erop of broom-corn. Therefore an increase of a few thousand
acres greatly depresses prices. The chief centers of production
are certain districts in Illinois,
Ixansas, and Oklahoma.

Nashville, Tennessee, is proba-
bly the most important southern
market for broom-corn brush.
If the crop is grown on farms
in the South Atlantic and Gulf
States, growers should aim rather
to supply local broom factories
than to compete on the larger
markets with localities in which
broom-corn culture is a long-
established industry.

224. Types of broom-corn.
— The varicties of broom-
corm may he divided into two
types or classes — standard
and dwarf varieties. Stand-

 

ard broom-corn is a tall plant
with brush 18 to 24 inches
long. Dwarf broom-corn usu-
ally stands only 4 to 6 feet
high and bears brush that is

 

 

  

Jin. 120.—Broox-cony irusn. 10 to 18 inches long. From

On left, before removal of seed; the latter are made whisk
ee Ean a ame brooms, hearth brooms, and

oms,

brushes. The Dwarf varietics are considered to be espe-
elally suited to Oklahoma and Kansas.

225. Climate, soils, and fertilizers. — While the broom-
corn plant ean be grown under a wide range of climatic
and soil conditions, yet it is most profitable in a climate
THE SORGUUMS 243

where there is but little rain at the time of harvest. Harvest
occurs about the same time as with other kinds of sorghum;
that is, in August and September. In the southeastern
part of the United States the weather is more apt to be dry
in September and October than in August; hence it is well
to postpone the date of planting late enough into May or
June to bring the harvesting season in September, rather
than earlier.

Rain just before or at harvest time is likely to cause plant-
lice to attack the plants and to discolor the brush, which,
in order to command the highest price, should be of a green
color.

Any land on which a good yield of corn is ordinarily
made is suitable for broom-corn.

The same fertilization as for corn, or for sorghum grown
for sirup, is advisable. The soil should be fertile enough
and the fertilizer rich enough in nitrogen to insure a tall and
rapid growth, which is favorable to length of brush.

226. Culture. — If seed is to he saved, broom-corn should
be planted in a field remote from any other kind of sorghum,
as all kinds of sorghum readily hybridize, or mix. For this
and for other reasons, one should plant seed only from se-
lected plants, grown in a seed patch where no mixing could
have occurred and from which all poor heads were removed
before the pollen was ready to be shed.

Planting in Oklahoma is done chiefly in May. Broom-
corn may be planted earlier in the southern portion of the
cotton-belt ; but here it is probably well to delay planting
late into May or even later, so as to bring the harvest season
in September when there is a greater probability of dry
weather than there is in August.
244 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

The seed should be planted in well-prepared land in
rows about 34 feet apart, one plant standing every 3 or 4
inches on rich land or at double this distance on poor land.
Cultivation is somewhat more conveniently performed if
the plants are left, 3 to 6 in a hill, at distances of about
16 inches apart for standard kinds, or at shorter intervals
for dwarf varieties.

For planting on a seed-bed in perfect condition with the
expectation of not thinning the plants, 2 quarts of good
seed is sufficient for an acre. With land less perfectly pre-
pared or where thinning is necessary, at least double this
amount of seed is sometimes used.

Tillage is similar to that given to corn, or to sorghum
grown for sirup.

227. Harvesting and preparation for market. — Har-
vesting of the brush occurs before the seeds form; that
is, When the anthers are falling. The heads of the dwarf
plants are pulled instead of being cut. Standard vari-
eties must first be bent down or ‘“tabled.’’ This is
done by bending down, about 3 feet above the ground,
the stalks on two rows. These bent plants are brought
together diagonally in a horizontal position, the brush
of one row extending beyond the upright portion of
the stalks on the adjacent row. The brush is then
cut with a sharp knife at a distance of about 8 inches
below the head. It is laid, for partial drying, on
the tables made by the bending together of two rows
of stalks.

After sorting the heads to separate all crooked and un-
marketable brush, the immature seeds are removed by
scraping or threshing on a special kind of thresher, the
o

THE SORGHUMS 24

brush not passing through the machine, but being held
against the revolving cylinders.

Drying is done rapidly in the shade of special sheds and
away from strong light, so as to retain the green color. In
a shed for curing broom-corn, the layers of threshed brush
are only 2 or 3 inches thick on flat supports, so as to insure
ample ventilation and quick curing.

After curing, the brush is packed into bales weighing
from 300 to 400 pounds.

228. Enemies. — The principal insect enemies are plant-
lice and chinch-bugs. Sorghum smut is the most serious
fungous disease. This is carried through the seed and can
be prevented by soaking the seed for fifteen minutes in
water kept at a temperature of 135° F.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

(1) Write a deseription of each class and variety of sorghum
of which specimens can be obtained, noting especially the follow-
ing : —

(a) Color of naked seed ;

(b) Color and size of chaff ;

(c) Whether seed is almost completely covered by chaff,
or projects slightly, or is largely uncovered.

(2) Write a description of the heads of each class and variety of
sorghum of which specimens can be obtained, noting especially
the following : —

(a) Compactness of head ;

(b) Shape of head, — oval, cylindrical, roundish, fan-
shaped, or irregular, — illustrating the shape by
drawing the outlines of each head ;

(c) Length of head in inches.
246 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

(3) If a field of any class or variety of sorghum can be in-
spected, make record of the following : —

(a) The apparent impurity, or percentage of plants which
seem to belong in a different class or variety ;

(b) Effects on the size of heads and size of stallx due to wide
or close spacing of plants.

(4) If a field of kafir or milo can be inspected, note whether
there is uniformity in the height of plants and time of ripening. If
not, does this diversity interfere with the local method of harvest-
ing the seed?

(5) If fields of saccharine sorghum are available, cut short
sections of the same row when the plants are at different heights,
or stages of maturity ; record the weights and condition when
eut, and a month or two after each cutting, note the effects of
cutting at different stages on the height of the second growth.

LITERATURE
Saccharine sorghums.

Baru, C. R. U.S. Dept. Agr., Farmer’s Bul. No. 246; Cire.
50.

Newnan, J. 8., and others. Sorghum as a Sirup Plant. S.C.
Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 8S.

Nonsaccharine sorghums — kafir and milo.

Warsurton, C. W. The Nonsaccharine Sorghums. U.S.
Dept. Agr., Farmer’s Bul. No. 288.

Conner, A. B. Forage Crops in Northwest Texas. Tex.
Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 103.

Batt, C. R., and Letpicu, A. H. Milo as a Dry-land Grain
Crop. U.S. Dept. Agr., Farmer’s Bul. No. 322.

Freeman, E. M., and UmpBercer, H. J. C. The Smuts of
Sorghum. U. S. Dept. Agr., Bureau Plant Ind., Cire.
No. 8.

Roserts, H. F., and Freeman, C.F. Prevention of Sorghum
and Kafir Corn Smut. Kan. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 149.
THE SORGHUMS 247

Copurn, F. D. The Sorghums. Kan. Bd. Agr., Rpt. Ist.
Quarter, 1896.

Hunt, T.F. The Cereals in America, pp. 383-399. 1904, New
York.

Batt, C. R., and Warsurton, C. 8. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr.,
Vol. II, pp. 574-582.

Broom-corn.

Harrtiey, C. P. Broom-corn. U.S. Dept. Agr., Farmer’s Bul.
No. 174.

Newman, C. L. Broom-corn. Ark. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 83.

Dopvson, W. R. Broom-corn. La. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 67.

WarBturRTON, C. W. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. Il, pp. 216-
217.
CHAPTER XIV

COTTON —STRUCTURE AND GENERAL
CHARACTERISTICS

Cotton is the world’s most important fiber plant. The
cotton plant as generally grown in the United States is
of erect or bushy form and usually three to seven feet tall.
In this country it is an annual, being killed by frost in the
fall. In its native home in the tropics the cotton plant is
a perennial, living for many years. Suggestions of this
perennial habit are afforded after a mild winter in the
southern part of the cotton-belt by the sprouting of plants
from the old root or stem.

229. Stems and branches. — The cotton plant consists
of an erect central stem, usually three to six feet long, from
the nodes of which branches arise. Stems and branches
are woody and solid. The length and arrangement of
branches are important as means of distinguishing varieties ,
and as indications of productiveness and earliness.

The longest limbs of cotton are usually near the base of
the plant, the length decreasing towards the top of the
main stem. This gives to cotton plants of most varieties
a cone-shaped, pyramidal, or sugar-loaf form. However,
in varieties, known as ‘‘ cluster cottons,” there are a few
long limbs near the base of the plant; all branches above
these basal limbs are only a few inches long, thus giving a
slender or ‘ erect”? appearance to the upper two thirds of

248
COTTON STRUCTURE 249

 

Fic. 121.— A Vecetative Branco
FROM NEAR THE Base OF A COTTON
PLantT.

Showing that the boll-stems are not
borne directly on the vegetative branch,
but on secondary branches springing
from it.

the plant. Between cluster cotton and wide-spreading,
long-limb kinds there are all gradations in length of

branches.
Each branch arises from the main stem in the angle be-
250 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

tween a leaf and the mainstem. Usually this leaf on the
main stem falls before the branch attains much size, but
its position is shown by the leaf-scar.

The plant has two classes of branches or limbs. The
longer, ascending ones (Fig. 121) are sometimes called
vegetative or primary branches, while slenderer or shorter
branches on which bolls are attached directly by their
flower stalks or boll-stems (peduncles) are called “ fruiting
limbs” (Fig. 122). The primary branches have also been

 

 

 

 

 

Fie. 122.— A Froirinc Brancw.

Showing that the boll-stems are borne directly on the branch.

called sterile limbs; this is because no boll-stem or boll is
borne directly on these vegetative limbs, though boll-stems,
with attached bolls, spring from the subdivisions of these
main branches.

In general, a primary branch supports numerous leaves,
and, on its sub-branches, some bolls; while a fruiting
limb usually bears several bolls and but few leaves.

Normally, two branches arise from the axil of a leaf on
the main stem (Fig. 123). Oné of these twin branches,
arising from the same node of the main stem, is a fruiting
COTTON STRUCTURE 251

 

Fig. 123.— A Corron Puanrt.

Showing the growth of two branches from each of certain nodes on
the main stem.
Lo
On
to

SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

 

 

 

Fig. 124.—Corron PLant on wuictt THE VEGETATIVE BRANCH IS
SUPPRESSED AT EVERY Nop EXCEPT WHERE THE Two Lowest
(VEGETATIVE) BRANCHES ORIGINATE.

branch, and the other a vegetative or so-called sterile
branch. At many of the nodes one or the other of these
branches fails to develop conspicuously, and is represented
merely by a tiny shoot or bud (Fig. 124.) If a vegeta-
COTTON STRUCTURE 253

 

 

 

Fic. 125.—A Corron PLant HAVING ONLY FrRuiTING Liups.

tive limb develops at nearly every node, the plant presents
a very bushy, round-topped, leafy appearance, and the
bolls may be relatively few and too much shaded.

It is probable that the yield will be increased by selecting
seed from plants on which a large proportion of the fruit
limbs develop fully, and on which there are relatively few
fully developed vegetative branches (Fig. 125).
264 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

On the main stem of some plants the fruit limb is invari-
ably on the left side of the sterile limb, while on other plants,
the fruit limb is uniformly on the right side of its twin
vegetative branch.

230. Maturity or earliness. —It has been found by
Bennett that those cotton plants are carliest in maturity
(as judged by the time when their bolls are formed) that
are short-jointed and that throw out their lowest limbs
from nodes very near the ground. For earliness and pro-
ductiveness there should be numerous nodes on the main
stem, — that is, points from which branches spring, — and
these should be close together. Likewise on the limbs, the
distance between bolls or secondary branches should be
short, especially where earliness is important.

231. Bark and stem. — The bark of the cotton plant is
fairly strong and tough. To a limited extent cotton bark
has been used as a coarse fiber, once proposed as a cover-
ing for cotton bales, and in the making of paper.

The woody stem inside the bark is weak and brittle, so that
after the plants are killed by frost the stalks ean readily be broken
or cut, and after being plowed under, they rot more rapidly than
do corn-stalks similarly treated.

The color of the bark of the nearly mature plant is usually
reddish brown, but the shade varies on different sides of the same
stem and in different varieties and individuals. Some plants
have a dark greenish bark. Such plants tend to drop their leaves
early and to mature early.

232. Roots. — The cotton plant is supplied with a
tap-root, or continuation of the stem, from which the lateral
roots branch. In deep, well-drained soil, the tap-root may
go deep into the ground, but on shallow soil or on that in-
COTTON STRUCTURE 255

sufficiently drained, the tap-root often turns and grows
in a horizontal direction on coming into contact with a
dense or undrained subsoil.

Most of the lateral roots arise at points two to four
inches below the surface of the ground. Hence, deep
cultivation after the plant is several inches high results in
the destruction of many of the lateral roots.

233. Leaves. — The leaves of cotton are alternate in
position on the stem or branch. They vary somewhat in
size and shape, even on the same plant. In American
varieties, both of the short-staple and long-staple upland
classes, the leaves are usually
three-lobed, sometimes _ five-
lobed. In these classes the
spaces between lobes are usually
shallow. Certain groups of vari-
eties, chiefly the big-boll kinds,
have large leaves with quite
shallow indentation, and short, broad lobes. Other groups,
notably those of the King and Peterkin types, have smaller
leaves with slenderer, more sharply pointed lobes. Between
these groups are all gradations in size and shape of leaves.
In Sea Island cotton the lobes are very slender and the
indentations very deep (Fig. 126).

There are usually three (sometimes more) prominent
veins or ribs in each leaf. On one or more of these on the
under side of the leaf are glands that may easily be seen.
The leaves of upland cotton are covered, especially on the
lower side, with numerous short, inconspicuous hairs.

234. Boll stems, or peduncles. — Connecting the flower
or boll with the branch is a short flower-stem (Figs. 121 and

   
    

= as
‘i ( a
a Borsa
oy eG
Fic. 126.— Corton Leaves.

a, upland ; b, Sea Island.
256 SOUTIIERN FIELD CROPS

122), ranging in American upland and long-staple upland
varieties from one half an inch to about two inches in
length. This varies somewhat with the variety, but varies
still more in different parts of the same plant.

The boll stem should be of such length and diameter as will
prevent its bending abruptly, thus preventing the most complete
development of the boll.

It would probably be an advantage if the boll-stem should
be of sufficient length and strength to cause the boll to hang with
its tip downward, so that the leafy bracts might act against rain as
a roof, thus increasing the ‘‘ storm resistance”’ of the seed cotton.
This, however, has not been proved; for increased length may
lead to a greater amount of breaking of boll-stems, rather than to
a normal drooping of the boll. It should be added that the
abrupt bending of the boll-stem is often due to a specifie disease,
“black arm.”

235. Flowers. — The three green parts, which together
make the ‘‘ square,” are bracts or flower leaves, and serve
to protect the flower bud. The blooms are large and pretty,
their size and color varying in different species.

In American upland and long-staple upland, the bloom
is a pale cream color on the morning that it opens. On the
second day it changes to a pink or red and later falls. The
flowers open early in the morning and close late in the same
day. In Sea Island cotton, the young bloom has a more
yellowish tint than the flower of upland cotton.

The pollen is heavy and waxy, and apparently it is
earried almost entirely by insects. However, cotton is
capable of self-fertilization, as shown by the fact that if a
handred flower buds be inclosed by paper bags, bolls con-
taining seed will develop in most cases. It is probable that
cross-fertilization tends to increased vigor. At least the
COTTON STRUCTURE QD.

seed from artificial hybrids between upland American vari-
eties have been found to be larger than the average of the
seeds of the parent varieties. (Ala. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 56.)

There are five conspicuous petals and five inconspicuous
sepals, the latter united into a shallow cup around the base
of the flower and boll. The pistil, or central part of the
flower, is divided into from 3 to 6 divisions or stigmas.
Three is the prevailing number of stigmas in Sea Island
cotton and four or five in American upland varieties. The
number is the same as the number of locks of seed cotton
that will develop in that particular boll. The stamens are
numerous and are grouped closely around the pistil just
below the stigmas.

The pollen is released from the pollen-cases (anthers)
several hours after sunrise, or about the same time that the
stigma is in condition to receive it.

Two varieties of cotton readily cross by the carrying of
pollen by insects from one flower to another. Webber has
estimated that only about 5 to 10 per cent of the seed from
two varieties grown near together produce hybrid, or
crossed, plants.

Glands. — Glands, or minute organs secreting a sweetish sub-
stance, are found both on the flowers and leaves of cotton. In
the flowers of American cottons there are glands at the base of
the bracts and also at the base of the petals. On the under side of
the leaves the glands occur on one or more of the mid-ribs or veins.
The glands are probably means of attracting insect visitors and
thus of increasing the amount of crossing between varieties or
between individual plants of cotton.

236. Bolls (Fig. 127).—The pod containing the seed
and lint is called the boll. In short-staple cotton, there
iS
10}}00 ULIPUT ‘YYSU UO pue ! puvysy tog ‘Wo}Ud. UL! pueydn urooUy 4so, TO
“STTOG NOLLO) —"2Z. ‘DIT

  
 
COTTON STRUCTURE 259

are usually four or five divisions of each boll; the content
of each division is called a lock. While upland American
cottons, both long- and short-staple, have usually four or
five locks, a boll of Sea Island cotton contains only three
or four.

In tests made at the Alabama Experiment Station,
bolls with five locks afforded a larger yield of seed cotton
to the boll than did bolls having only four locks.

The number of bolls varies somewhat with different
varieties, but is chiefly dependent upon conditions of fer-
tility, rainfall, and climate. The number may vary be-
tween a few and several hundred on a single plant. A
field averaging 50 mature bolls per plant usually makes
considerably more than a bale of cotton (500 pounds of
lint) per acre. Cotton plants of medium size, 3 to 5 feet
high, are apt to be more heavily fruited in proportion to
size than very large plants. Short internodes, or spaces
between branches, are favorable to productiveness. An
ideal cotton plant should have a number of nearly hori-
zontal fruiting limbs, beginning near the ground, and
continuing tq arise at each node until considerably above
the middle of the plant. Each fruiting limb on the lower
part of productive plants should mature at least four
bolls.

Cotton bolls of the Sea Island varieties are usually less than
one inch in diameter, and of slender, tapering shape. Bolls of
American upland cotton vary greatly in size and shape according
to variety, and the character of soil and season. The diameter
usually varies between 1} and 2 inches, and in most cases the
bolls are considerably longer than thick. Rich land and high
fertilization, together with abundance of moisture, tend to in-
crease the size of bolls.
260 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

Fig. 128.— A Cotron PLant DericreENnT IN Storm RESISTANCE.

Bolls of upland cotton are usually of such size that from 40 to
110 are required to make a pound of seed cotton.

When the boll ripens, it splits usually into four or five divisions,
exposing the seed cotton. The parts of the pod, or bur, separate
more or less completely. If they open wide and the outer walls
of the burs curl backward, the seed cotton may be held so
slightly that it is easily blown out by wind or beaten out by rain
(Fig. 128).
COTTON

237. Storm resist-
ance. — The _ struc-
ture of boll most
favorable to ‘ storm
resistance,” or per-
sistence of the seed
cotton in the bur, is
the following : —

(1) A firm stiff wall,
which on drying does
not curl backward,
but serves to support
and protect the seed
cotton (Fig. 129).

(2) Sufficient sepa-
ration of the parts of
the bur to make pick-
ing easy, but not
enough to permit
each lock to hang
separately.

Fic. 129.— SvrorM-RESIST-

ANT Boitut anp Burs

ABOVE; BELOW, BOLLS

AND BuRS LACKING
Storm RESISTANCE.

Below, the wallsof the bur
are rolled back, permitting
the locks of seed cotton to
separate and fall back-
ward; above, the walls of
the bur do not curve back-
ward, but support the seed
cotton in a compact mass.

STRUCTURE

 

 
262 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

(3) A drooping position of the boll, which is partly de-
pendent upon the weight of the boll, partly on the length
and stiffness of the boll-stem, and partly on the position of
the cotton plant; that is, whether standing erect or bent
down by the weight of bolls.

(4) The presence of large bracts, or leafy parts of the
square, which may serve to shed some of the water and
thus to prevent the complete saturation of bolls, and ~
dropping of seed cotton from bolls borne in a drooping
position.

238. Lint. — Each cotton fiber consists of a single
elongated cell. The fiber may be thought of as a tube,
which, while immature, is cylindrical throughout more than
three fourths of its length; thence it tapers to the end
farthest from the seed. But as the fiber matures, the tube
collapses and becomes twisted, somewhat like a collapsed
and twisted fire-hose. This twisting, which is most com-
plete when the fiber is thoroughly matured, is highly de-
sirable because it adds strength to the cotton thread or yarn
by causing the fibers to cling together when twisted. The
advantage of the twisting in preventing the slipping of
fibers in a thread or cloth may be understood by considering
how much more difficult it would be for two chains twisted
together to slip past each other than it would be for two
pieces of smooth wire.

Based chiefly on the amount of twisting, there are in
every lot of cotton three kinds of fibers: (1) ripe, (2) partly
ripe, ang (3) immature. In immature fibers there is little
twist; consequently these make weak thread or cloth.
Moréover immature fibers do not uniformly and satisfac-
torily absorb the dyes used in the manufacture of colored
COTTON STRUCTURE 263

cloth. Therefore, to secure the best grade and price, bolls
of cotton should not be picked until well opened, thus
giving an opportunity for sun and air to mature the fiber.

The value of cotton fiber is determined by (1) length, (2)
strength, (3) maturity, (4) fineness, and (5) uniformity.
The longest fiber is usually the finest, and such fibers may
be used in the manufacture of the finest, thinnest, and most
expensive cotton fabrics.

The following are approximately average lengths of the fibers
of the principal kinds of cotton :—

Sea Island, 1.61 inches ;
Egyptian, 1.41 inches ;
American upland, 0.93 inches ;
American long-staple, 1.3 inches.

The fiber is longest on the larger or upper end of the seed.

The average diameter of American upland short-staple cotton
is z259 to qa5g inch. The cotton fiber attains its maximum length
before reaching its maximum diameter and strength.

Williams (N. C. Bd. Agr., Bul. Sept., 1906) found that in 12
varieties.of cotton, the average weight required to break a single
fiber was 6.83 grams. Hilgard found the extremes of breaking
strength of cotton to be 4 and 14 grams. Cotton is about three
times as strong as wool in proportion to the size of fiber. In a
_ pound of Russell cotton there were calculated to be more than

15,000,000 fibers, which, if placed end to end, would make a line
about 2000 miles long. Cotton fiber is prevented from readily
absorbing moisture by an oily covering of each fiber, which is
said by Monil to make up about 2 per cent of the weight of the
fiber. Absorbent cotton represents cotton from which this oily
protection has been removed by treatment with chemicals. The
oily covering must be removed before the yarn can be dyed.

It is thought by farmers that if seed cotton be stored for some
time before ginning, the proportion of lint will increase and that
it will then make a better-looking sample, If this be true, there
264 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

is need for investigators to determine whether there is an increase
in the weight of this oily covering during storage.

239. Seed. — There are usually 6 to 12 seeds in each
lock of seed cotton, or from 28 to 50 seeds in a boll. In
varieties with small seed, the number per boll is usually
greater than in varieties having large seed.

The legal weight of a bushel of seed is usually either 32
or 334 pounds. A bushel may be regarded as containing
about 135,000 seeds of average size.

A bushel of Sea Island cotton seed is usually assumed to weigh
about 44 pounds. In the author’s classification, upland cotton
seed, averaging 13 grams per 100 seed, are considered as large ;
those weighing 10 to 13 grams per 100 seed as medium ; and those
weighing Jess than 10 grams per 100 seed as small.

The seed of most varieties of upland cotton are covered with
a short, dense fuzz which may be white, greenish, or brownish.
There are some exceptional varieties almost free from this fuzz or
so thinly covered that the black seed-coat shows through. Sea
Island cotton has naked black seeds, free from fuzz exeept on the
tip end of some of them. Constant selection is necessary to pre-
vent an increase in the fuzz on Sea Island cotton seed.

Within the tough hull of the seed is the ‘ meat,’’ which con-
sists chiefly of two fleshy seed leaves (cotyledons) enfolding the
embryo sprout and the embryo root.

In the entire seed the following figures represent approximately
the usual proportions of the different parts : —

Linters, or short lint, removed at the oil mill... 10 per cent
US ee fo ee a ck ms ce oS Oper cont
IWGStS fq & eG. ote A ee See BS oe ee, fe 250 percent

Germination. — When planted in the field in the spring under

favorable weather conditions, germination usually oecurs in seven
to twelve days. Cotton seeds retain their power to germinate for
several years. The seed leaves, or first two thick leaves that
COTTON STRUCTURE 265

appear, serve to nourish the plant before the appearance of true
leaves.

240. Stages in the life of flower and fruit. — When the
plant is about 40 days old, the first squares or flower buds
may usually be seen. If planting is done in hot weather,
the squares mature more quickly. Mercier reports that
21 days is the time from the first appearance of the square
to the opening of the bloom. From the open bloom to the
open boll the time varies according to the season of year
and the variety. As arule in very hot weather, 42 days is
sufficient; while in the cooler weather of the early fall, 50 or
more days may be required. Therefore, blooms appearing
50 days before the average date of frost in a given locality
may be expected, under average weather conditions, to
mature.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

(1) Tie a string to the lowest branch of a well-grown cotton
plant and wind it spirally around the plant, in such a way as to
touch the base of each branch. By repeating this on several
plants determine the number of the branch from the bottom that
is directly above the lowest branch.

(2) Make a record of how many times the string passes en-
tirely around the stem in being wound spirally from the lowest
branch to the one directly over it.

(3) Compare, as to earliness of maturing, several plants with
long internodes on main stem and branches with others of the
same variety having short intervals between limbs or leaves.

(4) Weigh the mass of seed cotton from 50 bolls each having
5 locks, and that from 50 4-lock bolls; record and compare the
weights.

(5) Find 5 storm-resistant bolls or old burs, and write down the
apparent reasons for the storm resistance of each.

(6) Pull and break a small number of fibers of immature but
266 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

dry lint and note how much less force is required to break these
than to break fully matured cotton fibers.

LITERATURE

Meut, P. H. Ala. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 13.

Wiuuiams, C.B. N.C. Bd. Agr., Bul. Sept., 1906.

Auutarp, H. J. The Fibers of Long-staple Upland Cotton. U.S.
Dept. Agr., Bur. Plant. Ind., Bul. No. 111, Pt. II.

Wart,G. The Wild and Cultivated Cotton Plants of the World.
London, 1907.

Wesser, H. J., and Boyrxrn, E. B. Cotton. Bailey’s Cyclo.
Agr., Vol. II, pp. 247-257.
CHAPTER XV
COTTON — COMPOSITION AND PRINCIPAL USES

Or course, the great usefulness of cotton lies in the lint
or fiber. In fact, when one speaks of “ cotton,” he usually
refers to the fiber rather than to the plant as a whole.
There are other uses, however, that must be considered ;
and it is important to know the chemical composition of
the parts.

241. The lint. — Cotton lint consists mostly of woody
fiber (cellulose), which is formed chiefly from the carbon
dioxid of the air. A bale of cotton (500 pounds of lint)
contains only 1.7 pounds of nitrogen, half a pound of phos-
phoric acid, and 2.3 pounds of potash. If these sub-
stances be rated at their prices in commercial fertilizers,
the plant-food removed in a bale of cotton would be worth
only about 42 cents.

In selling only the lint the farmer removes from the soil
a smaller amount of fertility than in growing any other
American crop. When cotton lands decline in fertility,
it is not because of the lint removed, but chiefly on account
of the failure to rotate crops and thus to replenish the .
supply of vegetable matter.

242. The seed. — The seed of cotton, unlike the lint,
is rich in nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and potash. Hence
the sale of cotton seed removes large quantities of these

forms of plant-food.
267
268 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

For example, 1000 pounds of seed, which is approxi-
mately the amount usually accompanying one 500-pound
bale of lint, contains about 31 pounds of nitrogen, 13
pounds of phosphoric acid, and 12 pounds of potash.
To replace this quantity of precious plant-food would
require commercial fertilizers costing about $6.25. The
draft on the fertility of the land made by other parts of
the plant are indicated in later paragraphs of this book.

243. Composition of cotton products. — The most
valuable products of the cotton plant, next to the lint, are
those made from the seed. In round numbers there are
produced annually in the United States half as many mil-
lion tons of seed as million bales of cotton. More than
two thirds of the seed is used by the oil mills and less than
one tenth for planting; the remainder is either fed directly
as seed to live-stock, or else employed as fertilizer. The
oil in the seed has no fertilizing value; hence more wealth
is created when the oil mills use the seed than when the
seeds are employed as fertilizer, provided the farmer
buys enough cotton-seed meal or other forms of commercial
fertilizer to restore to his land the plant-food removed in
the seed. At prices prevailing in recent years, a dollar
buys a larger amount of plant-food in the form of cotton-
seed meal than if invested in cotton seed.

A ton of cotton seed ordinarily produces approximately the
following results at the oil mills ; —

Pounpbs
Oil (38 to 45 gallons), average about... 2. . . 300
Cotton-seed meal, average about. . . . . . Ot; 750
Cotton-seed hulls, average about Pte i a SOO
Linters, average about . . . . .....~,. ~~. ~;, 30
Waste, sand, trash, and evaporation, average about 120

BROGAN ey Oe ya eh CMe tee eae Dae ee OI)
COTTON COMPOSITION 269

The food and fertilizer constituents contained in one ton of
cotton seed and of a similar amount of high-grade cotton-seed
meal are as follows : —

Pounds of Food and Fertilizer Constituents in One Ton
of Cotton Seed and of high-grade Cotton-seed meal

 

Foop ConsTITUENTS

CoTTon CottTon-
SEED SEED MEAL
ICHER BY RICHER BY

leg es Cotton-seed
Cotton seed, meal, 2000 R

 

2000 lb. Ib.
Lb. Lb. % | &

Principal food constituents

Rrotem es. usc. 397 846 113

Nitrogen-free extract . 469 472 1

Haitep se caes met eid ea 398 204 95

Biber: 4. 2.4. ten 451 112 303

| |

Fertilizer constituents

INTGrOgeni ack!) (elas 63 113 79

Phosphoric acid. . . 25 54 116

Potashiis) SS. Ss ee 23 36 57

 

244. Utilizing cotton-seed products. — From the above
table it may be seen that, regarded as food, and overlooking
slight differences in digestibility, cotton-seed meal is much
more valuable than cotton seed, having more than twice
as much protein, but less fat and fiber.

In fertilizer constituents, high-grade cotton-seed meal
is practically twice as rich in nitrogen and phosphoric
acid, and more than 50 per cent richer in potash, than
cotton seed.

The farmer may act on the general statement that he is
making a nearly even exchange in plant-food when he
brings back to his farm half a ton of cotton-seed meal for
each ton of seed sold. But in food constituents, cotton-
270 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

seed meal is not twice as rich as cotton seed. The exchange
values of these two foods will depend upon many condi-
tions, especially the kind of roughage to be fed in connec-
tion with either, the purpose in view, and other matters
that find a place in textbooks on feeding animals. In
tests at the Mississippi Experiment Station, a pound of
cotton-seed meal was in one case equal as food to 1.6 pounds
of cotton seed, and in another case to 1.7 pounds.

In general, one may expect a ton of cotton seed to have
the same feeding value as an amount of cotton-seed meal
varying between 1250 and 1500 pounds.

245. Composition of the different parts of the plant. —
The stems contain nearly one fourth of the dry matter,
the leaves and seeds each a little more than one fifth, and
the lint only one ninth of the total dry matter in the
mature plant. The seed and lint, which are usually the
only portions of the plant removed from the land, together
constitute one third of the total weight of dry matter.
However, the proportion of seed and lint to other parts of ,
the plant varies widely according to the luxuriance of
growth and other conditions. Doubtless the seed and lint
together often constitute less than one third of the total
weight of the plant.

The above statements are based on the following figures,
giving the average results of a chemical study of the different
parts of the cotton plant as made by B. B. Ross at the Alabama
Experiment Station (Bulletin No. 107), and by J. B. McBryde
at the South Carolina Experiment Station. (See Bul., Vol. IV,
No. 5, Tenn. Expr. Sta.)

These figures show the amounts, and proportions by weight,
of the different parts of the mature dry cotton plants growing on
an acre where the yield of lint is 300 pounds : —
COTTON COMPOSITION 271

 

 

|
Pounps Dry Matrer| Per Cent or Toran
PER ACRE WeIGuHT OF Dry PLANT

 

Seed, ~. %- 6 ao a Ee 580 21.77
Lint af ie te 300 11.35
Roots . 190 7.03
Stems . 631 23.80
Leaves oe sce Ca oe ae 571 21.58
Burs. 2 344 14.55

Seed and lint combined . 33.12

 

 

246. Amounts of nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and potash
in the different parts of the cotton plant. — The following
table shows that to produce a crop of 300 pounds of dry
lint and the other parts associated with this amount of
fiber there was required about 42 pounds of nitrogen, 13
pounds of phosphoric acid, and 35 pounds of potash. The
figures are reached by averaging the analyses made by Ross
and McBryde, and are here given merely for reference: —

Amounts of Fertilizer Constituents required to produce a Crop of
300 Pounds of Lint

 

 

|Dry Marrer| PHOSPHORIC

 

 

 

pen ACRE | NOROGEN Acip Pere

Taint: 3 -& 4 300 0.63 0.23 2.00
Seeds ky holes hte 580 19.01 6.88 | 6.68
Burs os, ser Gee eeers 344 3.75 1.44 | 11.71
Leaves .... 571 13.25 2.64 6.35
Roots. .... 190 121 0.36 1.96
Stems. . . . .| 631 452 | 1.25 6.44
Total a 2.3 2656 42.37 12.80 | 35.14

 

 

247. Uses. — Cotton is used to a greater extent than
any other vegetable fiber for clothing. Wool is the only
272 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

other fiber that approaches cotton in the extent of use for
this purpose. Cotton is adapted to the manufacture of a
ereater variety of textile fabrics than any other fiber.
When it is treated with certain chemicals, or mercerized,
the fabric takes on a glossy appearance and becomes a fair
imitation of silk.

One reason why cotton is so much more extensively
used than linen, jute, and other vegetable fibers is found:
(1) in the readiness with which cotton fibers absorb dyes,
and (2) in the peculiar twisted structure of its fibers, so
favorable to ease of spinning and strength of thread.

The seed constitute a valuable food for cattle and sheep.
They are usually fed raw, though sometimes boiled when
fed to dairy cows. After the seed are ground in the oil
mills, the hulls are separated and used as cattle food.

T'rom the “ meats,’’ or hulled and ground seed, cotton-
seed oil is expressed by means of powerful hydraulic
presses. This oil finds use as a human food, especially as
a constituent of compound lard, oleomargarine, salad oils,
ete., as a lubricant, as a constituent of paint, in the manu-
facture of soap, and in almost all ways in which other oils
are employed. After the extraction of the oil, the residue
constitutes one of the most nutritious of foods for cattle
and sheep. It is fed either in the form of cake (lumps),
or more frequently this cake is first ground, thus forming
cotton-seed meal, which is one of the most valuable foods
for cattle. Large amounts of cotton-seed meal are also
used as fertilizer.

Cotton-seed meal as a foodstuff is chiefly used for cattle
and sheep. It exerts a specific toxic effect on hogs when fed
in quantity for a certain length of time. Ill effects are
COTTON COMPOSITION 2738

seldom observed in less than four weeks, and they are
usually shown in the periods between the thirtieth and
fortieth day after the feeding of cotton-seed meal is begun.
Fermenting the meal seems to decrease this danger, as
probably does also the feeding of green or succulent food at
the same time. Cotton-seed meal is injurious to young
calves, and probably to most very young animals.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

From the tables on page 271 calculate for an acre producing
500 pounds of lint what would be the probable weight of

(a) dry stems, or stalks;

(b) the number of pounds of nitrogen lost if the stalks, roots,
and buts of a crop of this size be burned, assuming that these
parts of the plant increase at the same rate as the yield of lint.

LITERATURE
Ross, B. B. Ala. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 107, pp. 369-402.
Hurcuinson, W. L., and Parrerson, L. G. Miss. Expr. Sta.,
Tech. Bul. No. 1.
Suiver, F.S. S.C. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 47.
McBrypez, J.B. Tenn. Expr. Sta., Bul., Vol. IV, No. 5.
Krucore, B. W. U.S. Dept. Agr., Office Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 33.
CHAPTER XVI
COTTON — THE PRINCIPAL SPECIES

Corron may be annual or biennial, according to the
particular species, and dependent upon the climate in
which the plant grows. As cultivated in the principal
cotton-producing countries, all the important species of
cotton are annuals, maturing seed before cold weather,
and being killed by frost. In very warm countries, plants
of some species live for a number of years. This tend-
ency toward a perennial habit still exists in the cotton
grown in the United States, as is evident from its throwing
out, after a mild winter, shoots from the roots or stem of
the preceding year.

248. Family and genus. — The cotton plant is one of
the Mallow family (Malvacee). This family also in-
cludes okra; a number of cultivated flowers, as, holly-
hocks, hibiscus, and althea or “ Rose of Sharon’; a
considerable number of not very troublesome weeds;
and certain plants the bark of which affords useful fiber.
The Mallow family includes both herbs and shrubs or
trees. All the plants within it have flowers with five
petals and numerous stamens, the supports for the sta-
mens forming a tube around the pistil; there are usually
several leaf-like parts (bracts) just below and around
the flower, three of these forming in cotton what is known

274
COTTON SPECIES 213

as the square. The leaves are alternate, and the veining
of the leaves begins at a common point near the base of
the leaf blade; that is, the leaves are palmately veined.

The genus, or subdivision of a family, to which the cotton
plant belongs, is Gossypium. In this genus the stigmas,
grown together, usually number three to five, according to
the number of locks which will be contained in the mature
fruit or boll. The leaves are lobed, the size and shape of
the lobes varying in the different species.

249. Principal species of cotton. — Botanists differ
widely as to the number of species of Gossypium and as to
the name that should be applied to certain species. More-
over, some cultivated cottons are crosses or hybrids be-
tween two species, thus increasing the difficulty of properly
naming each kind. For example, until recent years it was
customary to refer to the present commonly grown upland
cotton of the United States as Gossypium herbaceum, a
name now given to one of the Asiatic cottons. Watt
(‘Wild and Cultivated Cotton Plants of the World’’)
assumes that for a time the early colonists did grow this
species in Virginia, but that before cotton became an
important crop it was displaced by the present type of
American upland cotton; the former, he thinks, still
influences American upland cotton through its hybrids.
The latest investigators favor the name Gossypium hir-
sutum, to include both the ordinary or short-staple cotton
of the United States and also the long-staple upland cotton
of this country.

As many as fifty-four species of Gossypium have been
described and named, but most botanists reduce the species
to a much smaller number.
276 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

The following may be regarded as the species most 1m-
portant to the world’s agriculture, commerce, and manu-
facture.

American group.

(1) Upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum). This is the
ordinary cotton of:the southern part of the United States,
including the long-staple clas

(2) Sea Island cotton (Gossypium barbadense ; so named
from the Barbadoes Islands). This affords the finest,
longest, and most valuable of all cotton fibers.

(3) Peruvian cotton (Gossypium peruvianum). Its im-
portance is not due to its cultivation in its home in Peru,
but to its having become the principal cotton of Egypt.
Although transplanted to Asia, it retains a closer kinship
to American than to true Asiatic cottons.

S.

  
 

 

Asiatic group.

(4) Indian cotton (Gossypium obtusifolium; so named
from the lobes or divisions of the leaves being rounded or
obtuse) includes the best grades of Indian cotton, often
called in commerce Broach or Surat cotton.

(5) Bengal cotton (Gossypium arboreum) is another im-
portant cotton of India.

The members of the American group, including Sea
Island, ordinary upland, and Egyptian, cross freely among
themselves. Most Asiatic kinds also cross freely among
themselves. However, Gammie! in his experiments found
that the American cottons did not cross with those of the
Asiatic group. While there is undoubtedly difficulty in

1Gammie, “The Indian Cottons.” Calcutta.
COTTON SPECIES PAG

making most crosses between the American and Asiatic
groups, Watt maintains that such crosses are possible.

250. American upland cotton. — This constitutes all of
the cotton crop of the. United States except the small
amount of Sea Island cotton grown near the South Atlantic
and Gulf coasts. It forms the largest single item of ex-
port, and brings into the United States more money than
any other crop or single line of manufacture.

American upland cotton may be divided into two prin-
cipal classes: (1) short-staple varieties and (2) long-staple
varieties. The chief distinction between these is in the
length of lint, that of

short-staple being usu-
ally = to 1} inches,
while long-staple, or
“staple cotton,” usu-
ally has a length of
14 to 12 inches.
Between these two

groups, which are
a shat sharply dis Fic. 130.—Various SHapPes oF CoTTon
somewhat sharply dis- Borie.

tinguished from each Qn left, Sea Island; in center, a typical
- other, lies an inter- long-staple; and on right, a typical short-
immediate: “class: The staple of the big-boll class.
cottons of this class are called commercially ‘‘ Benders”
r ‘‘ Rivers.”” These names arise from the fact that this
intermediate kind is grown chiefly on moist bottom land.
Such soil has a tendency to lengthen the staple even of a
short-staple variety. Moreover, there are varieties hav-
ing intermediate lengths of lint, even when grown on up-
land.
278 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

There are usually other differences between long- and
short-staple cotton, though these are by no means univer-
sal distinctions. As a rule the long-staple cotton plant is
late in maturing, tall, and supplied with bolls that are
slenderer and more sharply pointed than is the case with
most short-staple varieties (Fig. 130). Long-staple cotton

 

 

 

Fic. 131.—A Sea Istanp Corron PLant.

invariably has a lower percentage of lint; the yield of lint
is less, frequently below 80 per cent of that yielded by
short-staple varieties on the same grade of land.

The difference in price between long- and short-staple
cotton varies greatly from year to year. Generally this
COTTON SPECIES 279

difference, or premium, for long staple is between 3 and
5 cents per pound of lint. :

251. Sea Island cotton (Fig. 131). — This cotton is
grown only in limited areas on or rather near the seacoast
in South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. It is generally

 

SOUTH CAROLINA

 

 

 

 

 

Fic. 132. — WHereE Sea Istanp CoTTon Is Grown.

Each dot stands for an annual yield of 500 bales.

regarded as a profitable crop only within a distance of
about 100 miles from the coast (Fig. 132).

The Sea Island cotton plant is distinguished from upland
cotton chiefly by the following characteristics : —

(1) A taller plant, with longer, slenderer branches, and
later maturity ;
280 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

(2) Leaves with much longer and slenderer lobes ;

(3) The absence of hairs from leaves and stems ;

(4) The yellowish color of the fresh blooms and the pres:
ence of red spots near the base of each petal ;

(5) The much smaller, slenderer boll, with usually only
three, or sometimes four, locks ;

(6) The longer, finer fiber and the naked black seed
nearly or quite free from fuzz.

The usual length of fiber is 1} to 2 inches. In quality
Sea Island cotton is fine and silky. It is used in the manu-
facture of the most expensive cotton fabrics, such as laces,
fine hosiery, and lawns.

In recent years some grades of Sea Island cotton have
commanded a price above 35 cents per pound, and espe-
cially fine strains a still higher figure.

252. Peruvian and Egyptian cotton. — True Peruvian
cotton, including the leading varieties now grown in
Egypt, have a brownish lint. The fiber of Egyptian cotton
is longer than that of American upland long staple but
shorter and less valuable than that of the Sea Island. It is
an interesting fact that, though the United States exports
millions of bales of upland or short-staple cotton, American
manufacturers find it necessary to import annually about
150,000 bales of Egyptian cotton. This is because Egyp-
tian cotton is needed for special purposes; for example, it is
the kind best suited to the chemical treatment known as
mercerization, by which a silky luster is imparted. Mer-
cerization consists in treating the fiber with a solution of
caustic soda, washing it, then treating the fiber with dilute
sulphuric acid, and again washing it.

Some varieties of Egyptian cotton have white lint and
COTTON SPECIES 281

seem to be hybrids decended in parts from the American
Sea Island species.

253. Asiatic cottons. — The cotton grown in aimee and
elsewhere in Asia is less productive and has a shorter fiber
than American short-staple cotton. The colors of the
flowers are various, and the forms of plants and of the
leaves differ from those of any of the American groups.

LABORATORY EXERCISE>5

1. Make a drawing showing the stamens and stigmas of a
cotton flower, after removing the bracts and pctals.

2. If specimen plants of Sea Island cotton can be had, or if the
seed and lint can be obtained, compare them with the corre-
sponding parts of American upland cotton.

LITERATURE

Dewey, L. H. U.S. Dept. Agr., Yearbook, 1903, pp. 388-390.

Evans, W. FE. U.S. Dept. Agr., Office Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 33,
pp. 67-76.

Watt, G. The Wild and Cultivated Cotton Plants of the
World. London, 1907.

Gammnig, G. A. The Indian Cottons. Calcutta, 1905.
CHAPTER XVII
COTTON — VARIETIES OF AMERICAN UPLAND

THERE are many hundred names to represent varieties
of cotton. The Alabama Experiment Station has tested
more than two hundred of these so-called varieties and has
found that a large proportion of them are merely synonyms.
However, it is probable that the number of distinct varie-
ties, each differing from the other in one or more items of
agricultural or botanical importance, exceeds one hundred.

254. Reasons for variation. — Among the causes which
have led to this multiplication of varieties are the follow-
ing: —

(1) Modifications of the plant resulting from continuous
selection, or from special soil and climatic conditions ;

(2) Artificial crosses intentionally made with a view to
creating new varieties combining some of the qualities of
both parents ;

(3) Natural hybrids resulting chiefly from the carrying
of pollen by insects from the flowers of one variety to the
stigmas of another ;

(4) Names have been needlessly multiplied, both inten-
tionally and unintentionally, so that some varieties may be
purchased under half a dozen different names.

255. Varieties of cotton not easily recognized. — The
differences between the numerous agricultural. varieties

282
COTTON VARIETIES 284,

are so slight that even an expert is unable to identify with
certainty any but those varieties having the most definite
characteristics. Indeed, the description of any variety
will not apply to all the plants in it, but is to be taken
rather as a general or average portrayal.

256. Classification of varieties. — The study of varie-
ties may be much simplified by arranging them in a small
number of groups, as is done in the subjoined scheme of
classification. The American upland short-staple cottons
may be divided into six classes; to this is added a seventh
division to include short-staple varieties of a character
intermediate between any other two groups. An eighth
group differs from all the others because its members
possess a long staple. d

Group 1. — Cluster type.

Group 2. — Semicluster type.

Group 3. — Rio Grande type, of which the Peterkin is
an example.

Group 4. — The early varieties of the King type.

Group 5. — The Big-boll type.

Group 6. — The Long-limbed type.

Group 7. — Intermediate varieties.

Group 8. — Long-staple Upland varieties.

The lines of separation between these groups are not
distinct ; one group gradually merges into another.

257. Cluster group. — The varieties belonging here are
easily distinguished, (1) by the extreme shortness of the
fruit limbs in the middle and upper parts of the plant
(Fig. 133), and (2) by the tendency of the bolls to grow in
clusters of two or three (Fig. 134). The few base limbs
are usually long. The plant in general possesses an ap-
284 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

 

 

Fic, 133.— A Cotron PLANT oF THE CLUSTER TYPE.
COTTON VARIETIES 285

pearance of slenderness or erectness. The bolls are usually
small; the seeds are small to medium in size and thickly
covered with fuzz.

On account of the peculiar shape of plant, cluster va-
rieties may be left thicker in the drill than most other kinds.

This class of cotton is
much less popular now than
formerly. This is probably
due to the deficiencies usu-
ally found in cluster cotton;
namely : —

(1) A special tendency to
shed or drop a large propor-
tion of the fruit when con-
ditions of soil and weather
are unfavorable ;

 

Fic. 134.— A Froitine Lr ofr «
; CLUSTER CoTTON PLANT.

(2) The small size of boll ; Showing four bolls; also a branch
and terminated by a boll, and hence not
capable of further growth.

(3) The large proportion
of trash which must usually be included with the seed
cotton when picking, — this trash consisting largely of the
bracts, which at an earlier stage formed the square.
Examples of cluster varieties are Jackson and Dickson.

258. Semicluster group. — The varieties of this class
present somewhat the appearance of cluster cottons, but
the fruiting limbs in the middle of the plant are of short to
medium length (Fig. 135). The bolls, while close together,
are not borne in clusters. This characteristic is sometimes
united with the qualities found in other groups, in which
case the variety is classed, not as a semicluster, but in
accordance with its other striking characteristic.
286 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

 

Fic. 135.—A Corton PLANT OF THE SEMICLUSTER TYPE.
COTTON VARIETIES 287

There is much diversity among the semicluster varieties
in size of boll, size of seed, and percentage of lint.

Among semicluster varieties are Hawkins and Poulnot.

259. Rio Grande group. — This is named for one of the
earlier varieties, which had almost the same characteristics
as the Peterkin,
now so exten-
sively grown.
Among the dis-
tinguishing
marks of this
group are (1) a
large propor-
tion of lint,
usually 35 to 40
per cent of the
weight of the
seedcotton,and
(2) small seeds,
many of which
are nearly
naked ; that is,
thinly covered ye. 136. — Tur PererKrs Type of Corton Pint.
with short fuzz,
so that the seeds appear dark or even black.

The leaves are, as a rule, smaller and supplied with
narrower, more sharply pointed lobes than in the case of
many other varieties. The bolls are small to medium and
the seed small to very small. The branches are usually
slender and rather straight, and either medium- or long-
jointed (Fig. 136).

 

 
288 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

260. The Early King-like group (Fig. 137). — The plants
are small to medium in size. The fruit limbs, even near
the top of the plant, are
long, slender, and often
crooked. The vegetative
branches at the base of
the plant are short or
wanting. The bolls are
small. The leaves are
similar to those of the
Rio Grande group. The
seeds are usually small
and covered with fuzz of
various shades. A large
Fic. 137.—A Corron Pianr or tur proportion of the blooms

Fae Gee on varieties of this type
are marked with red spots near the inner base of each petal.
The King and its synonyms and related varieties consti-
tute the earliest of the commonly grown American upland
cottons.

The chief faults of these varieties are the small size of
boll, the short fiber, and the tendency of the seed cotton
to fall from the burs.

261. The Big-boll group. — The one sheraetenaees serv-
ing to identify the varieties of this group is the large size
of the boll. While the size of boll varies with many con-
ditions, an arbitrary division must be made somewhere ;
hence, in this scheme of classification, bolls are considered
large if sixty-eight or fewer mature bolls yield one pound of
seed cotton. This group may be further subdivided inte
the following overlapping subdivisions : —

 
 

Fic. 138. —A Cotton Piant oF THE Bic-noLt Storm-proor TYPE.

U 289
290 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

(1) Storm-proof big-boll cottons (Fig. 138) ;

(2) Big-boll varieties having plants of the shape that
characterizes the semicluster group; and

(3) Ordinary big-boll varieties having neither marked
storm resistance nor semicluster shape of plant..

Examples of storm-proof big-boll cottons are Triumph,
Rowden, and Texas Storm-proof. Among the semicluster
big-boll varieties are some strains of Truitt, Bancroft, and
individual plants of a number of big-boll varieties.

Among big-boll varieties of the third subdivision are
the widely grown Truitt and Russell, the latter having
green seed. Here, too, belong Cleveland and Cook, two
very productive varieties, the bolls of which are sometimes
scarcely large enough to admit these varieties into the big-
boll class, where they usually belong.

262. The Long-limbed group. — In this class the plants
grow to large size and have long limbs with long internodes;
that is, they are ‘long jointed.” Apparently this is a
disappearing class, represented chiefly by unimproved
cotton. No existing variety of notable productiveness is
included in this group.

263. The Intermediate group. — This group is provided
merely as a matter of convenience to include varieties that
are too nearly halfway between any other two groups to be
assigned to one of them.

264. The Long-staple Upland group (Fig. 139). — The
superior length of staple is the distinguishing characteristic
of this group. The lint usually measures 1} to 14 inches.
The percentage of lint in the seed cotton is low, usually less
than thirty-one. Examples of this group are Allen Long-
staple, in which the plants are tall and usually of a semi-
COTTON VARIETIES 291

cluster shape. The bolls of Allen Long-staple are slender
and small, and the seed are densely covered with white

 

 

Fic. 139.—A Cotron PLant or THE LoNG-sTAPLE UPLAND TYPE.

fuzz (Fig. 140.) Other examples are Griffin, which has
a very long but weak lint, and bolls that are above the
average in size for long-staple varieties.

On upland soils the long-staple varieties are usually less
productive than short-staple cottons and afford a lint
shorter than that produced on moist, rich, bottom land.
However, the Blue Ribbon, a variety resulting from a cross
between a long-staple upland and a short-staple kind, has
proved well adapted to upland soils, especially in the Pied-
mont Region of the northern part of South Carolina. The
chief fault of the last-named variety is its special liability
to injury from boll-rot (anthracnose, see Par. 386).

265. Productiveness of varieties. — The most impor-
tant fact brought out by a study of the numerous tests of
‘SOTIOLIVA aTdv}s
-PLOYS PUB -SUOT Waaajoq puqAy & st ‘Moped ‘yYSU oY} UO UaUTIDOds oY} { o]dv}s-BUO] oIe Mos Joddn oy}y Ul eso,
‘NOLLOD 4O SHILEIUVA IVE

GAGY JO SUA —‘OPFL ‘Ol

 

 
COTTON VARIETIES 293

varieties of cotton made at all of the Experiment Stations
within the cotton-belt is that there is no one variety that ;
has proved most productive for all conditions of soil and
climate. The reason for this is easily seen. A very early
variety is usually the best for the extreme northern portion
of the cotton-belt, because of the shortness of the season
there; but this same variety, if carried farther south, is
usually surpassed in yield by later varieties, which continue
to make fruit through a longer season. Moreover, it is
apparently true that varieties originating on one class of
soil are placed at a disadvantage when tested on a widely
different type of soil.

At the Alabama Experiment Station, the varieties which
in recent years have usually taken highest rank in yield of
lint per acre are Cleveland, Cook Improved, Toole, Lay-
ton, and Poulnot. It is notable that Cleveland, Cook, and
Toole have also occupied high positions in tests made in
Georgia and in several different parts of Mississippi.
Cook has made a good record also in several localities in
North Carolina.

Leading varieties at Southern experiment stations. — The follow-
ing table makes mention of those varieties which have, as a rule,
taken high rank in yield of lint per acre at the experiment sta-
tions in the cotton-belt : —

List of Varieties making Largest Yields of Lint per Acre at Experi-
ment Stations through a Number of Years
Alabama (Auburn) Cook Improved
Toole
Cleveland *
Layton
Poulnot
Jackson
294 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Alabama (Canebrake) Truitt
: Russell
Peerless
Peterkin

Georgia Cook Improved
Layton
Cleveland
Toole
Jackson
Jones Re-improved
Peterkin
King

Louisiana (Baton Rouge and Calhoun)

(Boll weevil present)

Simpkins
King
Toole
Triumph
Rublee

Mississippi (Agricultural College Station)

Cleveland
F Cook

Lewis Prize
Hawkins
Russell
King

Mississippi (McNeil Substation) Cook
Toole
Cleveland
King
Peterkin

Mississippi (Delta Substation) Cleveland
Lewis Prize
Cook

Triumph
bo
©
or

COTTON VARIETIES

North Carolina (Edgecomb, in Coastal Plain)
Cook
Russell
Culpepper
Peterkin

North Carolina (Piedmont Region) King
Cook
Shine
Edgeworth
North Carolina (Red Springs) Culpepper
Excelsior
King
Russell
South Carolina (Clemson College Station)
Toole
Texas Oak
Bates Improved
Peerless

South Carolina (Greenville, 3 years) Texas Wood
Peterkin
Truitt

South Carolina (Columbia, 1883-1888) Duncan Mammoth
Jones Improved
Dickson

South Carolina (Darlington, in Coastal Plain)
Peterkin

Texas (College Station) Excelsior
Triumph
Beck Big-boll
Bohemian
Peterkin
Texas Oak
Sure Fruit
Lowry
296 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Descriptions of Prominent and Typical Varieties

Jackson. —The Jackson variety is one of the tallest and
slenderest of the cluster group. It has also been known as
African and Limbless, neither of which is correct; it did not
originate in Africa, as once claimed, and only a small proportion
of the plants lack the long base limbs.

The bolls are small, closely clustered, and very difficult to pick.
These constitute the chief objections to this variety, which is
quite productive, especially when the plants are crowded rather
closely, and this can be done with this erect variety to a greater
extent than with long-limbed kinds. The percentage of lint is
above medium. The seed is fuzzy, of medium to small size, and
usually covered with a brownish gray fuzz.

Hawkins. — This variety is typical of the semicluster group.
It is rather early in maturity. The bolls are small to medium and
the percentage of seed cotton medium.

Peterkin. — This variety is a type of the Rio Grande group,
having some seed that are nearly naked or slightly covered with
fuzz, which is often of a brownish tint. The plants are of medium
size, abundantly supplied with branches. The percentage of lint
is high, the size of bolls small, and the size of seed very small.
This is one of the most widely grown varieties and is usually
satisfactory in yield. As regards maturity, it is medium to
late.

Layton. — This variety is similar to Peterkin except in having
a smaller proportion of naked seeds and a thicker covering of
grayish fuzz on most of its seeds. In several recent tests at
Experiment Stations it has afforded a larger yield of lint per acre
than Peterkin.

Toole. — This variety bears many points of resemblance to
Peterkin and some resemblance to King. It is earlier and
usually somewhat more productive of lint than Peterkin. The
plant is of medium to small size and well suited to intensive fer-
tilization (Fig. 141). It is one of the few varieties which gener-
ally in recent years have stood near the top of the list in produc-
tiveness in most of the Experiment Stations where it has been
COTTON VARIETIES 297

tested. Its chief weakness is the small size of the bolls. The
percentage of lint is high and the size of seed small.

King. — This variety, like all the others “of the same group,
is distinguished by its extreme earliness, by the small size of the

 

Fic. 141.— A Propuctive Cotron PLant oF THE TOOLE VARIETY.

plant, and by the occurrence in some blooms of red spots near
the base of each petal. Near the northern edge of the cotton-
belt this is one of the most prolific varieties, but elsewhere it is
usually surpassed in yield of lint by later cottons. The chief
objections to this variety are the readiness with which the seed
cotton falls from the bur to the ground and the small size of bolls.

Russell. — This is one of the most widely grown varieties in
298 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

the central and southern parts of the cotton-belt. It is a big-
boll cotton with very large leaves. It is characterized by the
green color of most of its seed. :

The bolls are large and do not readily drop the seed cotton.
The seeds are large and the percentage of lint is low. The yield
of lint per acre is usually satisfactory, but not exceptional. This
variety is late and therefore, in the presence of the boll-weevil,
likely to decline in popularity.

Truitt. — This is a typical big-boll variety with many of the
plants assuming the semicluster form. The seeds are large and
usually covered with grayish fuzz. Truitt is widely grown.

Triumph. — This variety was developed in the southern part
of Texas from a cotton of the storm-proof group. Its special
claim to prominence is its earliness combined with the large size
of boll. This variety is very popular in Texas in the presence of
the boll-weevil and has given general satisfaction to farmers east
of the Mississippi River, where, however, its percentage of lint
seems to be lower than nearer its place of origin. This variety
combines a number of good qualities, namely relative earliness,
large size of boll, and at least fair productiveness.

Cleveland. — This is a big-boll variety, though searcely typical
of that group, nor are the plants entirely uniform. Its special
points of merit are the very high rank in yield of lint per acre
which it has taken in most of the Experiment Stations where it
has been tested, and its earliness, which is greater than that of
most big-boll varieties. Its worst fault is the tendeney of the
seed cotton to fall from the bur. It appears to be promising for
boll-weevil conditions.

Cook Improved. — The bolls of this variety are barely large
enough to place it in the big-boll class. The plants are somewhat
variable in form and appearance. The special merits of this
variety are its earliness, its high percentage of lint, and the
very high rank in yield of lint per acre which it has taken in most
tests at the Experiment Stations. Its greatest fault is its special
tendeney to be injured by cotton boll-rot (anthracnose). <A less
notable fault is its lack of storm-resistanee. The seed are small
and rather thinly covered with a grayish fuzz.
COTTON VARIETIES 299

Allen Long-staple. — The plant is tall with long, rather upright
base imbs; the appearance is often that of a semicluster plant.
The bolls are small, rather long and slender. The lint is long and
fine, but the percentage islow. The seeds are covered with white
fuzz. This is a standard variety in the Mississippi Delta.

Griffin. — This long-staple variety differs from many others of
the same class in having larger bolls and somewhat longer limbs.
However, the lint is weak.

Blue Ribbon. — This is a long-staple variety originated at the
South Carolina Experiment Station and adapted to the northern
and central portions of the cotton-belt. The length of staple
is not equal to that in the Allen variety. The plant is of the
semicluster shape. The percentage of lint is somewhat above
that of most long-staple varieties. The greatest weakness of the
Blue Ribbon is its susceptibility to boll-rot.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

1. Write descriptions of at least five varieties of cotton, if
available, noting especially shape of plant, size and shape of
bolls, relative earliness, and colors of seed.

2. Ascertain the opinions of several farmers as to which varie-
ties are thought to make the largest yields of lint in the locality
of the school or near the pupil’s home, and report in writing.

3. Students in advanced classes should make a detailed study
of an additional number of varieties; and of the records of va-
rieties as tested at their State Experiment Station.

LITERATURE

Doaear, J. F. Ala. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 107 and 140.

Harper, J.N. S.C. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 123.

MacNiper, G. M., and others. N. C. Dept. Agr., Bull. Feb.,
1909, pp. 37-63.

Newman, C. L. S.C. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 140.

Tracy, S. M. U.S. Dept. Agr., Office Expr. Sta., Bul. 33, pp.
197-224.

Tyier, F.K. U.S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Plant Ind., Bul. No. 163.
CHAPTER XVIII
COTTON BREEDING

An important part of crop-growing is to maintain the
excellence of types and varieties, and to improve the plants
by constant attention to approved methods of breeding.
Cotton is no exception to this rule.

266. Deterioration of cotton is easy. — A large propor-
tion of the farmers of the cotton-belt plant impure, mixed,
and otherwise inferior cotton seed. Even where a start is
made with a pure variety the cotton usually “runs out,”
or deteriorates, in a few years. This is not because soil or
climate is unfavorable; the depreciation in productiveness
and quality is generally due to one or more of the following
reasons : —

(1) Failure to select plants as carefully for seed as did
the person who originated or improved the variety ;

(2) Mixing of the seed at public gins with inferior seed ;

(3) Cross-pollination by insects bringing pollen from
inferior varieties or from unimproved (scrub) cotton ;

(4) The planting of seed obtained in the last picking,
many of which are immature, light and defective, or from
late, poor plants.

Nowhere in the cotton-belt is there any necessity for
short-staple cotton to deteriorate. Tf it does become less
valuable, the cause will be found in want of due care to
secure good seed for planting.

300
29

COTTON BREEDING 301

267. Improvement of cotton seed profitable. — A study
of the results of any tests of varieties of cotton reveals a
wide difference between the yields of the most productive
varieties and of the least productive. The difference is even
greater between common or unimproved cotton and the best
varieties. It is probably safe to estimate that a suitable
improved variety will, as a rule, yield at least 20 per cent
more lint per acre than will unimproved or scrub cotton.

268. Crossing vs. selection as a means of improving cot-
ton. — In improving cotton or any other plant, reliance
is placed on selection or on hybridizing, or on a combina-
tion of both of these processes. Selection attains the quick-
est results, especially if a beginning be made with an es-
tablished variety. Selection is the only process that farm-
ers, as a rule, need to practice.

Crossing of two widely different individuals or varieties
is sometimes performed in the hope of uniting in the off-
spring the good qualities of both. The chances are much
against securing this desired combination in the majority
of the plants of the progeny; even when the combination
is secured in one plant, it is not inherited by the majority
of its offspring.

After a cross is made, the plants grown from such crossed
seed must be carefully selected for a number of years
before there is much uniformity between the different
plants. One need scarcely expect the type to become well
fixed in less than five years after making the cross. There-
fore, crossing is scarcely practicable for most farmers;
but it can be used to a limited extent by a plant-breeder,
that is, by one who devotes a large proportion of his time
to the improvement of plants.
302 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

269. Directions for crossing cotton. — Near sunset the
pollen-cases (anthers) are removed from large flower-buds
that would open the next morning. The removal of the
anthers is most conveniently done by cutting away the
greater part of every petal, and then carefully removing
every anther, either with a small pair of pincers, a small
pair of scissors, or with the blade of a pocket knife, taking
care not to bruise the pistil around which the stamens
grow. The anthers when removed are still closed; if
any have begun to drop their pollen, the bud is too far
advanced for crossing. As soon as the anthers are taken
out, a small paper bag is pinned or tied over the mutilated
flower to keep insects from bringing to the stigma the pollen
from some unknown cotton plant.

Next, choose the plant that is to furnish the pollen, and
over its buds, nearly ready to open, tie a paper bag to ex-
clude insect visitors. The next morning, usually about
nine o’clock, the stigma on the mutilated flower will be
ready to receive the pollen from the chosen sire plant.
This readiness will be shown by the stickiness of the upper
portion of the pistil, that is, the stigmas. At about the
same time that the stigmas become receptive, the anthers
in other flowers will have begun to burst, setting free their
pollen.

There are several methods of placing the pollen on the
flower from which the anthers have been removed. One
way consists in simply pulling the entire flower bearing
the pollen, and rubbing its anthers lightly over the stigmas
of the mutilated bloom, until some of the grains of pollen
are seen to adhere to all sides of the pistil. Then the paper
bag is again placed in position, to be left over the muti-
lated flower for
about five
days, or until
a young boll
has developed.
This boll must
be carefully
labeled by
means of a
small tag, so
that at har-
vest time the
crossed boll
may be distin-
guished from
others.

270. Varia-
tion and selec-
tion.— The
different indi-
vidual plants
within a single
variety differ
considerably
(Figs. 142 and
143). Still
greater is the

 

COTTON BREEDING 303

Fic. 142. A Propuctive Cotton Puant.

divergence between individual plants of unimproved
cotton. This tendency to vary makes constant improve-

ment possible.

For as long as a few plants are distinctly

superior in any quality to the majority of plants, there
304 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

is the possibility of bringing the average much nearer to
the standard of the best plants.

It is highly desirable that any pure variety of cotton
should — possess
the maximum de-
eree of uniform-
ity among the in-
dividual plants.
This uniformity
is much more
quickly and com-
pletely secured
by beginning
with a_ variety
already  consid-
ered as pure.
Hence any per-
son desiring to
improve cotton
should first of all
become familiar
with the best
varieties, and
among these he
should — choose
for improvement
that one which
possesses. the
greatest number
of qualities desired and on which the fewest new qualities
need to be engrafted.

 

Fic. 143.— An Unpropuctive Corron PuLant.
COTTON BREEDING 308

271. The simplest method of selection. — The follow-
ing method of selection is recommended as practicable for
most farmers who cannot afford to devote much attention
to cotton breeding, but who desire to maintain or slowly
improve the purity and excellence of any good variety : —

At the first or second picking, let one of the most care-
ful of the pickers precede the others and pick into one bag
the seed cotton from the best plants.

The plants chosen by this picker must be very productive,
and they should possess in addition the other qualities
desired ; — for example, earliness and a certain size of boll.
Moreover, all plants chosen for seed should be uniform in
the appearance of the plant and in the other qualities
desired. Thus, in a big-boll variety, every plant having
medium or small bolls should be rejected, no matter how
numerous the bolls may be. Likewise in selecting seed of
a semicluster variety, no bolls from a leng-limbed plant,
howsoever productive, should be picked into the sack
intended for seed.

272. Principal qualities desired in the plant. — A care-
ful person engaged in selecting cotton soon becomes so
expert that, as he walks along the row, he can detect at a
glance the most promising plants. Then he should make a
hasty decision as to whether each productive plant com-
bines the following important points : —

(1) Desired size of bolls;

(2) A large number of bolls;

(3) The desired degree of earliness ;

(4) The shape of plant characteristic of that variety ; and

(5) Freedom from disease, such as boll-rot, rust, and
cotton wilt.

x
306 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Each farmer should decide for himself whether it is
practicable for him, in selecting cotton, to consider other
qualities not so readily detected, such as length of lint
and proportion of five-lock bolls.

273. Defects in bolls. — In selecting seed for planting,
either by the simple method now under discussion or by a
more careful method to be described later, no boll should
be picked for seed that has any of the following defects :

(1) Spots on the hull or bur, due to disease ;

(2) Any imperfectly developed lock, or any lock not
fully open; and

(3) Diminutive size of boll.

A boll with disease spots or with a defective lock is apt
to convey the germs of disease to the next crop.

274. The seed-patch.— The cotton picked for seed
from the best plants as directed above should be carefully
ginned, taking care to avoid any mixing at the gin. The
next season the selected seed thus obtained should be
planted thinly in a seed-patch having uniform soil and
separated, if possible, by a quarter of a mile from any other
cotton.

Each year a similar seed-patch should be planted with
seed selected from the best plants of the preceding year’s
seed-patch. The remaining seed, after the best plants have
been picked over once, will usually suffice to plant the en-
tire farm.

The method of selection described in the last few para-
graphs is practicable on almost any farm, whether large or
small. However, this method alone will serve rather to
maintain established excellence than to afford any notable
and rapid improvement in the variety, which must be

 
COTTON BREEDING 307

effected by the more painstaking method described in
paragraph 278.

275. Qualities needing improvement. — Selection or
breeding is capable of improving the cotton plant in every
desirable quality. Among those directions in which im-
provement should be sought are the following : —

(1) Increase in the yield of lint ;

(2) Increased earliness;

(3) Increase in size of boll;

(4) Greater length of lint ;

(5) More uniformity in the length of lint;

(6) Improvement in the form of plant or method of
branching ;

(7) Increase in the percentage of lint of some varieties ;_
and

(8) Greater resistance to diseases.

276. Some antagonistic qualities. — Some of the quali-
ties just mentioned tend to exclude other desirable ones.
The following pairs of qualities are generally antagonistic;
that is, rarely, if ever, found in the same individual plant :—

(1) Extreme earliness is opposed to extremely large
bolls.

(2) Extreme earliness is usually not associated with the
highest yields of lint, except when the fruiting season is
shortened by early frost or by the presence of the boll-
weevil.

(3) Great length of lint excludes the probability of a
high percentage of lint.

(4) A high percentage of lint is seldom found in varieties
or strains having large seeds.

Asarule, any progress inimproving one of these characters
308 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

results in a decrease in its antagonistic quality. However,
an oceasional single plant may constitute an exception,
and combine, to a certain extent, these opposing qualities.
Such exceptional plants are exactly those that the plant-
breeder is seeking to evolve or to discover, and then to
perpetuate in their purity. —

Although certain pairs of desirable qualities are antago-
nistic, yet the cotton plant has many useful characters that
can readily be improved together without mutual injury.

277. Breeding for a small number of qualities. — The
most rapid improvement in any character is secured when
plants are selected for seed with chief reference to a very
small number of desirable qualities. For example, if an
increased size of boll is the only point aimed at, any given
field will contain more plants filling this requirement than
plants answering the needs of a man who wishes a combina-
tion in the same plant of three qualities, such as large
size of boll, small seed, and long lint.

Therefore, it is wise to make one quality the leading one,
so that every plant selected shall possess this to a high
degree ; but there should also be in mind several secondary
qualities, which the selected plants should possess, to at
least a moderate degree.

The important practical lesson from the above principle
is to continue selection vear after year with the same chief
object in mind until that end is attained. Do not select
one year chiefly for size of boll and the next year mainly
for length of lint; but keep the same aim and desired
quality in mind from year to year. After this character
is fixed, it is time enough to take another one as the prin-
cipal object through another series of years.
COTTON BREEDING 309

From all of the above it follows that it is important to
start with a pure variety that already possesses most of the
qualities desired.

278. Plant-breeders’ methods of improving cotton. —
In order to make very great or very rapid improvement ina
variety or strain of cotton, it is necessary to practice a
method requiring much more time and pains than can be
spared by any except the few men who make a specialty
of plant-breeding. This method is called the ‘ plant-to-
row method.” It is based on the fact that plants may be
excellent by reason of either : —

(1) Favorable surroundings (environment), or by

(2) Their inherent, or self-contained, excellence.

Superiority due merely to favorable environment, such as an
extra share of fertilizer, abundant space, and other advan-
tages, is not hereditary; but inherent excellence is heredi-
tary. It is usually difficult or impossible to determine
whether the superiority of a selected plant is accidental
(due to favorable environment) or inherent. This ques-
tion remains unsettled whenever seed from a number of
plants are planted together, as in the simplest method of
selection before described.

But by keeping the seed of each plant separate, and
planting each on a separate row, the next year the parent
plant of inherent or inheritable excellence is readily de-
termined. For its offspring almost uniformly show the
desired quality; while a row grown from a parent plant
that. was productive merely because of favorable envi-
ronment does not show the good qualities of the parent.
Hence, selection must be made thereafter only from
those rows on which the plants exhibit the proof of having
310 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

inherited the good quality of their parent plant, this fact
creating the presumption that they also are prepotent,
or able to transmit their good qualities to the next genera-
tion.

Details of the plant-to-row method of cotton breeding. — In the
best field of the desired variety select each year 100 plants, or as
many as can well be separately ginned and planted. Place a
tag bearing a number on each selected plant before picking. On
a large, strong, paper bag write a similar number. Whenever a
picking is made place the seed cotton from Plant No. 1 in Bag
No. 1, and so on for each selected plant. After weighing the seed
cotton from each plant, reject those that are far below the average
productiveness. For accurate work it is desirable to gin the seed
cotton of each plant separately, which is best done in a specially
constructed very small gin.

If ginning is not practicable, selection must be made among the
picked plants merely on the basis of the weight of seed cotton;
in this case the unginned cotton may be planted in hills at uni-
form distances apart, a lock or half a lock in a hill. When
thus planted extreme care must be taken to pack the moist soil
over each piece of seed cotton, otherwise the stand will be
poor.

In the fall, first select the best plants on what seem to be the
best rows, and then weigh the remainder of the crop on each row
separately, so as to determine which rows are really the best, as
shown by the total yields.

The second year, plant on very uniform land a similar plant}
to-row patch, usually containing 20 to 100 rows, each planted with
the seed of one of the best plants from the few best rows of the
year before. Make all rows of uniform width and plant the field
in checks, so that every plant may have exactly the same amount
of space. The breeding-patch should always be on uniform land
and removed as far as possible from any other kind of cotton, so
as to avoid cross-fertilization.

The following diagram (Fig. 144) shows the steps from year to
year: —
COTTON BREEDING 311

 

 

 

Fic. 144.— Diacram sHowinc 4 BREEDING-PLot oF Twenty Rows
OF COTTON.

The best plants (z, r) are selected on the best rows (Nos. 5 and 16) for
planting the next year’s breeding-plot of cotton.

Each horizontal line represents a row in the plant-to-row test
each year. An ‘‘X”’ represents a selected plant on one of the
best rows. Each plant-to-row patch is planted with seed from
these best individuals, the seed of each plant occupying a sepa-

,Tate row.

The next diagram (Fig. 145) shows the possibility of obtaining
in three or four years from a single original plant enough seed to
plant an entire farm.

279. Plant-breeding a specialty. — Most farmers can
practice the simple method of selection first described, but
few will be able to give the time and pains to careful work
with the plant-to-row method. Yet so much superior
to average seed of even the purest varieties are seed pro-
duced by the plant-to-row method that farmers can better
afford to pay a fancy price for small amounts of seed thus
improved than to plant ordinary seed. Undoubtedly
in the future the tendency will be for plant-breeding to
become a business or a profession requiring the entire
312 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

time of painstaking, trained men, from whom farmers will
find it more profitable to buy pedigreed seed than to

 

Ist YEAR 20 YEAR Sp YEAR 4tHYEAR Sta YEAR

Soo Ss &
SELECT punt) prom | gpm] SAGRES |~>|GENERAL CROP
500 oo
SELECT PLANT (1) Hmmm] 200 Joon} 5 ACRE

5090
SELECT PLANT a@)-——- Beier 5 ACRES
500
SELECT cont) ‘ae

 

 

 

 

 

GENERAL CROP

 

 

 

 

SELECT PLANT,

 

 

 

Fic. 145.— Diagram sHowina Meruobd oF SELECTING COTTON.

attempt elaborate plant-breeding in connection with ordi-
nary farm work.

280. Size of seed for planting. — Several experiments
have shown that by separating and planting only the
heavy seed, the percentage of germination is notably
increased. A better stand results and a larger yield is
sometimes obtained.

It does not follow that because the largest seed within a given
variety are superior to the smaller seed, that variety is best which
has the largest seed. Indeed the opposite is often true; the
high percentage of lint that is frequently found in varieties with
small seed often makes them more productive of lint than varie-
ties with large seed,
COTTON BREEDING 313

Methods of separating large and small or heavy and light seed. —
As cotton seed come from the gin, covered with a coat of fuzz,
they tend to cling together in masses. This renders it difficult,
without previous treatment of the seed, to separate the largest
from the others.

Webber and Boykin recommend (U.S. Dept. Agr., Farmer’s
Bul. No. 285) the following treatment of the seed: A thin flour
paste is poured on the seed, which are then stirred or otherwise
agitated until every seed is covered. The fuzz is thus pasted
down to the hull. After drying, the seed are in condition to be
easily separated in a fanning machine especially constructed so as
to blow out the lighter seed. Those which have been treated
with paste can be planted more thinly than otherwise, which is an
advantage in the subsequent thinning of the plant.

The delinting of the seed, which consists in reginning them, as
is commonly done by oil mills, also makes it somewhat easier to
separate the individual seeds.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

1. If practicable, make a number of crosses, preferably among
varieties having easily recognizable features; pupils who are es-
pecially interested may wish to plant the resulting seeds and to
note the diversity among the plants.

2. Students should copy the score-card below amd by its aid
score the plants, — preferably by pairs, — of several varieties.
This exercise needs frequent repetition, not so much to familiarize
the pupils with the score-card (which may be considerably
modified for special objects), but for the purpose (1) of directing
more careful attention to the characteristics of the different
varieties or strains, and (2) to train the eye and the mind to the
prompt recognition of the defects and valuable characteristics of
any cotton plant observed.

SCORE-CARD FOR COTTON

The following is the score-card devised for the use of
students of the Alabama Polytechnic Institute :—
314. SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Form, short-jointed, well-branched, indicating fruitfulness . 15
YiELD (standard 1 bale or more per acre) :
(a) Size of bolls (standard 40 per pound; 1 point de-
ducted for each additional 5 bolls required per pound
of seed cotton) .. . 15
(b) Per cent lint esimndierd, 40 per gents Bae iGee eral
varieties ; 32 per cent for long-staple; 1 point cut

for each 1 per cent below standard) . . . . . 10
(c) Number of mature bolls per plant . . . . . . . 15
(Standard, unfavorable conditions . . . . 20)
(Standard, medium conditions . . . . . 60)
(Standard good conditions : ge oe oe LOO)
Total yield (a and b and c); orw Amhed iol seed cotton
times average per cent lint of that variety . . . 40
Earurness (standard being the earliest plants of King). . 10
Harpiness of plant towards disease . 3
Storm Resistance 2
COMPLETENESS OF OPENING ca ease of piclame 2
Lint
Length of lint (standard, es 1 to 1's inehes; long
staple, 112 inches) : 8
Uniformity in length of fibers on same seed 8
Strength 3
Fineness 3
Color 2
Maturity . 2 A 2
UntrorMiry oF SEEp in size, aolor, ste: 3 2
Cita eo ee 100

LITERATURE

Wesser, H. J. Improvement of Cotton by Seed Selection.
U.S. Dept. Agr. Yearbook, one pp. 365-389.

Wespser, H. J., and Boykin. U.S. Dept. Agr., Farmer's Bul.
No. 285.

Bennett, R. L. Breeding an Early Cotton. Tex. Expr. Sta.,
Bul. No. 79.

Proceedings American Breeders’ Association.
CHAPTER XIX
COTTON — SOILS AND FERTILIZERS

CoTTON is a most adaptable crop. Almost any land in
the cotton-belt —from light sandy to stiff clay — will
produce a crop, provided it be well drained, and, if poor,
supplied with the necessary kind and amount of fertilizing
materials.

281. Soil range. — A large proportion of the American
cotton crop grows on land too sandy, dry, and poor to be
thoroughly satisfactory for corn. Indeed, a large area of
cotton grows on land too poor to yield a profit even from
cotton. These unprofitable areas, these “ robber acres,”
are the source of much loss to cotton farmers. They
could be more advantageously devoted to pasture or to
leguminous plants. On sandy land the plant is much more
subject to injury from cotton rust than on loamy or clay
soils.

On some very rich, moist, bottom land, cotton makes
a stalk of excessive size without a corresponding develop-
ment of fruit. Therefore, such lands are not favorable
for cotton, but may be more advantageously devoted to
the production of corn, hay, or pasturage.

“cc

GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS ON FERTILIZING COTTON

282. Draft of cotton on soil fertility. — The table in para-
graph 246 showed that in certain experiments the seed and
lint together contained about half the total nitrogen and

315
316 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

 

 

 

Showing retention of leaves on the right, due to vegetable matter;
and shedding of leaves on the left, where there was less vegetable matter
in the soil.
COTTON FERTILIZERS 317

phosphoric acid but only a quarter of the potash found
in the entire plant. The composition of a plant or of the
part removed from the soil is not a guide to the correct
fertilization of that plant; yet it is well to know that the
lint and seed together in a crop of 300 pounds of lint re-
moved plant-food which at ordinary prices would be
worth in commercial fertilizers about $3.75. Of this
amount, the fertilizer constituents in the lint alone are
worth only 25 to 30 cents. Indeed, no other ordinary
crop makes such slight demands on fertility as does the
2otton fiber. If the seed and all other parts of the plant
except the lint were returned to the soil, there would be
no reductions in fertility except those due to extraneous
influences, such as surface washing, loss of vegetable
matter (Fig. 146) through clean cultivation, and loss of
nitrates from the soil in the drainage jwater.

The seed and lint together, in the case of a crop of 300
pounds of lint, make a draft on soil fertility that is about
the same as would be removed by the grain alone in a crop
of 25 bushels of corn or of 35 bushels of oats.

283. Amounts of fertilizer required to take the place of
plant-food removed by lint and seed. — Three hundred
pounds of cotton-seed meal and twenty-seven pounds
of kainit would furnish all the fertilizer constituents re-
moved from the soil by a crop of 300 pounds of lint with
its accompanying seed; this quantity of cotton-seed
meal would supply not only the nitrogen, but all of the
necessary phosphoric acid. If the nitrogen were drawn
wholly from the decay of leguminous plants and no cotton-
seed meal were applied, 51 pounds of acid phosphate, con-
taining 14 per cent of available phosphoric acid, would
°

818 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

supply all the phosphoric acid removed in a crop of seed
and lint of the size indicated.

In fact, such figures give no idea of the amounts and
kinds of fertilizer actually found to be advantageous for
the cotton plant. For example, in practice the usual
amount of acid phosphate is at least 120 to 200 pounds per
acre, which supplies several times the amount of phos-
phoric acid removed by seed and lint in a crop yielding 300
pounds of lint. The necessity for applying much larger
amounts of phosphoric acid than apparently required by
the composition of the cotton plant is largely due to the
fact that a large proportion of the phosphoric acid is con-
verted in the soil into compounds that are not promptly
available.

Means of determining the fertilizer required by cotton
on different soils are discussed in succeeding paragraphs.

284. Phosphoric acid. — There are no indications either
from the appearance of the soil or from the appearance
of the plant as to whether phosphoric acid is needed.
However, in regions where the use of commercial fertilizers
for cotton is general, experiments and experience have
indicated that the need for the application of phosphates
is almost universal. Usually a fertilizer for cotton should
contain more acid phosphate than any other single chem-
ical fertilizer.

285. Potash. —In determining the probable require-
ment of cotton for potash, note should be made of the
proportion of clay or silt compared with the proportion of
sand. Clay and silt are frequently formed from materials
rich in potash; hence the more clay or silt the soil con-
tains, the less, as a rule, is the need for potash.
COTTON FERTILIZERS 319

However, some clay soils contain a large amount of pot-
ash, but in an unavailable form. In this case the potasn
can often be made available by improved preparation and
cultivation and by the addition of vegetable matter. The
sandier the soil and subsoil the greater is the need for
potash. Even on sandy lands, this fertilizer may not be
needed in any considerable amount unless cotton rust
commonly occurs on such soil.

286. Nitrogen. — The proper proportion of nitrogenous
fertilizer to acid phosphate in a fertilizer formula for
cotton depends more on the recent cropping and manur-
ing of the field than on. the character of the rocks from
which the soil has been derived. One can usually
decide if nitrogen is needed by considering the following
facts : —

(1) Small stalks (if not due to climatic influences, poor
cultivation, etc.) are usually an indication that nitrogen
is needed.

(2) Excessive stalk or ‘‘ weed” growth of cotton is an
indication that nitrogen can be dispensed with, wholly or
partially.

(3) The fresher the land the less the need for nitrogen.

(4) Phosphate hastens maturity and may make more
severe the injury from cotton rust.

(5) A luxuriant growth of cowpeas or of any other legume
just preceding cotton largely dispenses with the necessity
for nitrogen in the fertilizer ; so does a recent heavy dress-
ing of stable manure or cotton seed.

However, the only positive means of determining the
exact fertilizer requirement of any soil is by making on it
an experiment with fertilizers.

c
320 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

287. Effects of commercial fertilizers on the soil. —
Commercial fertilizers are, on the whole, profitable, in
spite of many misfits between soil, crop, and fertilizer.
Indeed, in a large part of the cotton-belt they are indis-
pensable. The profits from their use will increase with a
more general knowledge of agricultural principles. Com-
mercial fertilizers have been occasionally charged with
being largely responsible for the impoverished conditions
of the cotton fields and the scant profits of the cotton
grower. This is not correct. They do not in themselves
exhaust the soil. Reliance upon fertilizers alone may
cause a farmer to keep his land too long in cotton, instead
of letting cotton alternate with soil-improving crops, such
as cowpeas. The exhaustion of the fertility of the cotton
fields is due chiefly to leaching, washing, and loss of vege-
table matter as the result of continuous clean cultivation.

For the scant profits too often secured in the culture
of cotton, the chief causes are impoverished soil, purchased
supplies, unintelligent use of fertilizers, scarcity of capital,
deficiency of labor-saving machinery, unsatisfactory labor
conditions, and the failure to master the principles which
underlie a rational system of farming. What should be
condemned is not the use, but the abuse, or purposeless
use, of commercial fertilizers.

288. Most popular factory-mixed fertilizers. — The use
of ammoniated guanos, that is, complete fertilizers con-
taining nitrogen, is more general among cotton farmers
than the use of chemicals bought separately and mixed
on the farm. The most extensively used form of com-
plete ready-mixed guano contains about 1.65 per cent of
nitrogen (equal to 2 per cent of ammonia), 10 per cent of
COTTON FERTILIZERS 321

available phosphoric acid, and 2 per cent of potash. This
is spoken of as a 10-2-2 guano.

289. Advantages of the home-mixing of fertilizers. —
If the farmer decides to buy the separate materials and
do his own proportioning and mixing, he usually purchases
cotton-seed meal, acid phosphate, and kainit. If he
wishes to make a more concentrated fertilizer, that is,
one of higher grade, he may buy the nitrogen in the form
of nitrate of soda, or sulfate of ammonia, and the potash in
the form of muriate or sulfate of potash. Those farmers
who understand how to mix fertilizers find that it is much
more economical to do so than to buy the average ready-
mixed guano. The advantage of home-mixing are the fol-
lowing : —

(1) The mixture made at home usually costs several
dollars less per ton than a factory-mixed fertilizer of
exactly the same composition.

(2) Home mixing permits the farmer to suit the fer-
tilizer to the particular soil on which each lot is to be ap-
plied, and to adapt the fertilizer to the different crops.
For example, in purchasing a complete ready-mixed fer-
tilizer, he applies this to all soils and all crops; yet the
nitrogen in it is not needed by legumes, such as cowpeas
and peanuts; and the potash in it may not be required by
any crop on some clay soils. In making his own mixture
the farmer would omit the nitrogen in the one case and
the potash in the other, and thus save their cost. How-
ever, farmers who do not understand how to suit the fer-
tilizers to the soil and the crop find it advantageous to
use a factory-mixed guano. Its one slight advantage con-

sists in being somewhat more evenly mixed.
x
822 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

290. Amounts of increase from commercial fertilizers.
— The results of several hundred fertilizer experiments
made on a great variety of soils in Alabama led to the con-
clusion that, as an average, each ton of fertilizer adapted

 

 

Iria. 147. —A Finup or Corron.

The plot on the left was unfertilized and yielded only 460 pounds
of seed cotton per acre ; that on the right received 640 pounds per acre
of a complete fertilizer and yielded 1206 pounds, an increase of 746
pounds of seed cotton per acre.

to the soil should afford an increase of about 1500 pounds
of seed cotton, —or one bale increase per ton of fertilizer
COTTON FERTILIZERS 323

(Fig. 147). Under unfavorable conditions, —as on prairie
or waxy lime land, or with unsuitable fertilizer, or with the
use of excessive amounts, — the increase was much less.
These estimates are for appropriate mixtures of high-
grade chemicals.

Smaller figures would probably represent the increase
from a ton of ordinary cotton guano, or ready-mixed fer-
tilizer.

If all the fertilizer experiments made by the experiment
stations be averaged, including those on soils not needing
fertilizers, the average increase drops far below one bale
for each ton of fertilizer. (Bul. No. 62, Bur. Soils, U.S.
Dept. Agr.)

291. Profit returned by fertilizers. — Assuming an in-
crease of one bale (say 1500 pounds of seed cotton) for each
ton of well-proportioned and appropriate fertilizer applied
to four or five acres of land, an estimate can be made as
to the profit, under favorable conditions, afforded by a
judicious investment in fertilizer. Thus : —
To one ton complete fertilizer, estimated cost

incash . $22.00

To extra cost of picking ‘and ginning the in-
creased yield, 1500 pounds, at 60 cents per

hundred. 9.00
By value of increased amount of seed, 1000
pounds, at 75 cents per hundred . . $ 7.50
By value of one bale of cotton, 500 pounds at
10 cents per pound ... .. . oe ee 50.00
Possible profit, from use of one ton of fertilizer . $26.50
- $57.50 $57.50

292. Advantages of high-grade fertilizers. — Among
either factory-mixed, or home-mixed fertilizers, those of
higher grade,’ that is, containing higher percentages of
324 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and potash, naturally cost more
per ton than low-grade fertilizers. Yet the high-grade
fertilizers are usually more economical. The true test
in choosing between two fertilizers consists in calculating
which one affords a pound of nitrogen, potash, and avail-
able phosphoric acid at the lower price.

The reason why a concentrated, high-grade fertilizer is usually
more economical than a low-grade fertilizer is made clear by com-
paring a 12 per cent acid phosphate with a 16 per cent phosphate.
To afford an equal amount of plant-food, say 960 pounds of avail-
able phosphoric acid, requires 4 tons of the low-grade fertilizer,
but only 3 tons of the high-grade fertilizer. This extra ton of
the low-grade article involves extra expense for freight, hauling,
mixing, and sacking. Hence, the manufacturer or dealer must
charge more for each pound of plant-food in the less concentrated
fertilizer.

The advantage of using the highest grades of fertilizers increases
with the distance that the fertilizer must be shipped and hauled.
If, however, a fertilizer be made too concentrated, there is greater
difficulty in mixing its constituents uniformly and in applying it
evenly, because the amount to be used on each acre is so small.

293. Quantity per acre of fertilizer. — Experiments
in several states have shown that an application of 400
to 600 pounds to the acre of a fertilizer adapted to the soil
affords a larger profit to the acre than the use of smaller
amounts. At the Georgia Experiment Station a complete
fertilizer was used at the rate of 400, 800, and 1200 pounds
per acre. Each increase made a decided and _ profitable
increase in the yield. However, the smallest lot returned
much the highest percentage of profit on the investment ;
the 800 pounds paid a higher dividend than the largest
amount. This illustrates the usual rule, which is that
the percentage of profit on the mvestment in fertilizers
COTTON FERTILIZERS 825

decreases as the amount of fertilizer increases ; but that the
profit per acre is usually greater with the larger amounts, up
to a certain point, which is often above 600 pounds per acre.

Probably 200 pounds or less per acre is the amount of
fertilizer most generally applied to cotton.

Moderate to large applications pay best when the
season is favorable, but involve the risk of loss should
climatic conditions be extremely unfavorable. To ren-
der as safe as possible heavy or intensive fertilization, the
soils on which it is employed should be in good mechanical
condition. especially as regards drainage and power to
retain sufficient moisture during drought. This latter
condition may usually be brought about by a rotation
that affords an abundance of vegetable matter and by
judicious preparation and cultivation,

NirroGENovs FERTILIZERS

294. Nitrogen produced on the farm. — The cheapest
sources of nitrogen are barnyard manure and the legu-
minous or soil-improving plants, such as cowpeas, velvet
beans, hairy vetch, and (when pastured by hogs) peanuts.
Manure may pay even better for hay and other forage
crops than for cotton. Cotton seed is too high-priced in
most localities for use as fertilizer.

295. Cotton seed vs. stable manure. —In Alabama
extensive comparisons of manure from horse stables with
cotton seed were made on many soils, using an average
of 835 pounds of fresh seed alone against a little over two
tons of stable manure.

Increase due to stable manure, — seed cotton peracre . 444 lb.
Increase due to cotton seed, —seed cotton peracre. . 288 lb.
326 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

From a summary of the results of many tests made in
Alabama during three years and on numerous soils,
appears that 5 pounds of stable manure exerted during
the year when applied as fertilizer a greater influence on
the yield of cotton than did one pound of cotton seed
used without crushing or heating; that the average yield
was increased by 101 per cent when stable manure was
used and by 64 per cent when cotton seed was used; and
that to obtain an increase of one pound in the yield of
seed cotton there was required 3 pounds of cotton seed,
or nearly 10 pounds of rich stable manure.

296. Cotton seed vs. cotton-seed meal. — Most tests
show practical equality for a pound of nitrogen in cotton-
seed meal and in crushed or rotted cotton seed. To fur-
nish equal amounts of nitrogen requires the following
amount of each : —

 

 

| | PHos-

 

 

 

[eee | ee) ie ASH
2000 Ib. of cotton seed contain ‘ G--- \BR | eae | oes
963 Ib. of cotton-seed meal (6) per cent |

62. | 26.5 16.3

nitrogen) contain... a ec er |

 

The average of a number of experiments on many soils
in Alabama showed that, as a fertilizer for cotton, one
pound of high-grade cotton-seed meal was equal the first
year to 2,5, pounds of crushed cotton seed. Later ex-
periments in Alabama and Georgia make a still more
favorable showing for the meal. Cotton seed exerts a

d

greater influence the second year than does the meal;
COTTON FERTILIZERS 827

however, on sandy soils, most tests show the residual ef-
fect of both cotton seed and cotton-seed meal to be slight.
It seems safe to conclude that on most soils half a ton of
medium or high-grade cotton-seed meal is about equal
as fertilizer to a ton of cotton seed.

Cotton seed may be applied in deep furrows in January
without much danger that they will grow. If applied
late, they should first be either crushed or composted or
subjected to a high temperature caused by allowing them
to be moistened and heated in bulk. When the seed ger-
minate, the fertilizing value is apparently decreased, but
not lost. Further experiments on this point are needed.

The oil is without value as a fertilizer, and the hulls
contain but little plant-food. Therefore, the most com-
plete value of the cotton seed is obtained by the public
when the oil mill extracts the oil. /

It has been shown that the meal and hulls from one ton
of cotton seed is at least as effective a fertilizer as the
entire seed. Hence, the farmer who can exchange one ton
of his seed for the meal and hulls contained in it, namely,
about 750 pounds of meal and 800 pounds of hulls, loses
nothing in fertilizing value. When the farmer can get
1000 pounds or more of meal and no hulls for one ton of
seed, he usually makes a nearly equal exchange, if the
cost of hauling be disregarded. He should usually obtain
in exchange for a ton of cotton seed, considering only the
fertilizing value, as many pounds of meal in excess of 1000
pounds as will pay for hauling both ways and whatever
profit he may see fit to charge.

297. Other forms of nitrogen. — Whenever the nitro-
gen in nitrate of soda is as cheap as that in cotton-seed
328 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

meal, the former may be profitably employed on cotton.
The farmer should buy either nitrate of soda, cotton-seed
meal, dried blood, or tankage, choosing that one in which
a pound of nitrogen costs least. Most experiments fail to
show any notable difference in the value of a pound of
nitrogen from these different sources.

298. General need of cotton soils for nitrogen. —
Cotton-seed meal or other nitrogenous fertilizer is highly
beneficial to cotton on a large proportion of the culti-
vated area of every region where the soils have become
poor. Apparently it is almost universally needed on
uplands in such regions except on (1) new grounds, and
(2) on soils containing considerable vegetable matter, as
the result of proper rotation with cowpeas, or other humus-
forming crops. Although cotton-seed meal is almost
universally beneficial, it is not always profitable when
applied to cotton at the rate of 200 pounds or more
per acre. Poor physical condition of the land, resulting
in a scarcity of moisture in the summer, is the greatest
hindrance to the profitable use of large applications of
cotton-seed meal. But even with poor physical con-
dition, it is usually profitable on soils where the stalk is
small to supply nitrogen in the mixed fertilizer for cotton.

299. Cost of a pound of nitrogen. — A pound of nitro-
gen in commercial fertilizers usually costs 15 to 18 cents.
To learn the average cost each year, inquiry should be
made of the State Commissioner of Agriculture, in the
capital city of the state.

300. Fertilizing value of cotton-seed meal and hulls
before and after being fed. — In an experiment at the
South Carolina Experiment Station a definite amount
COTTON FERTILIZERS 3829

of cotton-seed meal and hulls was fed to dairy cows, and
every particle of the resulting manure was returned to
the soil as fertilizer for cotton. An exactly similar amount
of cotton-seed meal and hulls was applied directly as
fertilizer for cotton. The yield of cotton was much greater
where the manure was used. This was probably due in
part to the quicker decay of the manure than of the meal
and hulls.

301. A rational system of fertilization with nitrogen. —
Considering permanent effect, as well as influence on
the crop immediately following, the cowpea and other
leguminous plants must be ranked as a cheaper source of
nitrogen than is any nitrogenous material which may be
bought as commercial fertilizers. The aim of the cotton
farmer should be to grow such areas of legumes as will
enable him to dispense with the purchase of nitrogenous
fertilizers for cotton, using the funds thus saved to pur-
chase increased amounts of phosphates or other necessary
non-nitrogenous fertilizers. The money that would have
been necessary to purchase one pound of nitrogen will buy
about three pounds of phosphoric acid, or of potash, which
larger purchases of phosphate and potash will enable the
farmer to grow heavier crops of legumes. And heavier
crops of legumes trap larger amounts of otherwise un-
available atmospheric nitrogen and result in further soil
enrichment and larger yields of cotton.

PHOSPHATIC FERTILIZERS
302. Different kinds of phosphate. — While there are
a number of forms in which the farmer may obtain phos-
phoric acid, the one that is almost universally employed
330 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

in the cotton-belt is acid phosphate. This usually con-
tains 14 to 16 per cent of available phosphoric acid, but
both lower and higher grades than this may be obtained.
Acid phosphate is manufactured by adding sulphuric
acid to the finely ground phosphate rock, or raw phos-
phate. The sulphuric acid is employed in order to make
the phosphoric acid promptly available to plants. As
the sulphuric acid has no fertilizing value, it serves to
dilute the original phosphate rock. Hence, acid phos-
phate usually contains only about half as large a percentage
of phosphoric acid as the raw phosphate from which it
was made. But nearly all of the phosphoric acid in acid
phosphate is in a soluble or available condition.

Raw phosphate consists of the finely ground phosphate
rock without treatment with any acid. Among the
names given to it are crude phosphate, ground phosphate
rock, and floats. It usually contains from 26 to 30 per
cent of total phosphoric acid. All of this is insoluble,
and hence not in a form to be immediately used by the
roots of plants.

As ground phosphate rock contains about twice as much
total phosphoric acid as does acid phosphate, and in some
localities costs less than half as much per ton, it would
be desirable to use the raw phosphate if it could be made
available.

303. Effects of different phosphates on cotton. — Re-
peated experiments in many states have shown. that
cotton can make some use of raw phosphate, but that
acid phosphate usually is much more effective. However,
experiments have also shown that the raw phosphate
becomes more quickly available if it is mixed with large
COTTON FERTILIZERS 331

amounts of rotting vegetable matter. Hence, raw phos-
phate mixed with stable manure is sometimes as effective
as an equal weight of acid phosphate. The use of raw
phosphate for cotton should probably be restricted to
cases where it can be thus used with manure or leaf-mold,
or to soils on which a large amount of vegetable matter
is being plowed under. Even in the latter case acid phos-
phate is usually the more profitable the first year.

It is generally believed that the residual effects, that is,
the effects subsequent to the year when it is applied, are
greater with raw phosphate than with acid phosphate;
but the difference in residual effect is not sufficient to
overcome the usual greater efficiency of acid phosphate
in the year in which it is applied.

304. Other sources of phosphoric acid. — Another
source of phosphoric acid is slag phosphate; this is more
available than raw phosphate. Still another source of
phosphoric acid is ground bone, which is not extensively
used by cotton growers.

The principal phosphate mines are in South Carolina,
Tennessee, and Florida. Some authorities estimate that
unless new phosphate mines are discovered, or the export
of phosphate to foreign countries decreased, the supply of
high-grade phosphate rock will be exhausted long before
the close of the present century. This is one of the con-
siderations that should lead farmers to utilize on the farm
the substances rich in phosphoric acid. Richest of these
are the bones of animals. Cotton seed, and all other seeds,
contain considerable phosphoric acid, which is retained
on the farm when these seed are there fed to live-
stock.
332 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

The cost of available phosphoric acid in commercial
fertilizers usually ranges around 5 cents per pound.

305. General need of cotton soils for phosphates. —
The need for phosphate as a fertilizer for cotton is appar-
ently almost universal on poor land east of the Mississippi
River. Exceptions are found in some of the soils of the
Central Prairie Region of Alabama and Mississippi, as
well as in the similar area of black waxy soil in Texas.
Phosphate is also often needed on the rolling cotton lands
west of the Mississippi, that have sandy and loamy soils.

PotrasH FERTILIZERS

306. Extent of the need for potash. — Potash is more
abundant in Southern soils than is phosphoric acid or
nitrogen. Therefore, most crops make less demand for
potash in the fertilizer. Cotton agrees with most other
crops in less frequently needing artificial supplies of potash,
or in needing it in smaller amounts as a plant-food than
the other two fertilizer constituents.

This small demand for potash is notable in view of the fact
that the entire plant contains about three times as much potash
as phosphoric acid. The less frequent need for potash in the
fertilizer seems to be due to the following causes : —

(1) To relatively greater abundance of potash than of phos-
phorie acid in the soils of the cotton fields.

(2) Probably to the action of the ealeium sulfate (which con-
stitutes about half the weight of acid phosphate), in rendering
ayailable the potash of the soil.

(3) To the fact that the seed and lint taken together remove
nearly equal amounts of phosphorie acid and potash, thus first
exhausting that one which is less abundant, — phosphorie acid.

At all events, healthy cotton plants frequently fail to make
COTTON FERTILIZERS 333

profitable use of potash. At the several experiment stations and
substations in Mississippi and Louisiana its use was unprofit-
able; the South Carolina and Georgia stations recommend it
only in relatively small amounts; and the Alabama Station has
found it often profitable, but more useful as a preventive of rust
on certain soils than as an ordinary plant-food.

307. Potash as a means of checking cotton-rust. — On
soils very liable to severe injury by attacks of cotton-rust
the use of potash is recommended; for on such soils
potash, ordinarily in the form of kainit, has conspicuously
decreased the amount of rust and greatly increased the
yields. Rust occurs most frequently on poor sandy soils,
such as are especially common in the class known as the
Norfolk soils, which constitute a large proportion of the
area of the southeastern part of the cotton-belt. Hence,
on such poor sandy soils, potash is more frequently than
elsewhere needed for cotton.

In several hundred local tests conducted by the Alabama
Experiment Station, 100 pounds of kainit per acre has
been highly effective in restraining cotton-rust, apparently
about as effective as 200 pounds.

In one test 60 pounds of kainit effected a noticeable
decrease in the injury from this disease. Apparently it
is safer to use at least 80 pounds per acre where the pur-
pose is to combat rust.

In the fertilizer experiments in Alabama two facts relative
to kainit and cotton-rust are noticeable, viz. (1) the usual favor-
able effect of kainit in checking rust, and (2) its occasional failure
on some soils and in some seasons to reduce the injury resulting
from this disease. Just how potash decreases rust is not well
understood. It enables the cotton plant to remain green and
thrifty through periods of unfavorable weather. Probably it
3834 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

reduces the amount of water necessary to keep the plant in health,
judging by the fact that potash has been found to reduce the
amount of water transpired by the leaves of the corn plant.
Potash in the fertilizer usually causes the later retension in the
autumn of the leaves of the cotton plant (Fig. 148).

 

 

Fic. 148.— A Corton Frevp, showinc tap Errects or Portis IN
RETENTION OF THE LEAVES.

On the right, the fertilizer contained no available potash ; on the
left, it contained 50 pounds muriate of potash per acre.

308. Kainit, muriate and sulfate of potash. — In ex-
periments in Alabama, a pound of potash in the form of
muriate was as effective in checking rust as when an equal
amount was applied in the form of kainit. It is slightly
less convenient to apply muriate of potash; for as this is
four times as strong as kainit, it is advisable to use only
COTTON FERTILIZERS 38a

25 to 50 pounds of the muriate per acre, which small
amount necessitates extreme care in pulverizing and evenly
distributing this fertilizer. Aside from this slight con-
sideration of convenience, the farmer should buy that one
of these materials in which a pound of potash delivered
at his farm costs him less. Where the freight rate and
cost of hauling is high, the muriate will be the cheaper
source of potash; near seaport cities, or where freight
rates are low, kainit may be the cheaper form.

Kainit usually contains about 12 per cent of potash
and muriate four times this amount. Another source of
this plant-food is sulfate of potash, in which a pound of
potash usually costs a little more than in kainit or muriate.
The supply of potash salts comes from mines in Germany.

MIscELLANEOUS FERTILIZERS, AND EFFECTS OF
FERTILIZERS

309. Lime. — Lime has.shown very slight effect as a
fertilizer for cotton in several tests in South Carolina and
at Auburn, Alabama. At any rate, cotton is not con-
spicuously a lime-loving plant, like clover, wheat, timothy,
and the like. Neither is cotton averse to lime, as shown
by its successful growth on numerous limestone soils.
In the Gulf States there are considerable areas of slightly
acid upland soils. On some of these a light application of
lime may be found profitable in connection with other
fertilizers.

310. Composts.— As the word ‘“ compost” is used
by cotton planters, it usually refers to a mixture of stable
manure, cotton seed, and phosphate, which, after being
brought together, are allowed to ferment 4 to 8 weeks.

‘
3836 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Other coarse materials, and also other chemical fertilizers,
often enter into a compost. The theory underlying the
making of composts is that during the fermentation,
materials previously insoluble are decomposed and con-
verted into a soluble condition.

Taken as a whole, four experiments at the Alabama Experi-
ment Station offer no argument in favor of composting such ma-
terials as cotton seed, fine stable manure, cotton-seed meal, and
acid phosphate. Nor do the experiments along this line made
at other experiment stations sustain the claim that these ma-
terials can usually be profitably composted for cotton when the
price of this staple is low and labor expensive. With high-
priced cotton and cheap labor, otherwise unemployed in winter,
composting may be profitable.

It is not contended that experiments have definitely settled
the question against composting stable manure and cotton seed.
The point is that convenience and cost of labor should be the
chief considerations in determining whether the composting of
fine stable manure, cotton seed, and acid phosphate is advisable.
Conditions may justify the making of compost heaps when
coarse litter of any sort, as oak leaves, pine needles, or coarse
manure are obtainable at slight outlay for labor. There are also
good reasons for placing in the compost heap such cotton seed
as cannot be applied in the drill early enough to prevent germi-
nation; many farmers find composting the most convenient
means of killing the seed that are to be applied late in the season.
The Furman formula for composting, very popular in the 1880’s
and still used, consists of

750 pounds stable manure,
750 pounds cotton seed,
367 pounds acid phosphate,
133 pounds kainit.
The chemicals and cotton seed are spread in alternate layers,

the cotton seed being dampened and mixed with the phosphate
and then with the manure. In four to six weeks the compost.
COTTON FERTILIZERS 337

is removed in vertical layers, thus more thoroughly mixing the
materials.

In view of the present high prices of cotton seed, and with
a view of utilizing cheap raw phosphate, the following formula
for making a compost for cotton is suggested : —

One load coarse stable manure, dampened,
300 pounds raw phosphate,
One load leaf mold from the woods, or other litter.

311. Effects of fertilizers on maturity. — Cotton grow-
ing on poor land is late in maturing, unless the process
be hastened by the loss of leaves from rust, or by the pre-
mature death of the plants.

Acid phosphate decidedly hastens the maturity of cotton.
Its use enables the farmer to obtain at the first picking, or
at the first and second pickings, a larger proportion of the
total crop of cotton than by the employment of any other
single fertilizer. Other forms of phosphoric acid, including
raw phosphate and basic slag, when used in connection
with stable manure, have also been found to hasten ma-
turity. At the Texas Experiment Station (Bul. 75) the
plants fertilized with acid phosphate were 18 inches high
when the plants on the unfertilized area and on the plots
fertilized with nitrogen or potash were less than half that
height ; at the time when the phosphate plants bore 8 to
16 squares each, the other plants averaged only about 4
squares.

Nitrogen in commercial fertilizers in small or medium
amounts somewhat favors early maturity. When a
nitrogenous fertilizer is combined with acid phosphate,
the highest degree of earliness is secured. On the other
hand, ripening is retarded if the amount of nitrogen be

- &
338 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

excessive or if a nitrogenous fertilizer be applied very
late. It is a common observation that stable manure
makes cotton late in opening. This can be overcome by
caution in avoiding the use of excessive amounts and by
supplementing the manure with any form of phosphate.

The use of potash usually causes the crop to retain its
leaves and to continue growing late into the fall. Hence,
potash does not promote early maturity, but in judicious
proportions in a complete fertilizer it does not exercise
an injurious retarding effect.

In North Carolina, C. B. Williams found that slacked
lime hastened maturity when used in connection with a
complete fertilizer.

Commercial fertilizers, judiciously employed, constitute
one of the most effective means of insuring the early open-
ing of cotton, and thus of securing a crop before boll-weevils
become so numerous as to destroy all young forms.

By hastening the maturing of the cotton plant, commer-
cial fertilizers have enabled farmers to grow cotton in
higher latitude and in higher altitudes than was possible
before their use became common.

Effects of fertilizers on quality. —In Egypt, where a cotton
of very long, fine staple is produced, attention has been directed
to the effects of fertilizers on the quality of lint. Observations
on cotton, growing in the rich soils of that country, indicate that
heavy applications of fresh or unfermented barnyard manure,
or other fertilizers promoting a very rank growth late into the
fall, injure the quality of lint; while phosphates, whieh hasten
maturity, Improve the staple. Partly on account of the more
prompt action of nitrate of soda as compared with sulfate of
ammonia or other nitrogenous ehemicals, the former is there
given preference as a supplement to an application of manure.
COTTON FERTILIZERS 339

LABORATORY EXERCISES

1. Assuming that nitrogen is worth 17 cents per pound, avail-
able phosphoric acid 5 cents, and potash 5 cents, calculate the
commercial value of the plant-food in a ton of fertilizer of the
following composition : —

(a) 10 per cent available phosphoric acid, 2 per cent nitro-
gen, and 2 per cent potash;

(b) 10 per cent available phosphoric acid, 3 per cent nitro-
gen, and 3 per cent potash;

(c) 5 per cent available phosphoric acid, 4 per cent nitro-
gen, and 5 per cent potash.

2. Calculate the percentage of nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and
potash in a mixture of

300 pounds nitrate of soda containing 15 per cent of nitro-
gen;

500 pounds kainit, containing 12 per cent of potash; and

200 pounds of acid phosphate, containing 16 per cent of
available phosphoric acid.

3. Calculate how many pounds of each of the three fertilizers
just mentioned would be required to make a mixture containing
the same amounts and kinds of plant-food as one ton of guano
analyzing 10 per cent available phosphoric acid, 1.8 per cent
nitrogen, and 2 per cent potash.

4. Calculate how many pounds of the same kind of phosphate
and kainit as in (2) and of cotton-seed meal containing 2.8 per
cent of available phosphoric acid, 6} per cent of nitrogen, and 1.8
per cent of potash, would be required to contain the same kinds
and amounts of plant-foods as one ton of guano analyzing 10 per
cent available phosphoric acid, 2 per cent of nitrogen, and 2 per
cent of potash.

LITERATURE
Newman, J.S. Ala. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 5, 12, 22.

BonpcrantT, A. J.,and Cuayton, J. Ala. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos.
34 and 42.
340 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Duaaar, J. F. Ala. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 78, 91, 103, 107, 113,
131, 145.

Reppine, R. J. Ga. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 11, 16, 20, 24, 27,
31, 35, 39, 43, 47, 52, 56, 59, 63, 66, 75.

Cauvin, M.V., and Kimsrovuegu, J. M. Ga. Expr. Sta., Bul. No.
79.

McBryvpeg, J.B. S.C. Expr. Sta., Bul. (New Series) No. 2, and
Rpts. 1888-1889.

Harper, J. N. S.C. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 145.

Wiuurams, C.B. N.C. Dept. Agr., Bul. Jan., 1907; and Proce.
Southern Asson. Commissioners Agr., 1909. Raleigh, N.C.

Wuitr, H.C. U.S. Dept. Agr., Office Expr. Stas., Bul. No. 33,
pp. 169-196.

Wuirtney, Mitton. U.S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Soils, Bul. No. 62.
CHAPTER XX

COTTON—THE CULTIVATION OF THE AMERICAN
UPLAND GROUPS

THE modes of tilling and handling a crop of growing
cotton, as of any other wide-area staple crop, come to be
largely traditional and perfunctory. The fact that such
labor is often left to ignorant or uninterested workmen
tends to perpetuate this rule-of-thumb. Sometimes the
methods are followed with the blindness of a superstition.
The cotton-grower, however, must recognize that even the
most common daily labor of tillage must rest on principles
and reasons, if he is to secure the most satisfactory results ;
therefore, this subject is worthy of careful and detailed
consideration.

312. Disposal of litter. — Where cotton is the preced-
ing crop, the first step in preparing the field for another
crop of cotton consists in reducing the old stalks to frag-
ments fine enough to be plowed under. This is most
economically done by driving a stalk cutter (Fig. 77) along
each row, the blades on the cutter chopping the stalks
into short pieces. A more common method consists in
beating the old brittle stalks with a heavy stick; this is
best done during dry weather or on a frosty morning late
in winter. Sometimes the stalks are lifted by a plow or
by hand and then raked and burned. This latter course

341
342 SOUTHERN FIELD CKOPS

should be avoided except when it may be made necessary
by the presence of the cotton boll-weevil.

313. Methods of plowing. — The greater part of the area
intended for cotton receives only one plowing before the
seed are planted. This usually consists in forming ridges
or beds. More thorough preparation may be given by
first plowing the land level or flush, afterwards forming
the beds by a subsequent plowing. The conditions under
which this double amount of preparation, namely, first
broadcast plowing and then bedding, is especially advis-
able, are the following : —

1. When the soil is a stiff loam or clay inclined to form
“clods ;

2. When the land has not been cultivated the preceding
year, or when the preceding crop is one that has left much
vegetation on the surface.

The practice of plowing land twice for cotton, first

fallowing it, and then throwing it into beds, is on the in-
crease among the best farmers.
' 314. Time of plowing or breaking. — February and
March are the months in which the greater part of the
plowing of cotton land is performed. The time of plow-
ing is largely a matter of convenience. The general rule
should be that the larger the proportion of clay in the soil,
the earlier may plowing be done to advantage, provided
the surface be freshened later. The larger the amount of
trash to be buried and rotted, the earlier should be the
date of plowing. Some farmers begin plowing for cotton
in December or even in November. This permits freezes
to aid in pulverizing the soil and killing some kinds of eot-
ton insects that spend the winter in the ground.
29

COTTON CULTIVATION 343

Early plowing may cause clay land to become too com-
pact before the time for planting. In this case it is de-
sirable, shortly before planting, either to replow the land
or to loosen the surface with a disk-harrow. Too early
plowing of sandy land increases the loss due to the leach-
ing out of plant-food in the water that drains through the
soil. Hence, sandy land, as a rule, is not plowed in the
fall. However, it is good practice to plow any soils ex-
cept the sandiest in the fall, provided some winter-growing
crop, such as the small grains, or clovers, or vetches, are
sown. The roots of the growing plants largely prevent
leaching by appropriating the plant-food that becomes
available as the vegetable matter decays. These green
crops can be plowed under in the late winter or early
spring, or grazed, or otherwise utilized. Plowed soil
should be kept covered during winter with growing plants.
Fields covered with cowpeas or other dead leguminous
plants should not be plowed very early, since early fall
plowing would induce rotting and leaching before the cot-
ton plants would be ready to utilize the nitrogen made
available by the decay of the legumes.

A smali proportion of the area in cotton is plowed only
a few days before planting. This incurs the danger that
some of the seed may fail to come up in the loose soil,
which quickly dries.

315. Depth of plowing. — A large proportion of the
cotton fields are plowed only 3 to 4 inches deep. It is
generally advisable to plow deeper than this, so as to afford
a larger amount of available soil-moisture for the benefit
of the plants in periods of dry weather, and to increase
the feeding area for the roots. However, extreme depth,
344 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

as well as extreme shallowness, is to be avoided. Plowing
too deep may bring to the surface much of the subsoil,
where, for a year or two, it remains infertile and subject
to baking or clod-forming. Moreover, the cost of very
deep plowing is excessive. A depth of 6 to 8 inches may
be regarded as unusually good preparation; this depth
should be attained only gradually, that is, by plowing
each year only about an inch deeper than the year before.
By a gradual and judicious increase in depth, a few farmers
have advantageously stirred their soil to even a greater
depth than 6 to 8 inches. For very deep plowing the disk
plow is a favorite implement (Fig. 80).

When plowing is early, or several months before the
time of planting the seed, the depth may well be greater
than in late plowing. This is because the earlier plowing
permits the upturned subsoil to be improved by the ac-
tion of freezes and of the air, and because the deeper layer
of stirred soil requires a longer time to settle to that degree
of compactness most favorable to the germination of seeds
and the growth of plant roots.

Even when deep preparation fails to increase the yield
the first year, an increase is apt to result in succeeding
years. The aim of the cotton grower should be gradually
to deepen the layer of plowed soil.

316. Subsoiling. — This term means the loosening of
the subsoil without bringing it to the surface. It is usually
accomplished by first employing an ordinary turn-plow,
and then in its furrow running a special subsoil plow (Fig.
78). This latter plow has no moldboard, and merely
loosens the subsoil, without displacing it.

Subsoiling is a means of suddenly increasing the depth
COTTON CULTIVATION 345

of loosened soil. The benefits from subsoiling, when
done under the most favorable conditions, are the same
as those that result from any form of deep plowing.

However, subsoiling often fails to pay for the extra ex-
pense, especially the first year. Some of the conditions
under which subsoiling is often unprofitable are the follow-
ing :—

1. When performed while the subsoil is too wet; often
when the surface soil is dry enough for plowing, the wet
subsoil is simply ‘‘ puddled,” or injuriously compacted
by subsoiling.

2. Subsoiling is usually injurious when it is accom-
plished so late that there is not afterwards sufficient rain
to settle the disturbed subsoil and to destroy the large
air spaces between the clods or small soil masses.

As a rule the most favorable time for subsoiling in
preparation for cotton is in the late fall or early winter
before the lower layer of soil has been saturated by the
winter rains.

317. Forming the ridge or bed. — Most cotton fields
are prepared by throwing together at least four furrow-
slices turned up by a moldboard plow. This forms a
ridge or bed which is usually 3 to 4 feet wide, and several
inches high.

In regions where commercial fertilizers are used, there
is first run a furrow in which the fertilizer is placed, and
over which the bed is subsequently formed. This center
furrow may be either (1) along the line of old cotton
stalks, or (2) in the middle or water-furrow of the
year before, or (3) it may be run in land already plowed
broadcast.
346 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

When cotton follows cotton, the plowing to make a center
furrow usually serves to lift out the roots of the old cotton plants.
This is the first step in preparation and may be taken several
weeks earlier than the other steps in plowing. oe

In certain stiff lands where fertilizers are seldom used, it is
a disputed point whether a center furrow is advantageous. Ex-
periments on this point are too few to be conclusive. The use
of a center furrow and the consequent deeper and more thorough

 

 

 

 

 

Fic. 149.— A Minpie Burster, or Douste MoxtpBoarp PLow.

preparation under the center of the bed is probably advantageous
when plowing is performed early ; while if plowing is done imme-
diately before planting, a center furrow may leave the soil too
loose for the maximum germination of the seed, and for the best
growth of the young eotton plants.

In “‘bedding land” the first two furrows thrown together
form a narrow ridge called a ‘‘list’’; the soil, from the hitherto
unplowed strip, or ‘balk,’ is usually thrown against each side
of the ‘list’? by a turn-plow. But this balk is sometimes split
and thrown outward by a single trip of a double moldboard
plow, called a ‘middle burster’’ (Fig. 149).
‘ COTTON CULTIVATION 347

318. Formation of beds by using a disk-harrow. — A
saving of labor may be effected by forming the beds with
a disk-harrow instead of with a turn-plow. The use of
the disk-harrow for this purpose is practicable only on a
field previously plowed broadcast.

319. Planting cotton level. — Practically all the cotton
of the United States is planted on ridges or beds. How-
ever, a few farmers, on well-drained sandy soil, plant late
cotton on land that is not bedded, but merely ‘‘ flushed,”
or ‘‘ plowed broadcast.” This requires very shallow
planting, and also requires very careful early cultivation
to prevent covering the plants. The object in planting
on a level is to enable the plants better to endure drought.

A method that is generally an improvement on the last
named consists in forming low beds; before being planted
they are pulled down almost level, by harrowing or drag-
ging them whenever a crust forms or whenever young
weeds appear.

320. Distribution of fertilizers. — The rows having
been marked off, usually with a shovel plow, the fer-
tilizer (if any is to be used) is drilled in this furrow. It is
most conveniently put in place by means of a one-horse
fertilizer distributor, which also draws earth over the fer-
tilizer. Immediately a “list” is formed. The bed may
be completed at once, or more frequently not until the
entire area intended for cotton has been thus fertilized
and listed. On some farms the fertilizer is distributed
by hand, either through a “guano horn” or without
this inexpensive device.

321. Time of planting. — The usual date for the begin-
ning of cotton planting is two to three weeks after the
348 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

average date of the last killing frost in that locality.
Planting begins in March near the Gulf of Mexico; it
begins about April 1 in the central part of the Gulf States ;
and in the extreme northern part of the cotton-belt it
may be delayed until May. In the central part of the
cotton-belt most of the crop is planted before May, but
an occasional field is not planted until about the first of
June. Extremely early planting increases the risk of
injury by frost in spring and increases the labor of culti-
vation. Rather early planting is advisable in regions
where the cotton boll-weevil is present. Extremely late
planting reduces the labor of cultivation and usually also
reduces the yield, many of the immature bolls being
destroyed by frost in the fall.

322. Cotton planters. — There are numerous forms of
planters for cotton. Most of them plant a single row at a
time, opening the furrow, dropping the seed, and covering
the seed, at one trip (Fig. 150). Probably the most impor-
tant features about a planter are: (1) provision for con-
stantly agitating the mass of seed, so that the feed may be
uniform, and (2) provision for rolling or otherwise pressing
the soil around the seed.

If the earth above the seed be rolled, or otherwise com-
pacted, the depth of planting may be as shallow as one inch,
The usual depth is from one to three inches.

Some planters drop the seed at regular intervals rather than
in a continuous drill. Such dropper-planters may require that
the seed be first treated by some method that will serve to lay
the fuzz and enable the individual seeds to be separated from the
mass. This may be done by adding a little thin flour paste to
the dry cotton seed while being shaken in a revolving barrel ; or,
COTTON CULTIVATION 849

on a small scale, by dipping the seed in full strength commercial
sulfuric acid, for about two minutes, which removes the fuzz.
Immediately the sulfuric acid must be thoroughly washed off
of the seed, so as to prevent loss of germinating power.

The most common method of preparing the seed for very thin
planting consists in ‘rolling the seed.”’ This is done by dampen-

 

Fic. 150.— An INEXPENSIVE COTTON PLANTER.

ing the seed, placing them in a barrel fitted with a frame and
erank in such a way that it may be revolved; then dry ashes
or dust is added, and the barrel revolved, thus causing the ashes
or dust to coat each seed, and temporarily to paste down the fuzz.

323. Quantity of seed.— A bushel of cotton seed
usually contains between 120,000 and 150,000 seeds, or
enough, if each one developed into a mature plant, to
suffice for fully fifteen acres. However, it is customary
to plant 1 to 14 bushels of seed per acre. An ideal
300 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

planter that places the seed in a narrow drill or in hills
requires less; and still less is required when planting is
done by dropping the seed by hand in separate hills.

On stiff land, it is regarded as advantageous to have a
thick stand of plants, so that the combined strength of |
the young plants may be exerted to break through the
surface crust, which might be too strong for a single
plantlet. On the other hand, the presence of only one
seed in a place greatly reduces the labor of chopping or
thinning cotton.

324. Broadcast tillage. — One change which should be
made in cotton culture is the introduction of broadcast
tillage; that is, of cultivation or tillage across the rows by
means of weeders (Fig. 86) or of light, spike-tooth, adjust-
able harrows (Fig. 85). This kind of tillage permits a
larger area to be covered in a day’s work of man and team
than does any other kind of cultivation. It has the double
object of breaking the surface crust before this has become
very thick and hard, and of destroying weeds and grass
while they are extremely small or merely sprouting. One
horse drawing a weeder, or a double team drawing a light,
spike-tooth harrow, may cultivate ten or more acres in a day.

As soon as a crust begins to form, there is need for the
use of a weeder or light harrow at the following stages in
the cultivation of cotton :—

(1) A few days or weeks before planting, in order to
break the crust and save the moisture for the germination
of the seed soon to be planted.

(2) Following a rain occurring soon after planting, which
otherwise would leave too dense a crust to be easily broken
by the young plants.
COTTON CULTIVATION 301

(3) Between the time when the young plants first take
on their green color and the time when chopping or thin-
ning is done.

However, it may be impracticable to use either weeder
or harrow (1) on stony land, (2) on a field where there is
much trash, and (3) where the stand is thin or very ir-
regular.

The judicious use of the weeder or light harrow just
before chopping cotton permits this operation to be post-
poned longer and to be effected with less labor.

325. First tillage by separate rows. — As soon as prac-
ticable after all the young plants have appeared above
ground and have taken on a green color, the first tillage
is given with some form of cultivator. The principal
objects of this operation are the following : —

(1) To reduce the width of the strip that is subsequently
to be thinned by the hoe;

(2) To destroy vegetation;

(3) To put the soil into the best condition for retaining
moisture in dry weather and for the growth of the roots
of the young cotton plant.

326. Narrowing the strip to be hoed. — Since the main
purpose of this first operation is to prepare for the
more expensive work of chopping, any implement now
used must run very close to the line of young plants with-
out throwing much earth toward them. Among the
implements used in this operation, which is usually called
scraping or barring off, are the following : —

(1) Any ordinary cultivating implement supplied with
a fender to prevent the rolling of too much soil on the tiny
plant (Fig. 87);
852 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

(2) Implements supplied with small points on the side
next to the cotton;

(3) Moldboard- or turn-plows, with the bar side next the
line of plants, so as to throw the soil away from the row.

While the use of the turn-plow in this first cultivation
by rows is perhaps more common than that of any other

 

Fic. 151.— One Form or PLow-srocr.

Showing handles, beam, and foot, to the lower part of which sweeps,
scrapes, or other implements may be attached.

implement, its use in “barring off” cotton is subject to
the following objections : —

(1) It leaves the young plants on narrow high ridges,
which quickly dry out.

(2) These narrow high ridges may crumble, pulling the
plants down, if heavy rains occur.

(3) The deep plowing by the turn-plow cuts many roots.
COTTON CULTIVATION

853

Therefore, the turn-plow should be used for barring off
cotton only under special conditions; for example : —
(1) When grass has become too large to be easily killed

by “scrapes ”

or by other shallow-working implements.

In this case the best means of killing the grass may be by

burying it for a number of
days, as is done by the
moldboard plow.

(2) The deep tillage, such
as that given by the turn-
plow, may sometimes be de-
sirable on clay soils prepared
early and subsequently
very greatly compacted by
rains, hence needing stirring
after the plants come up.

A widely used and gener-
ally satisfactory implement
for this cultivation or scrap-
ing is a narrow sweep or
scrape, especially when
equipped with a fender.
Such a cultivating imple-
ment may be one of several
similar points attached to
a two-horse cultivator or
to a one-horse cultivator,
or it may be the sole point
on an ordinary cultivating
“stock,” or plow frame
(Fig. 151).

24

 

Fic. 152. — A Youne Cotron PLant

SHOWING Two SEED-LEAVES BELOW
AND Two True LEAVES ABOVE.
354 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

327. Chopping or thinning. — As soon as possible after
the operation of scraping or barring off, the plants (Fig.
152) should be thinned by means of a hoe. This first hoe-
ing is called “chopping.” Usually either one or two plants
are left at the desired distance apart. Much subsequent
hoe work is saved if, at the time of chopping, the plants
can be safely thinned to a single one at the required dis-
tance apart. However, it may be wise to leave two or

 

Fic. 153.— Various Forms oF SWEEPS AND SCRAPE USED IN CULTI-
VATING COTTON.

more plants in a place, or twice as many hills as will finally
remain, if chopping is done when the plants are extremely
small, or if many of the young plants are expected to die
as the result of disease or of unfavorable weather.

328. Second cultivation or ‘“‘siding.’’— The objects in
“ siding’ cotton are as follows : —
(1) To throw close about the plant, for its firmer support,
earth that may have been removed from it in the first
cultivation or in hoeing.
COTTON CULTIVATION 000

(2) To form a mulch that will retain the moisture in
the soil layer just below it.

(3) To destroy weeds.

Since one purpose is to throw a little earth towards the
plants, the scrape or sweep now used may be wider than
that used at the first cultivation (Fig. 153). To prevent
the small plants being covered, it may still be necessary to
use a fender attached to the stock or cultivator (Fig. 87).

This second tillage or cultivation is done by running the
cultivating implement close on both sides of each row of
plants. Hence, for scraping, two furrows per row usually
suffice, where a single scrape or sweep is used.

Siding should sometimes be done as soon as practicable
after chopping. But in order to give time for grass to be
smothered by the earth thrown on it in “ barring off,” sid-
ing may be delayed.

329. Third tillage or cultivation, or ‘‘ cleaning middles.”
—TIf the ‘siding’ just described has been performed
with only two scrape furrows per row, there is usually
left a low ridge of soil, called a ‘ balk” or “ middle,”
halfway between each two lines of plants. If this strip
becomes compact or weedy, the next step is to cultivate
it. This is usually done by a single furrow of a rather
large sweep or scrape, which splits the ‘‘ middle,” lapping
part of it on each of the adjacent rows. When a double
cultivator is employed, it cultivates the plants on both
sides and throws out the “ middles”’ at the same time.
Even when a single scrape is used in “siding,” farmers
often prefer to throw out the ‘‘ middle” immediately.

330. Subsequent tillage. — The operation of “‘siding”’ is
repeated as often as necessary to destroy all young weeds
356 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

and grass and to prevent the formation after each rain of
a crust on the soil, which would hasten the loss of water
by evaporation. Likewise, the middles are cleaned or
thrown out as often as necessary for the same purpose.
The larger the plant becomes, the wider, as a rule, are the
scrapes or sweeps employed.

It should constantly be borne in mind that one of the
principal objects of tillage is to form a mulch of loose dry
soil through which the moisture from the lower layers
cannot rise and be evaporated.

331. Subsequent hoeing. — The hoeings subsequent
to chopping are necessary only when vegetation grows
along the line of plants in spite of the earth thrown upon
the young weeds in siding. Hoeing is a cleaning rather
than a true tillage or mulching process. Next to picking,
it is the most expensive operation in cotton culture;
hence, as far as practicable, the horse implements should
be made to lessen the necessity of hoeing.

332. Amount and frequency of tilling. — There can be
no fixed rule as to how often cotton should be cultivated.
The general rule is to cultivate it before the formation of
a crust following each rain. Four ‘ plowings”? may be
considered the minimum and six or more are often advis-
able. The total number of furrows per row required in
good tillage is usually between twelve and sixteen. In addi-
tion to this, two or more hoeings are usually given.

333. Late tillage. — Practice varies greatly as to the
stage in the life of the cotton plant when cultivation should
cease. In most parts of the cotton-belt, tillage is contin-
ued through July and sometimes into August. The gen-
eral rule is that cotton plants that are making less than
COTTON CULTIVATION 857

a normal growth of limbs and foliage should be cultivated
late, while plants of large size may be “ laid by ” earlier,
so as to check the growth of stalk.

After cotton has received what has been planned to be
the last tilling, rains sometime occur within a few days,
destroying the soil-mulch made by the last cultivation.
In this case it is usually advisable to give an additional
late cultivation, so as to reéstablish the soil-mulch, and
to retain the moisture in the soil.

At the final tillage of cotton, the middles are always
thrown out.

334. Depth of cultivation.— The same principle applies
here as in the tillage of any other crop. At the first culti-
vation, the depth may well be shallow, medium, or deep,
as the judgment of the farmer dictates. But in the sub-
sequent tillings, the depth should be shallow ; that is, just
deep enough to destroy vegetation and to form a soil-mulch
thick enough to check evaporation.

Usually a depth of 13 to 2 inches meets these require-
ments. The finer the soil particles forming the mulch,
that is, the more complete the pulverization effected by
the tilling implement, the less the thickness of soil-mulch
required to check evaporation. A three-inch mulch of
small clods is less effective than an inch mulch of well-
pulverized soil.

335. Sowing seed among growing cotton plants. —
When it is desired to improve the soil by growing, during
the cooler months, some soil-improving plant, such as
crimson clover or hairy vetch, the time selected for sowing
the seed is usually immediately after the first picking.
By choosing this time, no cotton is knocked from the
358 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

plants by the one-horse cultivator used in covering these
seed. On some farms fall-sown oats are sown among the
growing cotton plants and covered as just indicated. To
permit the use of harvesting machinery in the oats, the
cotton plants, if large, are loosened in winter by means
of'a narrow plow, or by the use of a subsoil plow, and then
pulled and removed.

336. Distance between rows. —In deciding on the
space between rows and between plants of cotton, the
general rule is as follows: The richer the land, the wider
must be the rows and the greater the distance between
plants in the row. This rule is exactly the opposite of
the practice in spacing Indian corn. The reason for
planting cotton farther apart on rich land is the fact
that cotton is a branching or spreading plant, and
hence on rich land requires much space for the outward
growth of its long branches. On the other hand, corn
has no branches and may be crowded as closely together
as is permitted by the supply of plant-food and_ of
moisture, both of which are of course more abundant on
rich land.

The usual distance between rows of cotton on upland,
where a crop of one half bale or less per acre is expected,
is 3+ feet. On highly fertilized upland, the distance may
well be increased to 4 feet. On bottom land and other
very rich land, a distance of 5 feet is advisable, and oeca-
sionally even wider rows are preferable.

The wider the rows can be made without reducing the
yield, the cheaper is the cost of cultivation, since work
with cultivators is cheaper than work along the rows with
the hoe.
COTTON CULTIVATION 359

337. Distance between plants in the row. — Much of
the cotton grown in the United States is unduely crowded
in the row. A distance of 12 inches may be regarded as
the minimum even for very poor land. With almost any
character of medium or fair soil, capable of producing one
half bale of cotton or more per acre, it is usually better
to space the plant at least 18 inches apart.

To increase this distance beyond 2 feet is usually unwise,
except when the soil is very rich; in this latter case, it is better
to increase the width of the rows than to space the plants much
more than 2 feet apart.

By giving ample distance between plants in the drill, the num-
ber of bolls per plant is greatly increased. Thus on well-fertilized
land, plants spaced 1 foot apart averaged 12.6 bolls per plant,
while with double this space, there was an average of 40 bolls
per plant. (S. C. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 140.) In this case the
number of bolls per acre and the yield were much greater with
the thinner planting.

338. Results of distance experiments with cotton. —
Most of the experiment stations in the Southern States
have conducted experiments ori this subject. Naturally
the results have varied greatly as influenced by differences
in soil, in fertilizer, in rainfall, and in the variety of cotton
under observation. In a series of experiments at the
Georgia Station, where the yield was a little more than a
bale per acre, slightly higher yields were made where the
plants stood 1 foot apart than where they were 2 feet
apart; a distance of 3 feet between plants afforded a slight
reduction in yield; and where the space between plants
was increased to 4 feet, the yield was notably decreased.

In the Piedmont region of North Carolina the King variety
made as the average of a five years’ test the greatest yield when
360 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

the plants were spaced 16 inches apart, the rows being 3} feet
wide; in rows 4 feet wide, larger yields were obtained when the
spaces between plants were 12 or 16 inches than when the space
was greater. In the coast region of North Carolina at the
Edgecomb Test Farm, nearly similar results were obtained with
the Russell variety.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

The laboratory work to accompany this chapter should con-
sist of participation in any of the operations connected with cot-
ton culture that may be in progress at the time this subject is
studied. In case this is not practicable, field observations on
the results of such operations should be made by the student and
presented to the instructor in the form of descriptions or drawings.

LITERATURE

Duaaar, J. F. Ala. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 107.

Reppine,R. J. Ga. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 43, 47, 52, 56, and 59.

MacNoipsr, G. M., and others. N.C. Dept. Agr., Bul., Feb.,
1909.

McBryvpe, J.B. S.C. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 2.

Hammonp, Harry. U.S. Dept. Agr., Office Expr. Stas., Bul.
No. 33, pp. 225-278.

Burkett, C. W., and Pos, C. H. Cotton, pp. 147-168. New
York, 1906.

Mercigsr, W. B. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. II, pp. 257-258.
CHAPTER XXI
COTTON — HARVESTING AND MARKETING

PIcKING, ginning (removing the lint from the seed),
baling, and compressing into very hard and compact bales
for long-distance transportation are the different processes
in the harvesting and marketing of cotton; and to these
is here added a brief discussion of grades, qualities, and
market classes.

339. Picking. —The picking of the crop is the most
expensive operation connected with cotton culture. The
price paid varies greatly, but is usually between 40 and
75 cents per one hundred pounds of seed cotton. This is
equivalent to about 1} to 2} cents per pound of lint, or
$6 to S11 per bale. In localities where labor is scarce
or expensive, the cost of picking is sometimes even above
the highest figure just mentioned.

Picking begins in August or early in September. The
greater part of the crop is picked in the months of Sep-
tember, October, and November. In some localities con-
siderable cotton is picked in December and a small amount
sometimes remains in the field until after Christmas.

A fair day’s work for an experienced picker is 150 to
200 pounds of seed cottcn; but very skillful pickers,
under special incentives, and for a single day at a time,
have picked more than double these quantities.

361
362 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

 

Pia. 154. —An ALABAMA CorTron Fistp THAT YIELDED ABOUT Two
AND ONE-HALF BALES PER ACRE.
COTTON HARVESTING 365

In picking, the principal aims are : (1) rapidity of work, (2) the
inclusion of only the minimum amount of trash, and (3) com-
pleteness of work, so as not to leave in the bur an occasional
lock or piece of a lock. In connection with the latter aim it
should be borne in mind that it is sometimes more profitable to
leave unpicked a lock of stained or diseased cotton than to in-
clude it with the main picking, since it would tend to lower the
quality of the entire lot, and to perpetuate disease if the seeds are
used for planting.

When locks lying on the ground where they have been stained
by dust or mud are included with the main picking of white cotton,
the selling price of the whole is lowered. It pays to harvest
stained cotton separately or else to leave it unpicked. Cotton
picked while wet, unless afterwards very thoroughly dried, makes
a poor staple, which sells at a reduced price, because of the fibers
broken in ginning damp cotton.

Yields. — The average yield per acre in the United States is
about 200 pounds of lint, or two-fifths of a bale per acre. How-
ever, more than a bale per acre-is often grown in productive
fields. Occasional yields of more than two bales per acre are
obtained (Fig. 154).

340. Mechanical cotton-pickers. — The models in the
Patent Office at Washington show that numerous cotton-
pickers have been invented and that most of these have
never been brought into use. However, within the first
decade of the twentieth century several cotton-picking
machines have demonstrated that they can pick large quan-
tities of cotton, that they can harvest 80 to 90 per cent
or more of the cotton open at the time of operation, and
that they can pick without including very much more trash
than that included by careless hand-picking.

Many of these mechanical pickers are only partly auto-
matic, and require human brains and hands to guide the
separate picking devices.
SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

3864

 

“MUOAL LV UGMOIG NOLLOD LGAVV]]-HOIMSUOM AH — ‘SST “OT

 

 
COTTON HARVESTING 369

Some of these machines operate on the suction principle;
the open end of a hose pipe is directed by the human hand close
to each open boll, when the suction created by a revolving fan
on the machine draws the seed cotton through a tube and into a
hopper. An example of this class of suction machines is the
Worswick-Haardt picker, invented by J. E. Worswick, Mont-
gomery, Alabama (Fig. 155).

Other mechanical pickers entangle the seed cotton by means
of innumerable sharp, tack-like points embedded in narrow re-

 

Fic. 156.— THe Dixie Corton Picker.

volving belts, which are directed by human hands into contact
with the open boll; the lint is instantly entangled and borne
along the revolving belt to the hopper, where it is removed by
brushes. An example of such a machine is the Lowry Cotton
Picker, invented by George A. Lowry, Boston, Massachusetts.

Among other mechanical cotton-pickers recently advertised
are the following : —

The Dixie Cotton Picker, invented by John F. Appleby,
Chicago, Illinois (Figs. 156 and 157).
366 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

The Oliver Cotton Picking Machine, advertised by Stern
& Sons Company, Chicago, Lllinois.

The Thurman Vacuum Cotton Picking Machine, manufac-
tured by Vacuum Cotton Picking Machine Company, St. Louis,
Missouri.

The Price-Campbell Cotton Picking Machine, invented by
Angus Campbell, Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, and exploited by
Theodore Price, New York City.

It seems safe to predict that the time is near at hand when
cotton-picking machines will harvest a part of the crop where

 

 

 

 

Fig. 157. —VerticaL Section turoucu Dixie Cotron Picker
WHEN Avr WorK.

the conditions for their work are most favorable and where labor
is scarce or expensive. The chief difficulty in the way of their
rapid introduction is the high price at which it is now proposed
to sell these mechanical pickers.

341. Ginning. — After being picked, the seed cotton is
hauled to the gin, which is usually a public ginnery, oper-
ated by steam power (Fig. 158). There suction pipes lift
it from the wagon, and suitable devices carry it through
COTTON HARVESTING 361

a cleaner, and thence through the gin, which breaks the
lint from the seeds by means of circular saws which re-
volve at a speed of about 400 to 500 revolutions per min-

 

Fic. 158.— Section THROUGH A GINNERY.

Showing four gins, press, suction pipe, and shafting.

ute (Fig. 159). A brush removes the lint from the saws
and passes it to a condenser, which presses it into layers.

Cotton ginned when damp affords a poor sample be-
cause the gin cuts a considerable proportion of the fibers.

It is generally believed that a better grade or sample
is afforded by storing the seed cotton for a few weeks than
by ginning it soon after picking.

342. Baling. — The fleecy staple is then carried to the
press and compacted into rectangular (so-called ‘“ square ”’)
bales, which usually weigh about 500 pounds each, or
about 14 pounds for each cubic foot.
368 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

    

MOTE BOARD

 

 

 

Fic. 159.— TRANSVERSE SECTION THROUGH A CoTron GIN.
COTTON HARVESTING 369

The bales are covered with heavy coarse cloth or ‘ bag-
ging.” One of the greatest wastes connected with the
growing and marketing of cotton in the United States is
the failure to use a sufficient amount of bagging and of a
quality suitable to prevent the staining of the outer layers
of the staple with mud and dust.

The amount of tare (or weight of bagging and ties) which the
trade is supposed to allow is 30 pounds on a 500-pound bale;
but only on a few bales do the bag-
ging and ties weigh this much, and
these are penalized or ‘‘docked”’ ; the
interest and influence of local buyers
is in favor of a light or deficient
covering. A general improvement in
the amount and quality of covering
of the bales of American cotton,
which are now more poorly protected
than those from any other part of the
world, would, in time, redound to Fic. 160.— Foreicn anp
the profit of both the farmer and the A™#8IcAN CoTron Baues.
spinner (Fig. 160). Showing on the right the

The round bale, on the otherhand, Ԥfetior covering and torn
E ? condition of an American
is usually covered very completely jojo, in contrast with the
with cotton cloth, which affords better covering of the foreign
satisfactory protection. Moreover, bale on the left.
the round bale is dense and requires
no further compression. But for various reasons the round bale
has not been able to come into general use in the face of opposi-
tion in the interest of compress men and manufacturers of square-
bale presses. The round bale usually weighs about 250 pounds,
or half as much as the square bale.

 

243. The cotton gin. — There are two main types of
gins, roller and saw gins. The former are used in ginning
Sea Island cotton, the naked seeds of which are easily

2B
3870 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

separated by rollers from the lint. This general type of
gin has been in use in India for centuries.

- The saw gin, employed to gin short-staple cotton, is a
modern machine, which has been second to no other agri-
cultural invention in its effects on the world’s wealth,
commerce, and comfort. The saw gin has made possible
the South’s greatest industry, — cotton culture, — and has
supplied with fleecy food the textile industries of all manu-
facturing nations. It was invented by Whitney and
Holmes about 1792. Before that time a laborer with his
fingers separated about one pound of lint cotton per day.

A single gin of average size accomplishes the work of about
4000 such laborers. Within one hundred years after its inven-
tion the saw gin made possible & four-hundred-fold increase in
the cotton crop of the United States.

The saw gin is also used in ginning long-staple upland cotton;
but to do this without injury to the staple, the usual speed of
the saws should be greatly decreased.

When long-staple upland is ginned, care should first be taken
to remove from the gin the roll of cotton left by the preceding
bale of short-staple; for the mixing of even a little of this with
long-staple cotton greatly lowers the selling value of the latter.
This is because the spinning machinery in any one mill is arranged
for a fiber of a definite length; the admixture of fibers of widely
different lengths results in loss to the spinner, either by fibers
wasted or by the making of thread of undesirable quality.

344. Care of baled cotton. —Since cotton does not
readily absorb large amounts of moisture, farmers and
warehousemen often leave bales of cotton exposed for
weeks or months to the weather (Fig. 161). This results
in darkening and weakening the fibers in the outer layers,
and consequently in a decreased selling value. Cotton
COTTON HARVESTING 3871

bales should be kept continuously under shelter. If it
becomes necessary to leave them uncovered, they should

 

Fic. 161. — Cotton Bates terr UNPROTECTED FROM RAIN.

rest on poles or timbers laid on the ground, so that no part
of the cotton bale touches the moist soil.

345. Compressing. — Most cotton that is to be ex-
ported, or transported great distances, is first shipped to
““ compresses,” where the
size of the bale is still
further reduced by the
application of enormous
pressure (Fig. 162).

In some processes now
coming into use, cotton,
as soon as ginned, is
immediately compressed
: } On left, ordinary square bale ; in cen-
into bales of very great ter, bale from gin compress; and on
density ready for export. right, ordinary compressed bale.

 

  

Fic. 162. — Sipe View oF Cotton BALEs.
372 SOUTUERN FIELD CROPS

One great advantage of thus compressing it at the gin is
the more complete and careful covering of the bale with
new, closely woven cloth (Fig. 163). On the other hand,

 

 

 

 

Fic. 163.— Bates rrom A GIN ComMPREss.

the ordinary compress utilizes a part of the coarse, heavy,
and usually cut or torn covering that was originally placed
on the bale at the gin.

346. Commercial classes or grades of cotton. — Cotton
is bought and sold according to quality or grade. When
farmers sell, unless the number of bales be very large, a
decision as to the grade or quality is usually made by the
buyer, the seller being ignorant, as a rule, of the exact
quality of cotton that he is selling. To better enable
farmers to know what grade of cotton they sell, most
agricultural colleges in the cotton-belt now employ ex-
COTTON MARKETING 873

perts to give instruction in cotton-classing to those stu-
dents who are pursuing an agricultural course.

In large transactions, especially between business firms
or corporations, experts representing both parties pass
judgment on the grade, and any difference in classification
is arbitrated by disinterested experts.

The classing of cotton cannot be learned without prac-
tice under an expert, and never very quickly. The basis
or starting point is middling cotton. Contracts are based
on this grade, and if other grades are delivered, the differ-
ence in grade is settled in cash. The seven principal or
“full” grades of cotton, mentioned in order of value, are
the following : —

(1) Fair (4) Middling
(2) Middling fair (5) Low middling
(3) Good middling (6) Good ordinary

(7) Ordinary

Between each pair of the full grades mentioned above,
are the “half grades,” designated by prefixing the word
“strict? to the name of the next lower grade; thus
strict middling is a half grade better than middling.

In the larger markets use is also made of the “ quarter
grades,” indicated by prefixing the word “fully” or
“barely ” before the term indicating the grade.

The grades “ fair”? and “ middling fair” are compara-
tively rare. The greater part of the crop of the Southern
States usually consists of the following grades and half
grades arranged in order of value : —

Strict good middling, Strict middling,
Good middling, Middling.
3874 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

In years when continued rains occur during the fall,
the crop may consist largely of the following still lower
grades : —

Strict low middling,
Low middling.

The grade of cotton is determined by a number of con-
siderations, which have somewhat different weights in
different markets. In general, the grade depends prin-
cipally upon (1) the abundance of trash, (2) the color of
the fiber, and (3) the amount of “ nep,” or tangled, im-
mature fibers. In general, the grades from best to lowest
are supposed to express in some measure a decreasing
percentage of waste material in spinning.

The preferred color is snow white or slightly creamy,
that is, with the faintest suggestion of a yellowish cast.
In this matter of color, different markets vary. All mar-
kets, however, rate low the samples of cotton which pos-
sess even the faintest suggestion of blue, which is a qual-
ity usually due to long exposure of the open cotton to the
weather, and hence an indication of weakness of fiber.

Strange as it may seem, length of fiber does not usually
greatly influence the grade. But this does determine
the price; length of staple is considered as “ spinning
quality ” or “ character,” and is independent of the grade.
Thus there is middling cotton of the ordinary short-staple
kind, middling ‘ benders,” and middling long staple, the
three selling at widely different prices.

347. Tinges and stains. — If lint cotton shows patches
of faint color, it is designated as “ tinged’; if the color
is decided and distinct, it is classed as “ stained.’ Both
COTTON MARKETING 375

tinges and stains are usually due to contact with red or
other strongly colored soil or to injured bolls. The price
of stains is somewhat below that of tinges, and consider-
ably below the price of unstained or white cotton of other-
wise the same grade. This emphasizes the folly of allow-
ing pickers to mix with white cotton the stained locks
that are usually found lying on the ground.

348. Differences in value between the commercial
grades. — There is no fixed difference in the value of any
two grades. The demand determines this difference,
which varies from year to year. Usually the following
general statements hold true: —

(1) The difference in price between any two adjacent
grades of good cotton is less than between any two of the
lower adjacent grades.

(2) When the greater part of any year’s crop consists
of the lower grades, the difference in price in favor of the
upper grades is greater than usual, because of the strong
competition, under these conditions, for the small amount
of cotton of the upper grades.

(3) As the average price of cotton rises, the difference
in price between grades increases, because the lower
grades entail a larger percentage of waste in spinning than
do the better grades; this waste can ill be afforded when
even low-grade cotton sells at a comparatively high
price.

The following categories give examples of approximate differ-
ences in price that frequently prevail among the usual grades
and half grades. The (+) sign indicates a price in cents per pound
above that of middling, while the (—) sign indicates that the
price is below the middling quotations : —
eo
aI
a>

SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Good middling . ....... . . + $ cent
Strict middling . . . .... . . . +7 cent
IVitd dite? Se. Ge 2s. Sen ike Va si es Se Ge O cent
Strict low middling. . . . . . . . . — 4 cent
Low middling . ....... . =. — $cent

LABORATORY EXERCISES

As part of the practice to accompany this chapter a ginnery
should be visited, and inspection made of the parts of some gin
while it is not in motion.

While it is not advisable for instruction in cotton classing to
be given by any except experts of long experience in cotton
buying and classing, it may be possible for samples of middling
cotton to be procured by the school and for the pupils to become
somewhat familiar with its characteristics.

College classes will doubtless be instructed by an expert, who
will need a complete set of specimens, or types, which can usually
be purchased from the U. 8. Department of Agriculture.

LITERATURE

Hunt, T. F. Forage and Fiber Crops in America, pp. 364-378.
New York, 1907.

Burkett, C. W., and Por, C. H. Cotton. New York, 1906.

Tompkins, D.A. Cotton and Cotton Oil. Charlotte, N.C., 1901.

Rosinson, T. A. Classing Cotton. Stillwater, Okla., 1909.

Miuter, T. 8. The American Cotton System. Flat, Texas.

Hammonp, Harry. U.S. Dept. Agr., Office of Expr. Sta., Bul.
No. 33, pp. 264-268 and 351-384.

Earte, D. E. Cotton Grading. Clemson (S.C.) Agr. Col.
Exten. Work, Vol. IV., Bul. No. 2.
CHAPTER XXII
COTTON — HISTORY AND STATISTICS

Corron appears to be a native of the tropical parts of
both hemispheres. The cotton plant was grown in India
many centuries before the beginning of the Christian era.
Until about a century ago, India continued to produce
most of the world’s supply of cotton; it now ranks as
second only to the United States in the amount of cotton
produced. Gradually the cultivation of cotton spread
from India until at least small areas were grown in Egypt
and other parts of northern Africa, in Spain (where cotton
was probably introduced by the Moors), and in Italy.

Egypt, now the third largest producer of cotton in the
world, probably learned cotton culture at a much later
date than did the inhabitants of India.

England, which now manufactures more cotton than
any other country, apparently did not manufacture cotton
cloth until about the seventeenth century.

349. History in America. — Columbus found cotton
growing in the West Indies in 1492, as did Cortez in Mexico
in 1519. Indeed, at that time cotton constituted the
principal clothing of the natives of Mexico. A few years
later explorers found cotton growing in Peru and Brazil.
It is interesting to note that the American Indians in-
habiting what now constitutes the cotton-growing states
of the Union appear to have been without cotton. But

977

ole
378 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

their contemporaries of nearly all nationalities to the
southward grew and used this plant in countries where in
modern times its culture has made relatively little progress.

Cotton manufacturing was greatly stimulated by the
inventions of Arkwright, Crompton, Cartwright, and Watt

 

Fic. 164.— Tur Propei.tinc Mecuanism oF AN OLD Horse-POWER GIN.

Showing large wheels with wooden cogs. (By permission of D. A.
Tompkins.)
in the eighteenth century. To supply the demand for
raw cotton thus stimulated, cotton culture was extended
in India, along the shores of the Mediterranean, and in
COTTON STATISTICS B19

Brazil. At that time the southern part of the United
States was producing only a few bales for export and not
enough to supply its own people with cotton clothing.

In 1764 the American colonies shipped eight “ bags”
of cotton to Liverpool, and this probably represented the
entire export of that year from the American colonies.

350. The invention of the cotton gin. —In 1793, Eli
Whitney, then living in South Carolina, applied for a pat-
ent on asaw gin. Prior to that time, hand-picking was the
rule, and only a rude form of roller gin was known. The
immediate effect of the invention of Whitney’s saw gin was
greatly to increase the production of American cotton. In
the period of 116 years, from the invention of Whitney’s
gin to 1908, the cotton crop produced in the United States
increased so that it was nearly six hundred times as large
at the end as at the beginning of this period.

Before the general introduction, in the last quarter of
the nineteenth century, of public ginneries operated by
steam, practically all of the crop was ginned on small plan-
tation gins, propelled by six or eight mules driven in a
circle (Fig. 164).

351. Value and extent of the American cotton crop. —
The American cotton crop is usually between 11,000,000
and 13,000,000 bales. The area of cotton picked in 1909
was estimated at 30,938,000 acres. The lint and seed of
a single crop are usually worth about $750,000,000. Less
than two thirds of the lint is exported. Cotton shipped
abroad, together with cotton-seed oil and meal, annually
brings into the United States about $500,000,000, or more
money than foreign nations send into this country for any
other single crop. Moreover, the remainder of the crop
380 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

made into cloth in the United States supports one of the
most important American manufacturing industries, the
cotton textile industry.

Year by year, cotton is coming into wider use. Pro-
duction and consumption have both rapidly increased.
The following table shows how rapidly the cotton pro-
duction of the United States has increased : —

YEAR Bates PropucEepD
1790 ie Ue eee) gen se. peek 8,889
1810 nth ath ety PSO a Ee Ie aeY as 269,360
1830 Se tis Ca ee mee ae ae eee OS On
1850 Sa Gs ee ah eh ap 4
1870 at he a ee ce He a AS OZSLT
1890 tie Seek sen ee ae 8,652,597
1908 is pkey aie aa Se te es 13 432,131

The production of cotton in the United States did not
permanently rise above 1,000,000 bales until 1832, nor
above 3,000,000 bales until 1851. The crop in round
numbers was about 4,000,000 for each of the three years
preceding the Civil War. During this war cotton culture
was largely discontinued, the production dropping to
300,000 bales in 1864.

Not until 1875 did the annual cotton crop remain per-
manently above 4,000,000 bales.

From the last table, it may be seen that during the
greater part of the past century the annual cotton crop of
the United States has practically doubled every twenty
years. In very recent years the rate of increase has been
slower. Neither the world’s market for cotton goods
nor the productive capacity of the Southern cotton fields
has nearly reached its limit.
COTTON STATISTICS 881

352. Production of cotton seed. — For each bale of
500 pounds there is usually produced a half ton of cotton
seed. The value of the seed produced in 1908 has been
estimated! at more than $92,000,000. More than half
of the cotton seed pro-
duced are manufactured
into cotton-seed oil,
meal, cake, hulls, and
linters, — the latter be-
ing a very short, low-
priced fiber adhering to
the seed after ginning.
The remainder of the
crop is used as food for
cattle, as seed for plant-
ing, and as fertilizer.

353. Production by Fic. 165.— PeRcENTAGE OF THE TOTAL
states. — Only ten = American Crop or Corton GROWN IN
Americanstates produce E4c# Stats 1n 1908.
large amounts of cotton (Fig. 165). These are the following,
named in order according to the average percentage of
the crops of 1906, 1907, 1908 produced in each state.

«
a
°
x
-
ac
So
z
2
Si

 

Sian Per CENT OF Grae Per CENT oF
AMERICAN CROP AMERICAN CROP
Texass3- sy a ee 270 Arkansas. . . . 7.3
Georgia . . . .143 Oklahoma . . . 6.6
Mississippi . . . 12.4 Louisiana . . . 5.7
Alabama .. . 9.8 North Carolina . 4.9
South Carolina. . 8.5 Tennessee . . . 2.5

Since Figure 165 gives the percentages for only one year, while
the table states the average results for three years, the latter may

1U. 8. Bur. Census, Bul. No. 100.
382 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

be regarded as more reliable. Students will find it interesting to
make three-year averages of the crops of still later years in order
to note the tendency for cotton culture to increase in certain
states and to decrease in others.

Other states together produce about 1 per cent of the crop.
In most of the states named above, cotton is the most valuable
sale crop produced. The important cotton-growing states
embrace less than one fourth of the area of the United States.
Yet this small part of the country furnishes the most valuable
article of export from the farms of the nation.

Within the past few years the extension of cotton culture in
Oklahoma has proceeded more rapidly than in any other state,
thus raising this state to a higher position than it occupies in the
above table.

Reports of cotton ginned each year. —Both the Census Bureau
of the United States and the Bureau of Statistics of the National
Department of Agriculture devote much attention to the gather-
ing of statistics relative to the production of cotton. Cotton crops
grown in 1909, 1908, and 1907, expressed in running bales and
in equivalent 500-pound bales, are given in the following table
(Crop Reporter, Apr., 1910).

 

ss
2UNNING B 1 | EB IT 5 z 5
RUNNING BALEs QUIVALENT 500-pounpD Bags

 

STATE
1909 1908 1907 1909 | 1908 | 1907

 

United States . |10,363,240/13,432,131/11,32 5 Fs | e

   
 
 

  
   
 
 
  
 

Alabama. 1,360,601] 1, 5! 1,056,097
Arkansas. 1,020,704 | 29,329
Florida 54,951

1,849,003

 
 
 

  

263, ue

 

Mississippi . : 1,106,170
North Carolina 647,747

dy 668, 461
701,356

  

Oklahoma . . 571,370
South Carolina .| 1,160,167
Tennessee... 248,778
Texas. -| 2,549,417
All other States 62,664

 

 

 

+ Counting round as half bales and including linters.
COTTON STATISTICS 383

- The statistics in this report for 1909 are subject to slight
corrections. Included in the figures for 1909 are 49,448 bales,
which ginners and delinters estimated would be turned out after
the time of the March canvass. Round bales included are
150,690 for 1909 ; 242,305 for 1908; and 198,549 for 1907. Sea-
island bales included are 94,566 for 1909; 93,858 for 1908; and
86,895 for 1907. Linter bales included are 314,597 for 1909;
346,126, for 1908; and 268,060 for 1907. The average gross
weight of the bale for the crop, counting round as half bales and
including linters, is 496.5 pounds for 1909, compared with 505.8
for 1908 and 502.2 for 1907. The number of ginneries operated
for the crop of 1909 is 26,660, compared with 27,598 for 1908.”

354. Distribution of cotton culture in the United States.
— The northern line of the cotton-belt of the United States
extends from near Norfolk, Virginia, in a southwesterly
direction to the northeastern part of Georgia; thence in
a northeasterly direction through Tennessee and into
Kentucky, crossing the Mississippi River just south of
the mouth of the Ohio. Thence the line extends almost
directly west through the southern part of Missouri,
excluding the northwestern part of Arkansas. The cot-
ton-belt includes practically all of Oklahoma and all of
Texas except the extreme western part. Small isolated
areas producing small amounts of cotton are found in the
irrigated regions of New Mexico, California, and other
parts of the Southwest.

Within the territory mapped as constituting the cotton-
belt, a large proportion of the counties produce only a few
thousand bales. These areas in which cotton is a relatively
unimportant crop are, (1) the country along the northern
edge of the cotton-belt, especially in mountainous sections ;
(2) parts of the country on the Gulf coast where rice,
sugar-cane, truck crops, and forest products supplant
384 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

cotton; and (3) the extreme western part of the cotton-
belt, where the slight rainfall prevents the extensive culti-
vation of this crop.

355. The principal foreign cotton-producing countries.
— The United States produces about two thirds of the
supply of cotton used in the world’s mills. Next to the
United States,
with its twelve
to thirteen mil-
lion bales per
year, comes In-
dia with an an-
nual crop of
about 3,000,000
bales, and Egypt
with about
1,300,000 bales.

356. Countries
producing small

UNITED STATES 66.4

quantities of cot-
ton.— Next, with

 

Fic. 166. — PERcENTAGE oF WorLpD’s MILL SuPPLY much smaller
or Corron CONTRIBUTED BY Eacu Counrry in quantities, come

1908. ‘
Russia and its

Asiatic provinces, China, Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Turkey,
and Persia (Fig. 166).

If account were taken of the unknown quantities of
cotton that never reach the mills, but that are converted
into cloth in the homes of the people of China, the Celestial
Empire would probably rank above Egypt as a cotton-
producing country.
COTTON HISTORY 885

357. Competition in cotton culture. —It is often said
that the United States has a practical monopoly of cotton
culture. This is largely true, but changing conditions in
all parts of the world make it possible for the foreign
grower of cotton to become a more formidable competitor
of the American cotton producer than has been the case
in the past.

The following facts suggest the possibility of constantly
increasing competition from abroad : —

(1) Great efforts have been made during the past few
years, especially by the British and German governments
in their African possessions, to build up centers of cotton
production. These attempts, unlike those made during the
Civil War, were made in countries believed to have climatic
conditions well suited to the growth of the cotton plant.
In some of these countries, notably in German East Africa,
British East Africa, and Uganda, these efforts are resulting
in a rapid increase each year in the number of bales pro-
duced, which suggests that the climatic and other con-
ditions are favorable.

(2) A high price for American cotton always stimulates
foreign cotton production. The American farmer expects
high prices for cotton in the future, partly because of the
injury inflicted on the American crop each year by the
boll-weevil in its eastward march. The probable high
prices would have the effect of increasing cotton produc-
tion in Africa and Asia.

(3) Improvement in the methods of cultivation in India
can greatly increase the cotton production of that coun-
try. Extension of the government’s irrigation system

will have the same effect. Improvement in the quality
2c
886 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

of Indian fiber is possible. Moreover, even a cotton with
_very short staple, as that of India, is indirectly in competi-
tion with ordinary American cotton; for, being cheaper, it
is used for many purposes where a staple of greater length
could be employed. In 1910 (as a result of a short Ameri-
can crop, with consequent high prices) a small amount of
Indian cotton was imported by American mills.

(4) In Egypt the government is extending. the irriga-
tion system, thus increasing the area of cultivated land,
and making possible even larger yields per acre by reason
of more frequent irrigation. However, Egyptian cotton
is not directly in competition with American short staple.

On the other hand, among the facts which suggest the
freedom of the American producer from serious rivalry by
the foreign cotton grower are the following : —

(1) Stimulated by the high prices of cotton prevailing
during and just after the Civil War, great efforts were
made in numerous foreign countries to stimulate the pro-
duction of cotton. As a rule these attempts were unsuc-
cessful.

(2) The southern part of the United States is believed
to be the only very large area of country having climatic
conditions throughout its entire extent exactly suited to
the cotton plant.

(3) India, the second in rank among cotton countries,
produces chiefly a staple shorter than the American, and
hence not generally used by the same mills.

(4) The cultivated part of Egypt is a country of limited
area; moreover, the staple produced is longer than the
staple of the bulk of the American crop, and hence is used
in different mills and for different purposes.
COTTON HISTORY 387

358. Program for the American cotton grower. — The
best steps for the American cotton grower to take in order
to meet any foreign competition that the future may
bring forth consist (1) in producing cotton by more inten-
sive methods, which lowers the cost of producing each
pound of lint, (2) in more largely employing machinery
in the cultivation and harvesting of this crop, and (3) in
improving the usual wasteful and slovenly method of
covering and handling American bales.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

From the latest United States Census Reports on Agriculture,
students should calculate : —

(a) The proportion of the total crop produced by their state ;

(6) The proportion of the crop of their state produced by their
county ;

(c) A list of the ten counties in their state producing the great-
est number of bales ;

(d) The average yield per acre of lint cotton in the United
States.

(e) The average yield per acre of lint cotton in five selected
counties in their state.

LITERATURE

Burkett, C. W., and Por, C. H. Cotton, pp. 13-74, 301-329.
New York, 1906.

U.S. Census Bur. Latest Publications on Agriculture.

U.S. Census Bur. Buls. Nos. 100, 107 and later.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Office Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 33, pp. 13-66, 266-
270.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Bur. of Statistics, Bul. No. 16 and later.
CHAPTER XXIII
COTTON — INSECT ENEMIES

Tuer most destructive insects attacking the flowers or
bolls are the boll-worm and the Mexican cotton boll-
weevil.

Among the insects most injurious to the foliage are the
cotton caterpillar. The cotton red-spider also injures
the leaves, and on the young seedlings a plant-louse is
sometimes troublesome.

The roots are invaded by a very small animal called
the nematode worm. The stems of the young plants are
attacked by cutworms and the buds by cowpea-pod weevils.

THE Cotron Bo.Lu-worm. — HELIOTHIS OBSOLETA

359. Life history of boll-worm. — The boll-worm is
one of the most widely distributed enemies of cotton.
The only parts of the cotton plant injured are the squares
or bolls, which are eaten into and the interior destroyed
by the caterpillar stage of a moth. Other plants that
are much injured by the same worm are corn and to-
matoes. (See corn ear-worm, paragraph 192.)

The parent is a moth (Fig. 167) which may lay more
than one thousand eggs. These are laid by preference on
the fresh silks of corn, so that the young worm, as soon as
hatched, may enter the tip of the ear, where it is commonly

388
COTTON INSECTS 389

known as the ear-worm. Eggs are laid on all parts of the
cotton plant, but especially on the leaves. On hatching,
the young worms, which are too small to be easily seen,
wander about for a
few hours or days, eat-
ing small amounts of
the surface tissue of
the cotton leaves and
of the tender growing
buds. This is the
period in the life of
the insect on cotton
when it can be most
easily poisoned and
controlled.

On becoming strong
enough to cut into a
boll, the worm destroys
the contents of one or
more bolls (Fig. 168).
On reaching full size,
it drops to the ground,
burrowing usually to a
depth of two or three
inches below the sur-
face. Hereit remains Fic. 167.
during the pupal stage
(Fig. 169), while chang-
ing to a moth.

In most parts of the cotton region there are five genera-
tions annually produced by the boll-worm, the first three

 

 

 

Motus or Cotton BoLt-worM
AND Corn Ear-worm.
Showing the variations in color between
different individuals.
890 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Tic. 168.— Tue Corron BoLtt-wormM oN THE
OuTSIDE OF A Corron Bouc,
The mass of insect castings near the top of
the picture suggests the injury already done to
the interior of the boll.

 

of which usually
feed upon corn.
The first and second
generations feed on
the young leaves in
the bud or growing
part of the corn
plant; the third
generation preys
chiefly upon the
ears of corn in the
green or roasting-
ear condition, when
the insect is known
as the corn ear-
worm or roasting
ear-worm. This in-
sect prefers corn to
cotton. Hence it
remains on corn as
long as the ears are
green. After the
ereater part of the
corn hardens, usu-
ally in July, and
after the third and
more numerous
generation of worms

appears, severe injury is done to the squares and bolls

of cotton.

360. Preventive measures.-— In spite of the great
COTTON INSECTS B91

injury done to cotton, prevention or poisoning is seldom
attempted. ExperimentS have shown that dusting the
plants with a light application of Paris green or other
preparation of arsenic destroys many of the tiny worms
on the day on which they are hatched and before they are
large enough to enter the
boll. For poisoning to be
most effective, it should begin
about the time that adjacent
corn ears begin to harden, and
it may need to be repeated
several times. The poison
adheres better if applied while
the dew is on the plants.
The most generally practi-  L
cable method of reducing the Fic. 169.— Pupar or Curysatis
injury to cotton consists in he re papier
using corn as a trap crop.
Strips of corn should be planted about the first of June,
or at such times as to bring the corn into the roasting-ear
condition about the first of August. Then the moths
deposit their eggs on the corn rather than on the cotton
plants. The trap crop of corn is still more effective if two
plantings are made at intervals of a few weeks, so as to
furnish a continual supply of roasting ears during the
time when moths are most numerous. These strips of
corn may be planted on oat patches adjacent to the cotton
fields, or better, 2 to 4 rows of corn may be planted in
alternation with 20 to 40 rows of cotton. In order for
the corn to serve as a trap crop, it must be planted late,
and not at the time when the cotton is planted.

 

 

 

 

 
392 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Such corn may be cut and fed to live-stock when in the
late roasting-ear condition; or it may be left in the field as
usual. In this
latter case corn
is still help-
ful in reduc-
ing the num-
ber of boll-
worms, since
it attracts a
number of
worms to each
ear. Here they
devour each
other, leaving
only one or two
alive, instead
of many.

Plowing in
late fall or
early winter
destroys the burrows (Fig. 170) in which the insect passes
the winter, and turns the pup up to be killed by unfavor-
able weather.

 

 

 

Fic. 170.— Pura or Bort-worm In its UNDER-
GROUND Burrow.

Tue Mexican Corron Boui-wEEviu. — ANTHONOMUS
GRANDIS

361. Extent of injury. — The boll-weevil is the most
destructive insect enemy that has ever attacked cotton
in the United States. When it first invades a new region
it sometimes reduces the total production of cotton by
eo

COTTON INSECTS 393

about 50 per cent. Such an enormous reduction as this
is not due solely to the smaller amount of cotton produced
per acre, but is partly due to reduction in acreage. For-
tunately in most of the country west of the Mississippi
River, where the boll-weevil has been present for a longer
time than anywhere else in this country, farmers, within
a few years after the arrival of this pest, have learned
to change their methods so as to regain a part or all of this
loss. However, even before the ;
boll-weevil had extended beyond
Texas and Louisiana, the injury to
the cotton crop was estimated at
more than $22,000,000 in one year.
362. Food of the weevil. — The
injury done by this insect is practi-
cally confined to the squares and
bolls. The squares are decidedly
preferred, and as long as these are Fic. a
present in abundance but little ,. He arene gee
damage is done to the larger bolls. at the outer end of the

This preference for the squares, 2st joint of the front legs.
Pe ie 1 (Photo by W. E. Hinds.)

 

rather than for the older forms,
makes it possible for farmers to grow cotton in spite of
the boll-weevil. This is done by hastening the early growth
of the plants so that many bolls will form and pass the danger
point before the weevils become very numerous. After the
weevils become very abundant in August, they sometimes
destroy every square in a field, so that no late blooms
appear.

The injury is effected both by the mature weevil (Fig. |
171), feeding from the outside of the square or boll, and by
.

394 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

the grub or larval stage within (Fig. 172). The mature in-
sect can live for a short time on the tender leaves or grow-

 

Fic. 172.— Cotton Square sHOWING BoLL-wEEvIL Larva IN PosiTIon.

Natural size.

ing buds of the cotton plant, a fact which is important to
remember in considering means of combating this pest.

The cotton boll-weevil does not eat any plant that is
widely grown except cotton. This fact is utilized by de-
priving the insect, late in autumn, of green cotton plants,
its only food.
COTTON INSECTS 395

363. Stages in the life of the boll-weevil. — In the life
of the cotton boll-weevil, as in that of most other insects,
there are four stages. These are, (1) the egg; (2) the lar-
val, or grub stage, which is the growing period; (3) the

 

Fic. 173.— Puncturep Cotton Square.

Showing egg puncture of boll-weevil and ‘‘ faring”’ of bracts.

pupal, or changing stage, in which this insect is compara-
tively inactive and in which no food is taken; and (4) the
adult or mature stage, which, with the boll-weevil, is the
period of activity and of egg-laying.

364. How the injury is done. — Injury to the forms,
396 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

or young fruits, of the cotton plant are due both to pune-
tures made by the mature weevils for the purpose of ob-
taining a food supply for themselves, and to the young
grubs, which develop within the square or boll where the
ege has been laid by the mature weevil.

A few days after an egg has been laid in a square, the
color of the latter becomes paler, and the surrounding leafy
parts flare, or spread outward (Fig. 173). The square may
remain hanging on the plant or it may drop to the ground,
carrying the larva or grub within. It was found in experi-
ments in Texas that among the immature insects in the
fallen squares, about one third developed into adult weevils.
The remainder were killed by their insect enemies or by
the rapid drying of the squares where they lay in strong
sunlight on the hot soil.

The dead squares that continue to hang to the plants
bring forth a larger proportion of mature weevils than
do the fallen squares, probably because in the hanging
squares larvee are less exposed to the attacks of their
principal insect enemies, the ants. Hence some farmers
attempt to brush off as many of these infested squares as
possible, by attaching a brush, or a stick wrapped with
cloth, to the cultivating implement. Some authorities
regard this as impracticable.

The larvee developing within the bolls may result in
the destruction of only one lock or of the entire boll.

Feeding punctures may cause the square to die or the
boll to rot.

365. Rapid multiplication. — One of the reasons why
the cotton boll-weevil is destructive is because it multi-
plies very rapidly. The time from the laying of the eggs
COTTON INSECTS 397

to the appearance of the mature weevil is less than 25
days. Hinds and Hunter have estimated that the average
time between the egg-laying period of any two genera-
tions is about 43 days, and that a single pair of weevils
coming from their winter quarters in the latter part of
spring in Southern Texas, may there, before the occur-
rence of frost, have 250,000 living descendants. In south-
ern Texas there may be as many as five generations; but
in the part of the cotton-belt farther north it is probable
that the usual number of generations averages four per
year.

366. Where the winter is spent. — The boll-weevil
passes through the winter in the mature or weevil stage.
Therefore the most effective means of fighting the boll-
weevil aim at reducing as low as possible the number of
adult weevils that live through the winter. Fortunately,
of the weevils that go into winter quarters the greater
portion die before spring. In Texas and Louisiana the
percentage of weevils living through the winter has varied
from less than 1 per cent to more than 50 per cent of those
that entered winter quarters. The proportion of those
that survive can be largely reduced by the destruction of
the trash under which they usually take shelter through-
out the winter.

The hiding places preferred are: (1) in the empty cotton
burs and in other litter in the cotton field; (2) in the fallen
leaves and in the bark and moss of the woods; (3) in corn
stalks, grass, blackberry patches, and other litter or vege-
tation adjacent to the cotton fields; and (4) around and
in buildings and haystacks.

All of this suggests the need of plowing under deeply,
398 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

or otherwise destroying, as much as practicable of the litter
and vegetation adjacent to cotton fields and the advisa-
bility of keeping the fields in a clean and neat condition.

367. Principal preventive measures. — The boll-weevil
in its different stages spends most of its life within the cot-
ton forms, and when outside it takes so little food from the
surface of boll or square or leaf, that the use of poisons
(except in one special case, as indicated below) is useless.
The warfare against this pest must be an indirect one,
and its aim should be to prevent many insects from living
through the winter.

When cold weather approaches, or on the occurrence of
a killing frost, boll-weevils enter their winter quarters
under all sorts of trash. Experiments have shown that
if the weevils can be deprived of their food for a period
of several weeks before cold weather occurs, they will be
so weakened that most of them die before spring. Hence
the best method of reducing the injury in the next crop
of cotton consists in plowing, piling, and burning in Oc-
tober, or as soon as possible, the old cotton stalks and all
litter adjacent to the cotton fields. Even later burning is
beneficial, though to a less extent. Burning the stalks
and burs destroys the immature insects inside the bolls and
squares, destroys many of the adult insects, and deprives
the remainder of food and shelter.

Preparatory to being burned, the cotton stalks are usu-
ally uprooted with a double moldboard plow. <A special
device for cutting the stalks below the ground is shown in
Figs. 174 and 175.

A less effective treatment consists in turning a large
number of cattle into the cotton fields before frost, so that
COTTON INSECTS 3899

they may quickly consume all leaves and young forms;
this should be followed by the thorough plowing under
of the stalks, so as to prevent young sprouts from putting

 

Fic. 174. — Corton Sraux Currer.

H, Steel blade, bolted to under side of 4 ~ 4 side piece, and projecting
1} inches. (Fully described in Cire. 30, La. Crop Pest Commission,
Baton Rouge, La.)

out, for the weevils are able to subsist on these young
sprouts. The early destruction of cotton stalks in the fall
is advisable, even though one’s neighbors should not prac-

er fn
ie EE A NS a Ae Sa ee
u—7 es

Fic. 175.—Sipp* View or Cotron STALK CUTTER.
Hi, Steel blade.

 

 

 

tice it. However, the more general this custom in regions
where the boll-weevil is present, the better for every
farmer.

368. Forcing the crop to early maturity. — Not only
should the cotton grower reduce the number of weevils
400 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

surviving the winter as directed above, but he should also
force the growth of the cotton plant as rapidly as practicable.
The purpose in doing this is to enable the cotton plants to
set a large number of bolls before many generations of weevils
have had time to come forth. Bolls of rather large size
are not seriously attacked so long as there is an abundance
of squares for the weevils then present. Hence the earlier
bolls escape injury, and there should be enough of these
to make a satisfactory yield.

The methods of forcing the cotton plant rapidly for-
ward are the following : —

(1) The use of varieties which set a large proportion of
the bolls early ;

(2) The liberal use of fertilizers rich in phosphoric acid,
or the growing of cotton on rather rich, well-drained land.

(3) Thorough preparation of the land and frequent cul-
tivation of the crop; and

(4) Early planting.

369. Minor methods of combating the boll-weevil. —
One of these consists in poisoning such mature weevils
as are present on the growing points or tender buds of the
cotton plants just before the appearance of any squares.
Some of the weevils that survive the winter spend a short
time in eating these tender parts of the cotton plant.
The poison found most effective is powdered arsenate of
lead. This should be applied at the rate of 2 to 21
pounds per acre and by means of a “ powder gun,” which
forces the powder into the growing tips, where the
weevils are feeding before the appearance of squares.
This poisoning can be done advantageously but once, and
only in the few days just before the first squares appear
COTTON INSECTS 401

(Fig. 176). While it kills most of the weevils then present,
other weevils continue to come from their winter quarters

for several weeks
after the forma-
tion of squares
begins. The use
of any kind of
poison after
squares appear
is ineffective.
Where the boll-

weevil is present, ©

the space ke-
tween cotton
rows should be
increased so that
the sunshinemay
more rapidly dry
and destroy the
fallen squares
with the larve
contained in

them. A culti-.

vator which col-

  

Fic. 176.— Cotton PLANT IN THE ‘“‘ BupDING”’
STAGE.

Only at this stage can poison be used against the
boll-weevil.

lects the squares in the ‘‘middle’’ where there is most
sunlight, is shown in Fig. 177.

For at least a few weeks after the appearance of the
weevils, and while there are but few in the fields, it is ad-
vantageous, where practicable, to pick the infested squares
from the ground and from the plant. These should be
burned, or else treated as shown in paragraph 371.

2D
 

402 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

/

370. Spread of the boll-weevil. — Ordinarily the adult
weevil flies but a few rods at a time. However, when food
becomes scarce in the fall, distances of as much as fifty
miles are traversed in a few days. This fall migration, ap-
parently in search of food, explains the rapid spread of
the boll-weevil. The weevil usually advances about fifty
miles a year. However, in 1909 its eastward spread across

 

Vic. 177.— Tue Hinps CHain Cuttivator For TILLAGE AND FOR
DRAWING THE FALLEN SQUARES TO THE WATER-FURROW.

the southern part of Mississippi was more than twice this
distance, bringing the weevil at the end of 1909 to within
about ten miles of the Alabama line in the vicinity of Mo-
bile. In the fall of 1910 this inseet invaded several coun-
ties in the southeastern part of Alabama. Probably its
extension northward will be somewhat less rapid than its
eastward spread.

Crossing the Rio Grande from Mexico about 1892 it
has persistently spread eastward and northward. The
map (Fig. 178) shows that by the close of 1909 the boll-
weevil occupied the greater part of the cotton-growing
40:

COTTON INSECTS

‘OIGL ASAOAY OL FEST Wor uve A WOVoT TA

 

CM-TTOE, GEL AU GOKLSCLINT SVORDY GAL ONIMOHS AVIN — ‘SLT COUT

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
404 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

areas of Texas and Louisiana, the southern portion of
Mississippi, and the southern parts of Oklahoma and
Arkansas. It may be expected to spread over the entire
cotton-growing area of the United States within the next
15 to 20 years.

371. Insect enemies of the boll-weevil. — The weevil
has fewer insect enemies than most crop pests. This is
probably because the mature weevil is protected with a
hard coat, and because in its stages of larva and pupa,
when not thus protected, it is inclosed within the square
or boll. However, there are some minute insects that
lay their eggs in the body of the immature boll-weevil
while the latter is still in the square. On hatching, these
smaller insects cause the death of the pest. These minute
parasites have not destroyed a large proportion of the boll-
weevils in Texas, and it remains to be seen whether this
class of insects will be more useful in the moister climate
of the Mississippi Valley and eastward.

In order to utilize these most fully, the squares that may
be picked during the few weeks after the weevils make
their appearance, instead of being burned, should be placed
loosely in boxes, one side of which is made of screen wire.
This should be fine enough (14 meshes to the inch) to pre-
vent the escape of the weevils that may hatch; however,
it will permit the escape of their minute insect enemies.
If these cages are placed at intervals in the cotton field,
it is claimed that these parasites will be turned loose in
such quantities as to reduce appreciably the damage done
by the boll-weevil.

The cotton leaf-worm or caterpillar has been until recently
a serious enemy of cotton. (See paragraph 376.) How-
COTTON INSECTS 405

ever, when the boll-weevil is present, the caterpillar should
not be poisoned, but treated as an enemy of the boll-
weevil, and hence as a friend of the farmer. This is be-
cause the cotton caterpillar, by consuming all the foliage
of the cotton plant, prevents the formation of squares and
thus deprives the weevil of its food in the fall at a time
when starvation is most fatal to the insect.

372. General suggestions on farming after the arrival
of the boll-weevil. — Unless there are special hindrances
to the early maturity of the cotton crop, cotton should
continue to be grown at a profit after the arrival of the
boll-weevil. But this will be possible only for those farmers
who practice intensive cotton culture, that is, such methods
as in the absence of the weevil will produce nearly a bale
per acre. The larger the yield, the greater, as a rule, is
the proportion of the crop that matures early, and hence
that may be expected to escape injury by this pest. It
will be necessary to grow at least as many bales as at
present but on a much smaller number of acres.

The presence of the boll-weevil causes farmers to pro-
duce their supply of food and forage and to grow for sale
a greater variety of farm products and live-stock than
before the coming of the weevil. This gives an opportunity
for rotation of crops, which enriches the soil and thereby
makes easier the production of larger yields per acre of
cotton. Rotation is also a means of reducing the amount
of injury inflicted on the cotton plant by the boll-weevil.

The wide distribution of this msect may be expected
to raise the price of cotton. This higher price, together
with the more intensive methods of fertilization and cul-
tivation, and the diversification of crops, should compen-
406 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

sate for the greater cost of growing cotton in the presence
of the boll-weevil. This insect brings about a revolution in
agricultural methods. While the first effects are disastrous,
the country in time recovers its usual range of prosperity.

373. Loss from burning cotton stalks. — As a means
of depriving the boll-weevil of its food, the burning of the
cotton stalks in the fall is generally recommended. This
decidedly reduces the damage done by the weevil to the
next crop on the same land. Since Southern soils are almost
universally in need of vegetable matter, the necessity for
burning cotton stalks is to be regretted. Should thorough
deep plowing under of stalks prove effective, it would be
far preferable. The loss of vegetable matter and of plant
food by burning are considerable.

374. Pounds of vegetable matter, nitrogen, phosphoric
acid, and potash in the stems, roots, and burs on an acre
yielding 300 pounds of seed cotton: —

 

 

 

 

 

 

AIR-DRY
VEGETABLE | NITROGEN Haha PoTasH
Martrer Lb 5 Le Ls.
Ls. ae

Analyses at Ala. Expr. Sta. 1097 Woe iW teed 17.5

Analyses at 8.C. Expr. Sta. | TUES 9 3}) Ooh | 22.7
Average .
|

At the usual prices of commercial fertilizers this rep-
resents a loss per acre by burning stalks of about $1.50 for
nitrogen, or a total of about $2.75 for all three constituents.
The humus and the nitrogen are completely lost, and the
potash and phesphoric acid are practically lost, since they
are concentrated in the spots where the stalks are burned.
COTTON INSECTS 407

Cotton stalks should not be burned except where this
course is recommended as a necessity in fighting the cotton
boll-weevil. Then extra pains must be taken to compen-
sate for the loss by introducing into the rotation at short
intervals some humus-forming crop.

Insects oF Minor IMPORTANCE

375. The cowpea-pod weevil (Chalcodermis eneus). —
This is a small black beetie or weevil, with a long snout
and marked with numerous tiny pits, or depressions (Fig.
179). It injures the
young plants, espe-
cially the growing ter-
minal buds and the
young stems. As the
plant grows larger
this insect ceases to
attack cotton.

This is the insect
most frequently mis-
taken for the boll-
weevil. Conspicuous
differences exist in the shiny, black color and pitted
appearance of the cowpea-pod weevil, in contrast with
the brownish or grayish appearance of the boll-weevil,
which is not conspicuously pitted.

Injury to cotton by the cowpea-pod weevil usually
starts in areas where the previous crop was cowpeas.
Hence, in some localities where this pest is a serious one,
it may be desirable to change the rotation that is generally

 

Fic. 179. —Cowpea-pop WEEVIL.
408 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

advisable on cotton farms, so as to grow no cowpeas just
before cotton, substituting some other legume, as velvet
beans, or soybeans, or crimson clover.

Liberal fertilization and the use of a little nitrate of
soda in the drill at the time of planting hasten the growth
of the young plant and thus shorten the time during which
it is subject to the attacks of the cowpea-pod weevil and
of cutworms. When this insect is present before cotton is
chopped, a thick stand should be left, to be thinned to a
final stand after the attacks of this insect have ceased.

376. The cotton caterpillar (Alabama argillacea). — For-
merly this was the most destructive enemy of the cotton
plant. In recent decades the injury has been infrequent
and never widespread. The damage is done by the larval
or caterpillar stage of a grayish moth. Eggs are laid on
the underside of the leaves, where the larve hatch and
devour the foliage. On reaching the proper degree of
maturity the larve fold the leaf together and surround
themselves with a web in which the pupa or chrysalis
form of the insect is passed. From the pupa emerges soon
the adult moth prepared to lay eggs for a new generation
of larve. The insect passes the winter as a moth.

Complete protection is afforded by dusting or spraying
the plants with Paris green or other preparation of arsenic.
The most usual method of applying the poison consists
in tying a small sack of Paris green alone or mixed with
flour, on each end of a stout stick as long as the rows are
wide. A man on horseback riding between the rows
shakes out a cloud of dust above the row on either side,
thus poisoning about 20 acres in a day.

Where the cotton caterpillar and the cotton boll-weevil
COTTON INSECTS 409

are both present, the former may aid the farmer by de-
priving the boll-weevil of its food.

377. The cotton red-spider or rust mite (Tetranychus
glover). — The reddening of the leaves of cotton, often
called “red rust,” is sometimes due to the attacks of a
minute red mite. These tiny red insects, almost micro-
scopic in size, may be seen on the underside of the leaves,
usually surrounded by a thin web. Their injury is most
severe in wet weather. They are easily spread by laborers
or teams. If they are discovered early, before many
plants have been attacked, the injured plants and adjacent
ones should be pulled and burned. Dusting with powdered
sulfur blown on the underside of the leaves has been recom-
mended. However, treatment is seldom attempted. As
soon as possible after being picked, the cotton plants on
an infested field should be deeply plowed under.

378. Cotton lice or aphids. — These are the progeny
of small, soft-bodied insects that suck the juices from the
growing tips and leaves of the very young cotton plant.
They are most troublesome in periods of cool weather.
Treatment is not attempted ; yet any insecticide that kills
by contact would be destructive to the insects, though
scarcely practicable.

379. Cutworms (Noctuide).— The cutworms are the
larve or caterpillar stage of certain night-flying moths.
These caterpillars cut down the very young cotton plants.
They are most troublesome on land which has grown
sod or weeds the previous year. By plowing such land
early in the fall and planting it late in spring, the damage
from cutworms is reduced. While treatment is not gen-
erally regarded as necessary, the worms can be destroyed
410 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

by the distribution, a little while before planting, of a mix-
ture of Paris green with either moistened wheat bran or
corn-meal, or by other kinds of poisoned bait.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

Inspection of the cotton fields should be made for the pur-
pose of observing any of the insect pests here mentioned which
may be in evidence at the time this chapter is studied, or to note
the injuries resulting from their work.

In the absence of such insects a laboratory period should be
spent in examining pictures and descriptions of these insects
in the publications cited below.

LITERATURE
Boll-worm.

Bisyop, F. C., and Jones, C. R. U.S. Dept. Agr., Farmer’s
Bul. No. 290.

Quarintance, A. L., and BrsHop, F. C. U.S. Dept. Agr., Far-
mer’s Bul. No. 212.

Boll-weevil.
Hinps, W. E. U.S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Entomology, Buls. 51 and
74; Ala. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 146.
Hunter, W.D. U.S. Dept. Agr., Farmer’s Bul. No. 344.
Newe.t, W., and others. Numerous publications of La. Crop
Pest Commission. Baton Rouge, La.

Cotton insects in general.
Howarp, H. L. U.S. Dept. Agr., Office of Expr. Sta., Bul. No.
33, pp. 317-350.
Suerman, F., Jr. N.C. Dept. Agr., Bul., June, 1908.
Sanperson, E. D. U.S. Dept. Agr., Farmer’s Bul. No. 223.

Numerous publications of the United States Department of
Agriculture, Bureau of Entomology; of the Louisiana Crop Pest
Commission, Baton Rouge; of the Georgia State Board of En-
tomology, Atlanta; and of most of the Experiment Stations in
the cotton-belt.
CHAPTER XXIV

COTTON —FUNGOUS AND OTHER DISEASES OF
COTTON

380. Cotton wilt or black-root ( Neocosmospora vasin-
fecta). — This disease shows itself at any time after the
cotton plants are about 6 inches high. It is most preva-

 

 

 

 

 

Fic. 180.— Cotton PLANTS ATTACKED BY WILT.

lent and destructive while they are loaded with blooms

and bolls. Some of the diseased plants suddenly wilt, and

these may die in a few days (Fig. 180). Wilting is first

shown by the young and tender leaves at the top of the

plant. Other diseased plants show a dwarfed, unhealthy
411
412 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

appearance, and may drop their leaves and die, or they may
continue to live in an unthrifty condition.

Cotton wilt is caused by a fungus growth, which enters
the plant from the soil through the roots. This fungus,
or parasitic plant, consists largely of threads, which stop
up the water-bearing ducts in the roots and stems. The
wilting of the leaves is due to the cutting
off of their water supply by the plugging
up of these ducts with the threads of the
fungus.

Cotton wilt may readily be detected by
cutting through the main root or stem;
the layer just under the bark is blackened,
and throughout the stem the cut ends
of the stopped-up water-carrying ducts
appear as small dark dots (Fig. 181).

381. Spread and persistence of wilt. —
Fic. 181. —SecTION Cotton wilt occurs chiefly in the sandy
THROUGH WILTED . : 2
anv Hnatorny soils of the-southern half of the cotton-
eae oe belt. This disease first appears in small
saath ae vie * spots in the field. It is extremely im-
stem attacked by portant for the farmer to recognize cotton
wie wilt when it first appears and while it
is confined to these small spots, for these diseased areas
enlarge rapidly every year when cotton is planted on the
field. In time the entire field becomes infected, and the
majority of cotton plants of the ordinary varieties die.
Thus the field soon becomes useless for the cultivation of
the common varieties of cotton.

The germs of the disease live in the soil for four or more

years, even when no cotton is grown.

 
COTTON DISEASES 413

382. Treatment of wilt by means of rotation of crops. —
In spite of this long life of the germ of cotton wilt, the
only effective treatment of the soil consists in starving
the germs. This is done to a considerable extent by keep-
ing cotton out of the field for three years; a longer banish-
ment of cotton still more nearly gets rid of the disease.
Meantime the field may be used for corn, oats, grasses,
the Iron variety of cowpeas, and certain other plants.

It has been found that cotton wilt is most prevalent
on soils which contain, not only the germs of the wilt
fungus, but also the minute worms that cause root-knot
(see paragraph 385) on the roots of cotton and of numerous
other plants. It is thought that the wounding of the roots
of cotton by these tiny nematode worms more readily per-
mits the entrance of the germs of cotton wilt. Hence,
in a field where both troubles occur, no plants should be
grown on which nematode worms thrive and multiply.

383. Use of resistant varieties. — Not every cotton
plant in a diseased spot dies. The plants that live and
thrive are resistant, and the seed saved from them produce
plants, the majority of which are resistant. Thus, by
selecting for several generations healthy plants and grow-
ing them each year on diseased spots, a variety of wilt-
resistant cotton may be bred up. This can probably be
done with many varieties. However, present varieties
differ greatly in the degree to which they resist cotton
wilt. The varieties Dixie and Dillon have been thus
bred up by the United States Department of Agriculture,
until they are able to produce profitable crops in fields
that have been ruined for most other varieties by the pres-
ence of this disease.
414 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

To maintain the wilt resistance in these or other varie-
ties, it is advisable to grow them on infected land and
to continue the selection each year from plants that are
thrifty.

384. Cotton root-rot (Ozoniwm).— This disease, like
cotton wilt, causes the sudden wilting of the plants while
engaged in forming fruit. However, it is confined to the
extreme western part of the cotton-belt, while cotton wilt
is a disease of the southeastern part. Cotton root-rot is
especially prevalent on the stiff, lime, ‘ black-waxy ”’ soils
of Texas. It is caused by a fungus that develops
threads both within and upon the surface of the roots.
The roots of diseased plants are covered by whitish threads,
which later become darker. Sometimes wartlike bodies
appear on the surface.

No treatment of seed or soil is effective. However, very
deep fall plowing and rotation of crops are helpful. In
such a rotation the farmer must avoid the use of other
plants attacked by this disease, among which are sweet
potatoes and alfalfa; among the plants not subject to
this root-rot are all the grains and grasses.

385. Root-knot ( Heterodera radicicola) (Fig. 182).—This
is a special kind of enlargement on the roots of many
plants, caused by the attacks of extremely small worms,
called nematodes. Cotton is attacked, but less severely
than are most varieties of cowpeas. Among the plants
not attacked are the grains and grasses and the Iron
variety of cowpea. The best way to combat this disease
consists in starving the worms, by excluding from the field
for two years all plants on the roots of which nematodes
can develop, including ordinary varieties of cowpeas, and
COTTON DISEASES 416

all other plants having tender succulent roots. Mean-
time the land may be cropped with any of the grains, with
any of the forage grasses,
or with peanuts, or with
velvet beans, or with
the Iron variety of cow-
peas, which are all
practically exempt from
attack.

The root-knot  en-
largements may be dis-
tinguished from the
beneficial tubercles oc-
curring on the roots of
cowpeas and other leg-
umes as follows : —

When small, root-
knot swellings are gen-
erally longer than thick, a "

‘ : : Fic. 182.— Root-KNoT or NEMATODE
and the swelling 1s on Inscries on Cotton Roots.
all sides of the root;
while tubercles are always formed on one side of the root.

386. Boll-rot or anthracnose (Colletotrichum gossypii). —
This fungus is responsible for the greater part of the rot-
ting of the bolls of cotton. Inits worst form, which occurs
during damp weather, small discolored depressions appear
on the bolls; these spots become grayish and in time be-
come covered with pinkish spores, which in effect are the
seedlike parts of the fungus (Fig. 183). Either a single lock
or the entire contents of the boll may be rotted. Or the
disease may keep the boll from opening widely.

 
416 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Dry weather checks the progress of the disease, and it
may then appear only as a reddening or spotting of the sur-
face of the boll without serious damage to the crop.

 

Fic. 183.— ANTHRACNOSE ON CoTTon BOLLs.

No method of spraying for the prevention of boll-rot
has been devised. But since anthracnose develops most
rapidly in the shade, preventive measures consist in (1) ad-

mitting the maximum amount of sunlight by avidening
COTTON DISEASES 417

the rows; (2) avoiding the use of nitrogenous fertilizers,
which induce a rank growth of the plant; and (3) planting
those varieties which have not an excess of foliage, and
which show partial resistance to this disease. Anthracnose
of the bolls is most troublesome on rich land or on that
which is highly fertilized, especially with nitrogenous fer-
tilizer. While the worst injury is done to the bolls, this
disease also attacks the young seedlings, the stem or
branches of the larger plants, and the leaves.

Disinfection of the seed by dipping them in a 3 per cent
solution of formalin has been recommended, but not
generally practiced.. This would have the effect of destroy-
ing such germs as might have lodged on the outside of the
seed, and hence this treatment might reduce the amount
of injury. However, no treatment of the seed can destroy
all of the fungus, since this organism penetrates the parts
inside the seed-coat or hull. Apparently the use of dis-
eased seed constitutes one of the methods by which boll-rot
is propagated. Hence seed from diseased bolls and even
seed from badly infected fields should be avoided.

387. Cotton-rust or black-rust. — Cotton-rust causes the
premature loss of the foliage. This reduces the weight
or prevents the maturing of late bolls. It is probably
the most widely prevalent destructive disease of cotton.
The yield may be reduced by a severe attack of rust as
much as 50 per cent.

Several different kinds of fungi are found in the diseased
foliage, but these are thought to be unable to gain entrance
into the leaves until unfavorable conditions of weather
or soil have weakened the plant. Cotton-rust is usually
worse in hot weather following a period of heavy rains.

25
418 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

It is much more prevalent on sandy soils than on clay
soil, and on poor than on fertile land. It usually occurs
in July, August, and September.

The disease comes on with variable symptoms. When
the weather is dry, the leaves of the diseased plants usually
show at first a mottled yellowish color. After wet weather
there may be no yellowing but a sudden blackening,
dying, and falling of the foliage.

No remedies can be employed after cotton-rust appears.
Prevention, instead of cure, is needed. Any treatment
of the soil and any application of fertilizers that promote
a healthy but not excessive growth of the cotton plant
increase its resistance to rust.

On poor soils of any kind, the addition of vegetable
matter by proper rotation of crops is the most widely
applicable means of warding off rust. On very poor sandy
soils the application of potash usually enables the plant
to resist the disease and to retain the greater part of its
foliage until the crop is mature. For this purpose at least
80, and better 100 pounds of kainit per acre is advisable,
applied in connection with the other fertilizers which may
be required on that particular soil.

Where the unthrifty condition of cotton plants is caused
by poor drainage, ditching is usually a means of decreasing
the amount of rust.

388. Minor leaf diseases. — Other diseases of the leaves,
which are less destructive than cotton-rust, are angular
leaf-spot (Fig. 184), which appears earlier than rust; leaf
blight, in which the diseased areas show as small whitish
spots ; and cotton mildew, appearing on the under side of the
leaves. No remedies are in use for any of these diseases.
COTTON DISEASES 419

389. Sore-shin, or damping off (Rhizoctonia). — The
fungus causing this disease penetrates the stems of the

 

 

 

 

 

Fic. 184.— Diseasep Leaves, Bott, anp STeMs oF CoTTron PLanT.

 

Showing several forms of bacterial blight, known on the leaves as angu-
lar leaf-spot; on the stems as black arm; and on the bolls as bacterial
boll-rot.
very young cotton plants just below the surface of the soil.
Some of the diseased plants die, while others recover.
It is worse in wet weather. Any method of hastening the
drying of the surface soil is believed to be helpful. This
may sometimes be done by passing a weeder or harrow
across the rows after the ground has dried sufficiently to
permit this. The use of lime has been recommended as
helpful in combating a similar disease on certain other
crops, but its effects on cotton have not been investigated.
420 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

LABORATORY EXERCISES

The object of any laboratory work in connection with this
chapter should be to become acquainted with the appearance
in the field of cotton plants attacked by any of these diseases
that may be prevalent in the neighborhood of the school or near
the students’ homes.

LITERATURE

Stevens. Diseases of Plants. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. I, pp.
450-453.
Arxinson, C. F. U.S. Dept. Agr., Office of Expr. Sta., Bul.
No. 33, pp. 279-316.
Orton, W. A. U.S. Dept. Agr., Div. Veg. Phys. and Path., and
Farmer’s Bul. No. 302.
 

 

 

 

Tic. 185.— A FIeELp oF Hemp.

421
CHAPTER XXV

HEMP — CANNABIS SATIVA

Hemp is a member of the mulberry family (Moracee).
{t is useful for the fiber, of which burlap bags and twine
are made.

 

Fic. 186.— Lear anp Lowers oF
Heme.

a and ¢, pistillate or female flow-
ers; b, staminate or male flowers.
joined together only at the
ends (Tig. 186).

The plant grows to a height of about ten fect

(Fig. 185). It is annual,
making its growth during
the warmest months.

An interesting fact about
hemp is that there are male
and female plants. The
male plants bear in clusters
the flowers containing the
stamens or pollen-bearing
parts. On the or
female plants are borne the
pistils or

other

seed-producing

The male plants are

preferred for cultivation.
ach leaf of hemp con-

parts.

sists of five to seven leaflets,
point where the leaf stem

The most important hemp-producing district in’ the

United States is the Blue-egr

 

ss region of Kentucky.

422
12

HEMP 42:

Q

390. Soils for hemp. — Hemp is at its best on a rich,
moist, limestone soil. But it also thrives on other than
lime soils if they are moist, but well drained.

391. Cultural methods.—The land is plowed flush
or broadcast and thoroughly harrowed. The seed is
sown through a grain drill run in two directions. This
insures a more even stand and a more uniform germina-
tion and early growth. both of which are desirable in order
to secure plants of the desired diameter, preferably half
an inch. The quantity of seed required per acre is one
bushel. The date of planting in Kentucky is late in April.
No cultivation is given after sowing the seed. Seed orig-
inally from China is preferred, though in its first year in
the United States it is believed to yield less hemp than
during each of the next few years. The small area in
Kentucky devoted to hemp grown for seed is planted in
checks, with hills about seven feet apart each way, and
with four plants in each hill.

The Kentucky Experiment Station found that the use
of 160 pounds per acre of nitrate of soda and an equal
amount of muriate of potash profitably increased the yield
of fiber.

392. Harvesting and preparing hemp for market. —
Early in the fall hemp is cut, most of it by hand, but part
also by special machinery. The stalks are spread evenly
on the ground for about a week. .Then they are raked
together, tied into bundles, and shocked (Fig. 187). The
Kentucky Experiment Station found-it profitable to stack
the hemp, though keeping the hemp in shock saves expense.

Late in November or early in December hemp is retted.
This consists in exposing it to cold and rain for about twa
424 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

months, spread out on the ground for the purpose of favor-
ing the separation of the fiber from the adhering materials.

 

 

Fia. 187. —Suocxine Hemp,

When exposure to alternate freezing and thawing has ef-
fected its end, the hemp is again shocked.

The fiber is separated on the farm chiefly by the old
device, called the hand-brake. In some regions this work
is performed by machinery.

LABORATORY EXERCISES
In regions where hemp is not grown, it is scarcely profitable
to spend a laboratory period on dried specimens and on the litera-
ture of this crop. Instead, this laboratory period may well be
devoted to some review or additional exercise relative to the
principal crop of the region where the school is located.

LireraTURB

Boycr. Hemp. New York, 1900.

Dewey, L. H. The Fiber Industries in the United States. U.S,
Dept. Agr. Yearbook, 1901, pp. 541-544.

Harper, J. N. Hemp. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. II, pp. 377-
380.

Hunt, T. F. The Forage and Fiber Crops in America, pp. 394-
397. New York, 1907.
CHAPTER XXVI
SWEET-POTATO — Ipom@a BATATAS

INTRODUCTORY

THE sweet-potato belongs to the morning-glory family
(Convolvulacee), which also includes a number of common
weeds and cultivated flowers. This plant has long been
cultivated in the tropical and semitropical regions of
both the eastern and the western hemispheres. Its origin
is somewhat doubtful, but most authorities regard it as a
native of America.

393. Distribution and climate. — The sweet-potato is
widely grown throughout the warmer regions of America
and Asia, as well as to a smaller extent in other countries.
This plant requires a warm climate. Its culture on a
large scale is confined in the United States to the region
lying south of the line drawn through central New Jersey
to the southern part of Kansas. North of this line it is
sometimes grown, but only on a small scale as a garden
vegetable and without the best results in either quality
or quantity. A number of the cotton-growing states
each produces more than four million bushels annually.

The sweet-potato grows chiefly during the hottest part
of the year. In contrast with the Irish potato, it may
be called strictly a summer crop, a difference that has an
important bearing on the character of fertilizers needed
for these two crops.

425

J
426 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

In the cotton-growing states the sweet-potato may be re-
garded as a field crop, while north of this region it is treated as
a garden crop. Conversely, the Irish potato is a field crop in
the North and a garden crop in the South.

There is corresponding confusion in the use of the word
“ potato.”” This term, when used without modifiers, usually

 

 

 

 

means, in the Southern States, sweet-potatoes; while elsewhere
it signifies the Irish, round, or white potato.

The season that makes the maximum yield and best quality
of sweet-potatoes is one in which frequent rains oecur during
the late spring and the greater part of the summer, but in which
there is comparatively dry weather in September and October.
Heavy rains near the time of harvest, especially if they follow
a long period of drought, are apt to induce a new growth, which
results in harm to the quality and keeping properties of the erop.
SWEET-POTATO 427

394. Description. — The sweet-potato is perennial, but
in cultivation it is treated as annual; that is, new propa-
gating material is placed in the soil each year.

The plant has prostrate stems (Fig. 188), many of which,
in the latter part of the season, take root at the nodes.
The leaves are extremely variable in shape, and these
differences constitute one means of classifying varieties.

The valuable product is botanically an enlarged root.
This is an organ for the storage of food, serving to hasten
the growth of the young shoots, from which the plant is
ordinarily propagated. Man converts this stored material
to his own use.

Some confusion arises from the fact that the same word
‘root,’ when applied to the sweet-potato, may denote
three parts: (1) the enlarged or edible root; (2) the slen-
der, fibrous roots which absorb the plant-food and mois-
ture from the soil, and (3) the potatoes that are too small
for market, but which are used for planting. Therefore,
in this chapter, the word “potatoes” will be used to
designate the large roots, as well as to include the whole
plant.

395. Flowers and seeds.— The sweet-potato seldom
produces flowers in the American cotton-belt, and _ still
more rarely, if ever, are perfect seed matured in this region.
However, seeds are sometimes matured when the season
of growth is prolonged by keeping the plants in a green-
house. When sweet-potato seeds are planted, they give
rise to young plants differing greatly among themselves
and most of them unlike their parents. The best of these
seedlings may be propagated in the usual way, and thus
give rise to new varieties.
428 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

The blooms of the sweet-potato are purplish, and in
shape and size resemble those of the larger wild morning-
glories.

COMPOSITION AND USES
396. Uses. — The principal present use of the sweet-
potato is as a vegetable for human use. It is shipped to
the Northern markets in enormous quantities. On farms
it is also used as food for live-stock, especially for hogs.

Analyses of sweet-potato roots, vines, and dried or desiccated
sweel-potatoes

 

 

I ; | Nitro- 7
Marron AsH on | FIBER FREE | ore
| Extract |
a — |
"1 of of %, of "%
Sweet-potatoes, edible | |
roots! Soe es ns etl 292i eal 1.6 0.9 27.9 | 0.5
Irish potatoes . . . | 21.1 | 1. 2.1. 0.6 17.3 | 0.1
Dried sweet-potatoes? | 89.5 | 3. 4.5 | 1.9 75.7 | 1.8
Sweet-potato vines,
fresh? . 720), | pele Dil. 3.1 9.5 | 0.8

 

397. Value as food. — From the above table, it may
be noted that the sweet-potato root is specially rich in
nitrogen-free extract, which consists chiefly of starch and
sugar. Therefore, in any diet for man or animal, sweet-
potatoes should be supplemented by foods rich in protein.

1 Average of 14 varieties grown at 8S. C. Expr. Sta. in 1908
(Bul. 146).

2 Farmer’s Bul. No. 129, U. S. Dept. of Agr.

* Caleulated from average composition of dry matter found in
four varieties; S. C. Expr. Sta., No. 146.
SWEET-POTATO 429

On the table, among the dishes rich in protein are peas,
beans, milk, eggs, and lean meat. In the diet of animals,
suitable foods for supplementing sweet-potatoes are pea-
nuts, the seeds of cowpeas, soy beans, the hay of any of the
legumes, and cotton-seed meal. The figures show that
the sweet-potato root contains about one and one half
times as much nutritive matter as an equal weight of Irish
potatoes.

Moreover, the protein, or nitrogenous portion in Irish pota-
toes, is chiefly in the less valuable form, amides; while it has
been found that amides are not present in the mature sweet-
potato, all the protein here being in a more valuable form.

Compared with shelled corn, 300 pounds of sweet-potato
roots afford slightly more total dry matter and carbonaceous
material (as starch and sugar) and a littie less protein; the
theoretical nutritive value of sweet-potatoes is approximately
one third that of an equal weight of shelled corn.

In order to make advantageous use of the sweet-potato as a
hog food, it is necessary to use only the unmarketable roots;
or else to require the hogs to harvest the crop, thus avoiding the
principal item of expense for labor.

398. Starch and alcohol. — It seems probable that the
sweet-potato will become an important crop for the manu-
facture of starch, an excellent quality of which has been
made from this crop. Sweet-potatoes usually contain
15 to 20 per cent of starch. This is a higher percentage
than in the Irish potato, which is now a standard source
of starch.

Recent laws permitting, under certain restrictions, the
manufacture of denatured alcohol for use as fuel and in the
arts, make it probable that the sweet-potato will be ad-
vantageously manufactured into this product. A bushel
430 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

of sweet-potatoes is expected to make nearly one gallon
of industrial alcohol. Moreover, in the manufacture of
starch, after this substance is removed, alcohol could be
made as a by-product from some of the waste material.

399. Draft on soil fertility. — The sweet-potato removes
much potash and also rather large amounts of other plant
food, as shown by analyses

 

| Puro sepHontc|

 

NITROGEN | ee | PotTasH
Per CENT | Per CENT | Per CENT
Sweet-potatoes, edible roots (N. J.) 0.23 0.10 | 0.50
Sweet-potatoes, edible roots 3. C.) .20 07 45
Sweet-potatoes, edible roots (Cal.) .30 sL7 -63
Sweet-potatoes, edible roots, aver-
age of above . . : -26 11 .53
Sweet-potato, fresh vines “(Mad., |
water 83 %%)!.. 0.42 0.07 0.73
Sweet-potato, fresh vines S. ‘C.
83. % water)’ : : 0.384 0.05 0.48

Fresh vines, av erage of abov oe | .38 .06 .69

1 Farmer’s Bul. No. 26, U. S. Dept. Agr.
28. C. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 146, p. 18.

The roots of sweet-potatoes remove about twice as much
potash as nitrogen and about five times as much potash as phos-
phorie acid. The fresh vines have been found to weigh consid-
erably more than half of the weight of the edible roots and to he
richer in nitrogen.

According to the average figures in the above table a crop of
200 bushels would remove in the edible roots alone

31 pounds of nitrogen,
13 pounds of phosphorie acid,
64 pounds of potash.
SWEET-POTATO 431

VARIETIES

400. Terms used. — Great confusion exists in the names
and qualities of varieties of sweet-potatoes. This is partly
due to the fact that many different names are locally ap-
plied to the same variety; partly to the ease with which the
tubers of different varieties become mechanically mixed ;
and partly, perhaps, to natural variations occurring in the
same variety under different conditions of climate and
cultivation.

The word ‘“‘ yam”’ is used as a part of a name of some vari-
eties. Often it is applied to those varieties having a soft, sirupy
texture and flavor; it is also frequently used for varieties having
deeply cut leaves; and it has even been applied to those potatoes
which have prominent veins on the roots. Its meaning is so
indefinite and variable that the term might better be dropped,
especially since the word “‘ yam” is properly applied to an en-
tirely different genus of plants, Dioscorea, of the yam family,
largely grown in the West Indies and elsewhere as food for the
natives.

401. Market demands. — As a rule the Southern con-
sumer, whether on the farm or in a city, prefers a soft,
sirupy potato, which qualities are still further developed
by baking, the common Southern method of cooking this
vegetable. On the other hand, the Northern markets
demand a dry, mealy, or starchy potato, probably partly
because the more common method of cooking consists in
boiling. It is stated that in the latter part of winter there
is more demand than earlier in Northern markets for the
sirupy type of potato.

Among varieties popular in the Northern markets are
Nansemond and Big Stem Jersey. Probably the most
432 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

popular variety among the Southern consumers, when
obtainable, is the Yellow Yam, also called Georgia Yam
and Sugar Yam. Since this variety is so much less pro-
ductive than others, it is seldom obtainable, and its place
among Southern consumers is taken by the Dooley, which
seems to be a synonym of the Pumpkin Yam.

402. Desirable qualities. — The qualities most desir-
able in a variety of potatoes are (1) texture and flavor
of the kind demanded by the market for which the crop
is grown; (2) productiveness, and (3) keeping qualities.

To supply the market for a few weeks in the latter part
of summer, there is also need for early varieties, which,
however, are usually inferior in quality to the standard
kinds. Examples of early varieties are Nancy Hall and
Strasburg.

When potatoes are grown chiefly as a stock food, yield
is the main consideration. As a rule, the most productive
varieties have a hard texture and high percentage of dry
matter, and are not favorites for the table. Among the
most productive kinds are Southern Queen, Hayman,
Providence, and Shanghai. This class of varieties is also
the type best suited to the manufacture of starch and
industrial alcohol.

403. Classification of varieties. — No system of classi-
fication is thoroughly satisfactory. For the sake of con-
venience, varieties may be divided into four groups as
follows : —

Group I. Bunch, or vineless  varicties, having short
vines, with leaf-stems closely crowded to-
gether (Fig. 189); leaves usually deeply
cut (Fig. 190).
SWEET-POTATO 433

Group II. Leaves deeply cut; vines long.

Group III. Leaves shouldered, or very slightly lobed
(Fig. 190) ; vines long.

Group IV. Leaves with margins entire or nearly un-
broken by lobes or shoulders (Fig. 190) ;
vines long.

Each of these groups, except possibly the vineless varieties,
may be subdivided into three classes, according to the texture

 

Fic. 189.—A BrancH of 4 VINELESS SWEET-POTATO PLANT.

Showing crowded position of leaf-stems. (After Price.)

and flavor, which may be either sirupy, mealy, or intermediate.
Each of these subdivisions may be further subdivided into three
groups, according to whether the uncooked flesh is yellow, white

 

Fic. 190.— Turee SHapes OF SWEET-POTATO LEAVES.

On left, cut-leaf type; in center, shouldered leaf; and on right, entire
or ‘‘round”’ leaf,

2F
434 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

or mottled white and yellow. Each of these last subdivisions
ean be still further separated into four divisions, according as the
skin of the potato is white, yellowish, light red, or purple (dark
reddish). If all of these classes should have representatives,
there would be 144 different classes. However, the vineless
has only a few subdivisions at the time when this is written.

Examples of the bunch varieties are found in the several
strains of vineless, which appear to differ somewhat in quality
and yield.

Among the varieties of the cut-leaf type, with long vines,
are the following. Sugar, or Yellow Yam, and its synonyms,
all of which have a sirupy quality, but are relatively unproduc-
tive; the Spanish has cut leaves and a mealy texture.

Among varieties having shouldered leaves is the Yellow Nan-
semond which has a mealy texture.

Among the varieties with leaves almost entire are Pumpkin
Yam, or Dooley, which has a sirupy flavor; and among those
with a starchy texture are Southern Queen and Hayman.

SoILs, FERTILIZERS, AND ROTATION

404. Soils. — For the best results in quantity and
quality, the soil for sweet-potatoes should have the fol-
lowing properties: (1) It should be mellow, so as not
to bake, and so that the roots may easily penetrate it,
and fully develop without undue pressure; (2) it should
be warm, so as to promote a long period of active growth ;
and (3) it should be well drained, so that growth may be
vigorous and the quality of the crop good. These con-
ditions’are best. filled by a sandy loam or sandy soil. On
a given farm, the soil which contains the largest. proportion
of sand is usually devoted to the cultivation of sweet-
potatoes.

However, this crop is not confined to sandy land. On
SWEET-POTATO : 435

some clay soils, especially if rich in lime, large yields are
made; but here the crop is later, of somewhat poorer
quality, and liable to be of inferior appearance by reason
of adhering particles of soil. Moreover, harvesting is
more laborious in clay than in sandy soils.

405. Humus. — If sweet-potatoes must be grown where
there is much clay, there should be also an abundant supply
of humus, so as to make the soil mellow and free from a
tendency to bake. In fact, whatever may be the nature
of the soil, humus is an important constituent for the best
results with sweet-potatoes. A favorite method of apply-
ing it, especially in regions where sweet-potatoes are grown
for market, consists in using pine or other leaves from the
woods, which are first employed for a number of months
as bedding in the stables or barn lots.

A still more economical method of supplying humus,
and with it nitrogen, consists in plowing under a growth
of crimson clover a few weeks before setting sweet-potato
slips.

406. Fertilizers. — As shown in a previous paragraph,
both the roots and the vines of sweet-potatoes contain
much more potash than either nitrogen or phosphoric
acid. Therefore, the fertilizer should be rich in potash.
Moreover, sandy soil, the type usually selected for sweet-
potatoes, is. generally more deficient in potash than is
stiffer land.

This crop makes heavy demands for nitrogen also. The
cheapest means of supplying it consist in growing a pre-
ceding crop of crimson clover, cowpeas, or other legumes.

Acid phosphate has also been found by experience to
be needed in fertilizer formulas for sweet-potatoes.
436 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

No one formula is best for all soils. The following is only
suggestive for soils needing a complete fertilizer under conditions
where moderate fertilization is desired : —

150 pounds per acre of high grade sulfate or of muriate of
potash,

250 pounds acid phosphate,

150 pounds nitrate of soda (or 320 pounds of cotton-seed meal
or tankage).

Potash salts, acid phosphate, and cotton-seed meal or tankage
are applied before bedding the land, while nitrate of soda is
drilled alongside of each row soon after the slips have rooted and
begun to grow.

Farmers in the cotton states are sometimes afraid to use
stable manure or other nitrogenous fertilizers, lest the crop “* run
chiefly to vines.’’ When the fertilizer is properly balanced, — that
is, made up of the proper proportion of nitrogen, phosphoric acid,
and potash, — there is little, ifany, danger that the growth of vines
will be excessive. Only by the development of a large growth of
vines can a maximum crop of roots be secured; for the starch
and other valuable material, of which the roots largely consist,
ean be manufactured only by an abundance of leaves and other
green portions of the plant.

In the parts of New Jersey where this crop is extensively
grown for market and large yields are secured, it is not unusual
for a farmer to apply 10 tons of manure per acre for sweet-pota-
toes, in addition to 500 to 1000 pounds of commercial fertilizer.

407. Place in the rotation. — Since a field of sweet-
potatoes needs to be kept free from grass and weeds at
the least expense, it is generally advisable for this crop
to follow one which leaves the land clean; that is, relatively
free from seeds of weeds and grass. One of the best of
such crops to precede sweet-potatoes is cotton.

It is also advantageous that the preceding crop supply
a large amount of humus. Cowpeas or velvet beans
SWEET-POTATO 437

answer this purpose well, if so grown as to keep down the
growth of weeds. One of the best means of supply-
ing both humus and nitrogen consists In growing a pre-
ceding catch-crop of crimson clover, to be plowed under
in April as a preparation for sweet-potatoes. The clover
seed can be sown among the bearing cotton plants in Sep-
tember, taking care to inoculate the son, which is usually
done by sowing with the seed some soil from a spot where
any true clover, — such as crimson, red, or white clover, —
has recently grown and developed tubercles on the roots.

408. Effect on land. — The large quantities of manures
and fertilizers sometimes employed for sweet-potatoes
tend to make this field produce good crops the next year,
provided the vines be left on the land and somewhat evenly
distributed. However, the sweet-potato in itself is an
exhaustive crop on account (1) of the large amounts of
potash and nitrogen removed and (2) of the leaching of
the soil by winter rain, which is apt to be especially great
on a field plowed in the fall and left bare of vegetation
during winter. To prevent this leaching, it is advisable,
where practicable, to sow small grain or some winter
cover-crop after harvesting sweet-potatoes.

However, unless the field is securely fenced, stray hogs,
rooting for the small potatoes, will often destroy the stand
of any winter-growing plant. An additional reason for
selecting a fenced field for sweet-potatoes is in order that
the small, injured roots may be utilized by the landowner’s
hogs, without the expense of handling this unsalable part
of the crop.

It is generally advisable not to grow sweet-potatoes for
two years in succession on the same land. This is partly
438 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

because of the removal of large amounts of fertilizing con-
stituents, but chiefly because the crop is subject to several
very destructive diseases, which, after being once intro-
duced into the soil, increase in injury to each successive
crop.

SULTURAL METHODS

409. How propagated. — The sweet-potato is propa-
gated without the use of seed. The most common
method consists in placing the roots in beds, where, under
the influence of proper amounts of heat and moisture,
the buds or eyes develop into shoots. These shoots,
variously called ‘‘ slips,” “
means by which the greater part of the acreage is grown.
A second method consists in cutting sections of vines from
plants produced by slips and in setting these vines in the
field rather late in the season. A third method, seldom
employed, consists in cutting the potato into small pieces
and planting these sections just as one would plant Irish
potatoes.

410. Bedding sweet-potatoes. — About six weeks before
setting the slips in the field, the enlarged roots are placed
in specially constructed beds, for the purpose of stimulating,
by means of heat and moisture, the development of buds
and shoots.

The source of heat throughout the greater part of the
United States is fermenting stable manure. However,
flue heat is employed in the trucking region of New Jersey,
Maryland, Delaware, and Virginia, and occasionally else-
where.

411. Manure bed. — A bed to be heated by manure
is usually made as follows: In a well-drained, sheltered

cc

draws,” or ‘sets,’ are the

“cc
SWEET-POTATO 439

spot, the soil is excavated to a depth of six or more inches,
and a simple frame made with side and end boards; a
layer of moist stable manure, with a depth of four to eight
inches, is packed in; and over this is placed a layer of
about four inches of fine, loamy soil to keep the potatoes
from coming in immediate contact with the manure, which
would rot or dry them. It is best to let the excess of heat
pass off, by waiting a few days before placing the potatoes
in the bed. Then, or as soon as the bed is ready, they
are pressed into the soft layer of earth, being placed as
near together as possible without touching. They are
then covered with a layer of loamy soil, which should
cover the most exposed roots to a depth of at least two
inches. For an early crop a movable covering of pine
leaves, or of cloth, or even a glass sash is sometimes em-
ployed. If leaves are used, they must be removed as soon
as sprouts appear, to avoid long, tender slips. If glass is
used, care must be given to ventilation. A trench around
the outside provides for drainage.

When necessary, this bed is watered. Excess of water
should be avoided, especially before the sprouts appear
above the surface, for watering is usually a cooling process,
and it may be a means of baking the surface soil. Keep
the surface layer pulverized, so as to decrease evaporation
and permit the easy emergence of the young shoots. Of
course all grass and weeds must be destroyed while young.

412. Fire hot-beds. — These consist of a board floor
with an inclosed air space about two feet in depth under
the entire area of the floor. The sides of this space are
tightly closed by planks and by earth heaped against
them; or by the earth walls left in excavating for the bed.
440 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

The floor is ecvered with about five inches of soil, in which
the potatoes are bedded and covered with additional soil,
just as in the common type of bed. Fire-heated flues are
provided underneath the floor.

The slope of the floor should be about 1 foot in 20. The fur-
nace, which is usually 6 feet long by about 2 feet 6 inches in the
other dimensions, is made of brick and sunk to such a depth
in the ground at the lower end of the bed as to give the necessary
slope to the flues. The flues for a bed 12 feet wide usually con-
sist of three lines of six-inch tiles and should extend about 30
feet from the furnace, at which point they empty their heat and
smoke into the large air space under the floor. Over the furnace
is a layer of soil about 1 foot deep; over the flue the depth
of this layer gradually decreases. At the end of the hot-bed
farthest from the furnace is a wooden flue about 10 feet long
to create a draught and to carry off the smoke; this flue should
be provided with a damper to regulate the draft. The effort is
to keep the temperature of the soil in which the potatoes are
bedded at about 80° to 85° F.

413. Kind and quantity of potatoes to bed. — A bushel
of small potatoes affords a larger number of slips than
does a bushel of roots of larger size. This is because the
greater number of small potatoes possesses a greater total
_ surface area from which buds grow out. Farmers give
preference for bedding to roots of small to medium size.
Tt has not been proved that small but well-shaped potatoes
cause any decrease in the size of the roots of the next crop.
However, in the case of a mechanical mixture of several
varieties or strains, the exclusive use, year after year, of
the ill-shaped, stringy roots would result in time in a crop
consisting chiefly of the inferior strain or variety, having
the greatest proportion of undesirable potatoes. So far
SWEET-POTATO 441

as present information goes, the small potatoes make just
as good “ seed stock ” as large roots from the same hill.
A bushel of medium-sized potatoes covers about 15 to 20

square feet of surface when bedded; a bushel of small roots re-
quires 25 square feet or more of bed. At the first drawing, a

 

 

 

 

 

Fic. 191.— Sweret-potato SLIPS READY TO BE SET IN THE FIELD.

bushel of bedded potatoes may be expected to afford 800 to 1500
slips, besides which it usually affords a smaller number at the
second, and again at the third drawing. For each acre to be set
out with the slips from three drawings, it is well to allow at least
2 bushels of very small potatoes and at least double this amount
with roots of medium size. To plant the entire area early, that
442 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

is, chiefly from the first drawing, these amounts will need to be
about doubled. By using vine cuttings, cupped from the plants
set out early, the acreage can be increased without additional
expenditure for ‘‘ seed potatoes.”

414. Drawing or removing the slips. — When the shoots
show a length of about 4 inches above ground, or a total
length of 6 or 7 inches, and when roots have begun to de-
velop on the lower parts of these slips, they should be
drawn and transplanted to the field (Fig. 191). The bed
should first be watered. The slips should be so carefully
pulled as not to move the “seed potatoes.” While not
generally practiced outside of the trucking regions, it is
best promptly to dip the base of each slip in a stiff batter
made of clay and fresh cow manure. The object is to sup-
ply moisture until the plant is rooted and to insure the
closest possible contact of the plant with the soil-moisture.

By keeping the bed watered, it should be ready to afford
a second drawing about 10 to 14 days after the first, and
then after a still longer interval, a third drawing can often
be made.

415. Transplanting. — The rows are first flattened with
a harrow or board, so as to destroy the crust and young
vegetation, and to insure a soft bed of soil. Then careful
growers mark the rows with suitable devices so as to make
the plants stand at uniform distances apart. One person
drops the slip near its position, and another inserts it in
place, carefully pressing the soil around the slip. In setting
out potatoes, the farmer uses either a garden dibble or small
trowel, or a short sharpened stick; on soft soil the slip is
pressed into place by the use of special devices, about as long
as a walking-stick, which usually consist of either (1) a
SWEET-POTATO 443

single lath, having a base hollowed out and covered with
leather, or (2) wooden tongs made of two laths (Fig. 192).

On many farms, it is customary to
wait for a rain and to transplant the
slips or vine cuttings only after a rain. r
If the land has been well prepared and
repeatedly harrowed, it is not neces-
sary to wait on the weather. Some
growers prefer to set slips without a |
rain. In the latter case, it is usual to
water the plants. The water serves
to settle the soil more closely around
the stem than would he possible if
reliance were placed entirely on the
moisture in the soil. After watering
sweet-potatoes or any other plant, one
must be careful to cover the watered
spots with a thin layer of dry soil, to

mo

 

 

 

 

 

 

J

Fic. 192.—Dervices
FOR SETTING SweEeEt-

prevent evaporation and baking. POTATO SLIPS AND
416. Transplanting machines. —

VINE-CUTTINGS.

When a large acre-
age is cultivated in
sweet-potatoes, it is
profitable to employ
a transplanting
machine (Fig. 193).
It sets and waters
the plants as fast
as the team pulls
‘ the machine along
Fic. 193.—A TRANSPLANTING MAcHINE. therows. Two men

 
444 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

on seats at the rear drop the plants at the required in-
tervals.

417. Time of transplanting. — Bedding may be done
about three weeks before the time when the last light frost
is expected. The soil must be well warmed before trans-
planted slips will thrive in the field. In the central part
of the cotton-belt, transplanting about April 1 may be

 

 

 

 

Fic. 194. —SwET-POTATOES ATTACHED TO A SECTION OF PLANTED VINE.

regarded as early. To determine the last date at which
setting in the field may be done with the expectation of a
fair yield, a period of at least 34 months should be allowed
before the usual date of the first fall frost. In this region,
it scarcely pays to set slips or vines after July 15; and in
general the yield from the late plantings are much smaller
than from those made in mid-season.
SWEET-POTATO 445

418. Propagation by the use of vine cuttings. — When
the bedded potatoes do not furnish enough slips for the
desired area, they may be supplemented by setting out in
June or early July sections of about 18 inches of vine cut
from the early plants. Vine cuttings are usually set out
just after a rain by a stick or lath with concave base,
pressed down on the center of the vine (Fig. 192).

Roots produced by vine cuttings are preferred for
bedding. This is because such potatoes usually escape
black rot, a disease which, if present in the bed, is con-
veyed to the slips by the diseased potatoes. The prefer-
ence for potatoes from vine cuttings (Fig. 194) may also
be due to their greater soundness, sometimes attributable
to the late date of planting.

419. Distance between plants. — In the cotton states,
the rows are usually about 34 feet apart. Truckers
sometimes plant in narrower rows. In several experi-
ments, a distance of 18 inches between plants afforded
larger yields than were obtained either by closer or wider
spacing.

420. Preparation of land. —It too frequently happens
that the land is merely thrown into beds without any pre-
vious plowing. For this crop, which makes a large yield
per acre and requires a soft, mellow soil for the easy trans-
planting of the slips and for the full development of the
crop, it is profitable to give thorough preparation. This
should consist of broadcast plowing, repeated harrowing,
and the formation of beds, which are usually thrown up
over a furrow in which fertilizer has been applied. Before
bedding and after the fertilizer is drilled in, the latter
should be thoroughly incorporated with the soil by running
446 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

some cultivating implement in the open furrow. It is
usually better for the beds to be formed several weeks
before the date of transplanting, so as to permit the soil
to be settled by rain. The beds should be kept covered
with a loose layer of soil and free from crust and vegetation
by the repeated use of a light harrow.

To produce the largest yield, the depth of plowing should
be considerable, and deep plowing should probably be
the rule where the crop is to be used as stock food. How-
ever, the market prefers a rather short potato, and this
shape is favored by rather shallow plowing; that is, to a
depth of not more than 5 inches.

421. High and low beds. — While level tillage can be
practiced for sweet-potatoes set out late on sandy, well-
drained soil, it is probably advisable for the planting, as
a rule, to be done on beds; however, these should be
pulled down by the use of the harrow until elevated only
3 or 4 inches above the water-furrows. Planting on low
ridges affords a warmer, more perfectly drained soil.
The extremely high ridges sometimes seen add greatly
to the cost of cultivation, and unless the season be very
wet, high ridges do not materially increase the yield.

422. Tillage. — Cultivation should be given whenever
a crust begins to form, or when the first appearance of
young weeds or grass makes it necessary. Tillage should
be shallow. The most satisfactory implements are those
forms of one-horse cultivators equipped with small points,
so as to be run as near as possible to the plants without
covering them with soil. A scrape or any other imple-
ment doing shallow work is also suitable. Just before
each cultivation, if the vines have begun to run, they
SWEET-POTATO 447

should be turned into alternate middles, using a stick,
so as to get them out of the way of the implement. At
the next cultivation, the position of the vines is reversed.
Tillage usually ceases when the vines meet across the row,
though it is still desirable to pull or remove with a hoe
large weeds and bunches of grass.

Some cultivators are equipped with a vine-lifting attach-
ment, which makes it unnecessary to move the vines into
alternate middles by hand.

423. Pruning the vines. — Experiments have shown
that pruning the vines in order to obtain vine cuttings
for propagation reduces the yield. The few experiments
so far made do not agree in showing any advantage from
the custom of lifting or moving the vines late in the season
to prevent their rooting at the joints or nodes.

HARVESTING AND STORING SWEET-POTATOES

424. When to dig potatoes. — The root of the sweet-
potato has not reached maturity and condition for storage
until, when a cut is made, the wound heals over with a
whitish appearance. If the broken place becomes dis-
colored, the potato is immature.

Since the price is much higher in August and early in
September than during October and November, a part of
the crop may be dug very early, even at a sacrifice of yield
and maturity. The bulk of the crop is not dug until about
the time of the first fall frost. Some prefer to dig potatoes
before they are touched by frost, but the frosting of the
vines does no harm if harvesting is then done before the
decay extends from the vines to the roots. Late digging,
448 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

if the potatoes be not frost bitten, improves the keeping
qualities of the crop.

425. Methods of harvesting. — The long vines must
first be disposed of. They are usually pulled by running
a plow on each side of the row. This work is done much
more satisfactorily if the line of plants be barred off with
a turn-plow, to the beam of which is attached a rolling

 

Fia. 195.—SpreciaL PLows FOR DIGGING SWEET-POTATOES.

coulter, which cuts the vines close to the row (Fig.195). The
potatoes are then upturned by the use of a large turn-plow.

If the work of harvesting is performed by careful laborers,
sorting may be done in the field, the injured and unmarket-
able roots being gathered in different baskets from those
containing the marketable potatoes. With less careful
labor, it is better to gather all potatoes together, sorting
them at the place of storage or of packing. Extreme care
should be taken to avoid bruising the potatoes, since germs
of decay enter through bruises and cuts. One means of
reducing bruising consists in gathering the roots in small
SWEET-POTATO 449

baskets or boxes, which are not emptied until after these
packages are hauled to the place of storing or packing.

Sweet-potatoes for market are generally packed in
ventilated barrels covered with burlap cloth, though
smaller packages are also used to a limited extent.

426. Yields. — The average yield for the entire acreage
cultivated in sweet-potatoes in the United States is usually
reported as about 100 bushels per acre. Good farmers
expect to make fully 200 bushels per acre, and yields above
500 bushels per acre have been repeatedly reported.

The substitution for corn of sweet-potatoes (supple-
mented by peanuts or other crop rich in nitrogen) as 4
food for hogs in the fall months is often advisable on
sandy soils. For very sandy soils are not well suited to
corn, but, when properly fertilized, they make good crops
of sweet-potatoes. On such soils it is sometimes as easy
to make 200 bushels of sweet-potatoes as to produce 30
bushels of corn to the acre. In this case the amount of
nutritive material in the potatoes is about twice as much
as in the corn from a similar area.

The sweet-potato largely or entirely loses this relative
advantage on richer soils, particularly on those consisting
largely of clay.

427. Conditions necessary in storing potatoes. — In
order that sweet-potatoes may keep in perfect condition
throughout the winter, so as to prolong the time of use or
to be sold at the higher prices prevailing after Christmas,
they must fulfill the following conditions : —

(1) The potatoes when stored must be sound, all bruised,
cut, or diseased potatoes being excluded from the storage
place.

2G
450 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

(2) The roots must be subjected to a certain degree of
drying or evaporation, which may be induced either by
ventilation alone while the potatoes are kept in the shade,
or by exposure to artificial heat, combined with ventilation,

(3) Rats and mice must be carefully excluded.

(4) The potatoes must not be allowed to become so
much colder than the air coming in contact with them
as to cause the latter to condense or deposit its contained
moisture upon the cold surface of the potatoes.

428. Banking. —The method in common use in the
cotton states by those who store potatoes for home use,
or in small quantities for market, consists in keeping
them through the winter in conical banks or mouncs,
each containing 10 to,25 bushels.

To make a potato ban‘, cut a small circular trench around a
well-drained, somewhat sheltered spot. With the excavated
earth, slightly build up the ground on which the heap is to stand.
Place a layer of straw over this, and on it build up a cone-shaped
heap of potatoes around a central ventilator, made of several
poles or boards. Cover the potatoes with pine needles or with
clean, dry straw. Over the straw or leaves, place a layer of corn-
stalks to support the weight of the outer covering of soil. A
few weeks later, after the potatoes have gone through a sweat,
and before cold weather, place a layer of soil over the corn stalks ;
and in cold weather, stop the ventilator with a capping of hay.
The whole is best inclosed under a cheap shelter of boards,
though sometimes the bank is left with no covering except a
few boards placed over the ventilator.

429. Keeping potatoes by the kiln-drying process. —
Where sweet-potatoes are extensively grown for marketing
in winter, they are stored in houses of special construction.
These are much more satisfactory than banks in all regions.
SIWEET-POTATO 451

By the use of such storage houses, labor is economized,
and the loss from decay is very greatly reduced.

In special potato houses, even in the cotton-belt, arti-
ficial heat is advantageous, especially during the sweating
period and during the coldest weather in winter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Fic. 196.—Enp View or a House ror sToriING SwEET-POTATOES.

A, A, A, A, Bins, four feet wide, with slatted foor and walls; B, B, pas
sageways above and below, with doors at ends; V, ventilating door; zg, 2,
loose boards forming floor of upper passageway.
452 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

430. Example of a sweet-potato house. — Storage
houses may vary in capacity from a few hundred bushels
to several thousand. The construction and management
of such a house, used by an Alabama farmer, may serve as
an example. The essential features of such a house are
the following: (1) double walls filled with sawdust and a
layer of sand or sawdust above the ceiling; (2) one or
more ventilators, and transoms over the doors; (3) bins
slatted on all sides and bottoms, so that the air has free
access. Figure 196 supplies additional information regard-
ing some of the details.

An ordinary stove is placed in this house, with stove-pipe and
flue. For the first few weeks after the potatoes are stored, fire
is kept burning to drive off surplus moisture and to prevent sweat-
ing. Again, in cold or damp weather in winter, fires are main-
tained in order to keep the air inside warmer and dryer than that
outside. In this latitude the main purpose of fires and of a
ventilator is to prevent the condensation of the moisture of the
air upon the cool surface of the potatoes. The temperature
within this particular house varies between 40° and 70°, after the
curing process is complete. In the sweet-potato districts, where
such houses are in common use, the temperature for the first
few weeks is kept at about 90° F., during which time ample
ventilation is given to earry off the evaporated moisture. The
preferred winter temperature within a sweet-potato house is
around 50° and always, if possible, below 65°.

ENEMIES

431. Insects. — The sweet-petato has relatively few
very injurious insect enemies. However, in some fields in
Texas and Louisiana the sweet-potato root-borer or weevil
(Cylas formicarius) is very destructive, since it tunnels
SWEET-POTATO 453

through and ruins the maturing potatoes (Fig. 197). No
treatment is known except to avoid storing or bedding
any infested roots, which may be recognized by the bur-
rows within them. Care should be taken to avoid intro-

 

Fic. 197.— Cross Section THROUGH A SWEET-POTATO, SHOWING INJU-
RIES BY SWEET-POTATO Root-BORER.

ducing this serious pest on sweet-potatoes brought east-
ward from the infested regions.

For various leaf-eating insects, occasionally attacking
the foliage of this plant, the recommendation is to dip
the slips, before being set, in a solution of arsenate of lead,
454 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

and, if necessary, to spray the vines with this or with Paris
green. Cutworms may be poisoned before setting the
slips, as suggested in paragraph 379.

432. Fungous diseases. — The enlarged root of the
sweet-potato is subject to various forms of decay, each
one due to a different germ or
disease-producing organism. The
most serious of these is the follow-
ing :—

Black-rot (Spheronema fimbria-
tum). —The presence of this fungus
within the potato root causes black
spots on the surface (Fig. 198).
These spots are slightly depressed,
and the dark color extends deep
into the enlarged root, which com-
pletely decays in the field or during
storage. If diseased potatoes are
bedded, the slips are also diseased.
The remedies consist in (1) bedding
no tubers thus diseased; (2) de-
Fic. 198.—Brack-ror on stroying any slips on the white

Root Anp Sue oF SWEET- :

POTATO: stems of which are found any dark

spots; and (3) rotation of crops,
avoiding the planting of sweet-potatoes for two years in
succession on the same land and avoiding any land where
this disease has occurred in recent years.

 

Tn addition to these measures, J. L. Winslow soaks the roots
for five minutes just before bedding, in a weak solution of for-
malin, using 1 ounce of this liquid to 8 gallons of water. He also
dips the slips into a slightly stronger solution of formalin. It is
SWEET-POTATO 455

improbable that this treatment destroys that part of the fungus
lying below the surface, but it doubtless reduces the amount of
disease. No slips should be purchased without a guarantee that
they are grown from potatoes known to be free from black-rot.

Soft-rot causes stored sweet-potatoes to shrivel and decay.
To minimize this injury, avoid bruising the sweet-potatoes and
remove and burn all diseased roots as soon as seen.

For dry-rot, destroy all diseased roots. Sweet-potatoes are
also attacked by other diseases. The general recommendation
is to avoid growing this crop twice in succession on the same land
or even at short intervals.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

1. If practicable, prepare and plant a propagating bed of
sweet-potatoes. If this cannot be done, place at least a few sweet-
potatoes in damp soil in a box kept in a warm place. As soon
as buds and shoots develop make drawings of

(a) A sweet-potato, with sprouting buds, and of
(6) A detached slip or shoot long enough to be trans-
planted, showing especially the location of the roots.

2. Make a drawing showing the position and direction of the
enlarged roots (potatoes) as they grow in the soil.

3. Students should participate in any of the operations con-
nected with the growing of this crop, which may be in progress
when this chapter is studied.

4. If this subject is studied in the fall, a storage bank of sweet-
potatoes should be made by the students, or else inspection made
of a bank or potato-house on some farm in the neighborhood.

LITERATURE

Firz, James. Sweet Potato Culture. N. Y., 1890.

Price, R. H. Sweet Potatoes. Buls. Nos. 28 and 36, Tex.
Expr. Sta.

Duccar, J. F. Sweet Potatoes. Farmer’s Bul. No. 26, U.S.
Dept. Agr.
456 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Nessit, D. M. Sweet Potatoes. Farmer’s Bul. No. 129, U.S.
Dept. Agr.

Morean, H. A., and Burnette, H. F. Sweet Potatoes. La.
Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 22.

Burnette, H. F. Sweet Potatoes. Bul. No. 30.

Newman, J. S. Southern Gardener's Practical Manual, pp.
120-155. 1906.

Waitr, M. B. Sweet Potatoes. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. IT,
pp. 613-623.

Duaaar, B. M. Fungous Diseases of Plants. pp. 344, 348-349.
New York, 1909.
CHAPTER

XXVII

CASSAVA — MANIHOT UTILISSIMA

CasSAVA, in tropical countries called manioc, is a shrub
4 to 10 feet high, which, in general appearance and foliage,

somewhat resembles the castor
bean plant (Fig. 199). Cassava
belongs to the milk-weed fam-
ily (Euphorbiacee). Its native
country is Brazil, but it is now
cultivated in many tropical and
semitropical regions.

433. Kinds. — Cassava has
been divided into two classes,
namely, the bitter and the sweet.
Bitter cassava is the kind gen-
erally grown in the tropics. It
requires more than one year to
make its best growth and has
not been cultivated extensively
in the United States. Sweet
cassava is the kind grown in
this country.

434. Climate and distribu-
tion. — The cassava requires a
season of about seven months

457

 

Fic. 199.— Cassava PLAant,
SHOWING STEMS AND EN-
LARGED Roots.
458 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

without frost, and the yield is larger if this period is still
longer. While the plant has been grown north of the
central parts of the Gulf States, yet its cultivation is
scarcely practicable above the southern third of these
states. The plant is very sensitive to frost. Moreover,
its northward extension is limited by (1) the difficulty
of saving through winter the stems, used as propagating
material, and (2) by the fact that where the ground freezes
it is impracticable to leave the roots in the ground until
they are needed for use.

435. Uses and composition. — The only valuable por-
tion of the cassava plant is the root. From each plant
grow 4 to 8 roots in a cluster, each of which is usually
1 to 24 inches in diameter, and 2 to 3 feet long. These
roots are rich in starch. They are used for the manu-
facture of starch and of the human foods, tapioca and
arrowroot. Their more common use, however, in the
United States is as food for hogs, poultry, and other
live-stock. Fresh cassava roots contain 25 to 30 per cent
of starch, and the total dry matter averages about 34 per
cent, or a little more than in sweet-potatoes. As cassava
contains only about 1 per cent of protein (nitrogenous
material) the roots should be fed in connection with foods
rich in nitrogen, such as cowpeas, peanuts, and velvet
beans.

436. Poisonous constituent. — The bitter varieties of
cassava, as grown in tropical countries, contain in the un-
cooked fresh roots appreciable amounts of the poison,
prussic acid. However, this poison is volatile, and is easily
removed by heat or by exposure for a few hours to the air.
The amount of this poison found in sweet cassava is too
CASSAVA 459

small to be dangerous to man or to live-stock. The greater
part of the prussic acid is contained in the bark or skin of
the root and in its outer layers.

437. Soils and fertilizers. — Cassava requires a rather
fertile, loose, sandy soil. A sandy soil is not only necessary
for the best growth of the plant, but also in order that the
roots may be easily pulled. The land must be well drained
and warm, so as to make the season of growth as long as
possible. Cassava thrives on soil too sandy and dry for
corn and may be regarded as a drought-resistant crop.

It is best to furnish the nitrogen for cassava by grow-
ing a preceding crop of cowpeas or velvet beans. In case
cassava is not preceded by a leguminous crop, it should
be fertilized with a complete fertilizer, such as the fol-
lowing : —

200 lb. acid phosphate per acre,
50 lb. muriate of potash or 200 lb. of kainit, and
200 lb. cotton-seed meal.

In a single test in Florida, it was found better to apply
all of the fertilizer before planting than to divide it into
several applications.

438. Preparation, propagation, and cultivation.— Prepa-
ration consists in broadcast or level plowing and harrow-
ing. Plowing need not be very deep, for this would have
the effect of making the roots grow deeper in the soil and
hence make the pulling of the roots more difficult. The
land should be marked off in checks 4 feet each way,
and the fertilizer drilled in and mixed. At the intersec-
tion of the furrows or marks, the sections of stem contain-
ing the eyes or buds should be dropped, stepped on, and
covered with 2 to 4 inches of soil.
460 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Cassava is propagated in the United States only by
planting portions of the stem, which are usually cut into
lengths of 4 to 6 inches, each section containing 2 or more
buds or eyes. It has been found best to drop two short
sections in each hill, though many farmers plant only one.

In a field of cassava there are usually a number of vacant
hills, chiefly due to the killing of the buds during winter on the
section of stem planted in those particular hills, but sometimes
due to failure to press the cutting into close contact with the
moist soil. On account of the difficulty in getting a perfect stand,
some growers find it advantageous to sprout the cuttings in
specially prepared beds similar to those used for sweet-potatoes,
in which beds the necessary watering can be given. Sprouted
cuttings require especial care in planting, so as to avoid breaking
off the young shoots.

Tillage should be level and shallow, as this is a very shallow-
rooted plant ; it should be repeated until the plants thoroughly
shade the soil. Usually one or two hoeings will be necessary,
but the amount of hoe work can he decreased by using the
weeder before the young plants appear.

439. Harvesting. —If the stems are to be used for
planting, they should be cut before the occurrence of the
first frost, since the buds are easily killed. The stem is
cut 6 inches above the ground so as to leave a stub by
which to pull out the cluster of roots. Pulling is done
either by hand alone, or by the help of a grubbing hoe,
or by the use of a cant-hook, such as is used in handling
logs. This hook is caught under the center of the plant,
the short end of the stick placed on the ground, and the
long end lifted so as to raise the cluster out of the soil.

Cassava roots keep best when left in the ground until
needed for use, provided the soil is well drained and does
not freeze.
CASSAVA 461
440. Storing stems or “seed canes” for planting. —
One of the chief difficulties in growing cassava near the
northern edge of the region in which it succeeds is that of
keeping the canes or stems through the winter without
injury to the bud, as the result of cold, excessive dryness,

 
 
   
   

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. 200.— MetTHop OF PREPARING BED FOR KEEPING CASSAVA SEED
STEMS OVER WINTER.

or too much moisture. In general, the stems are kept
through the winter by bedding them (Fig. 200) somewhat
as sugar-cane is bedded.

The spot selected for a cassava seed-bed should be well drained,
and a slight excavation should be made, forming a succession of
sloping surfaces. Two or three layers of stems are laid on this
in a nearly horizontal position, the base of each being pressed into
close contact with the earth. The covering consists of 3 or 4
inches of straw, on top of which is placed at first a layer of about
2 inches of soil, which, before very cold weather, is increased to
4 inches.

Another method of storing cassava stems consists in standing
the stems upright in a trench, the whole being covered with a
thiek layer of straw, weighted down with a small amount of
earth. Cassava beds should be under a roof, and some growers
build a permanent house, inside of which the canes are stood on
end and covered as just stated.

441. Enemies. — Cassava has few serious enemies
among insects or plant diseases. One of the most trouble-
some is “ Frenching” (Gleosporium manihot). This fun-
gus kills the tips of the branches .and then spreads
462 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

downward. Injury can be prevented by planting only
stems from plants that are entirely free from this disease.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

1. In case cassava stems can be obtained, drawings should
be made showing

(a) how the stems branch;
(b) locations of leaf scars and buds.

2. In a region where this plant is grown students should
inspect a cassava ‘‘ seed-hed ’” and should participate in, or at
least observe, any processes of propagation, cultivation, or
harvesting which may he in progress at the time.

LITERATURE

Stocksrince, H. E. Cassava as a Money Crop. Fla. Expr.
Sta., Buls. Nos. 35 and 49.

Witey, H. W. Sweet Cassava. U.S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Chem.,
Bul. No. 44.

Wiuey, H.W. The Manufacture of Starch from Potatoes and
Cassava. U.S. Dept. Agr., Div. Chem., Bul. No. 55.
Tracy, 8. M. Cassava. U. S. Dept. Agr., Farmer’s Bul.
No. 167, and Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. II, pp. 227-229.
Moors, C. C. Cassava: Its Content of Hydrocyanie Acid and
Starch. U.S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Chem., Bul. No. 105.
CHAPTER. XXVIII
PEANUT — ARACHIS HYPOG@A

TuE peanut is the principal sale crop in a number of
counties in the southeastern part of Virginia, in the eastern
part of North Carolina, and in one section in Tennessee.
Virginia and North Carolina produce more than half of
the commercial crop of the United States. The peanut
is grown for local use and as food for live-stock in every
southern state, and in a number of states further north
and west.

In America the principal use of the peanut is for eating
after being parched. It is also extensively employed in
confectionery. It is one of the best foods for hogs and
poultry, and is also fed to other classes of live-stock.

442. Range. — The peanut is regarded as a native of
Brazil, though an Asiatic origin has also been claimed
for it. It became an important article of commerce in
Africa much earlier than in the United States. In this
country the growing of peanuts for the market is an indus-
try that’ has grown up since 1866, partly due to the knowl-
edge of the edible qualities of this nut spread throughout
the country by the soldiers who had fought in the peanut-
growing section of Virginia.

Although the American crop of peanuts probably ap-
proaches twenty million bushels, including those con-

463
464 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

sumed on the farm, this is only a fraction of the world’s
supply of peanuts. A single city in France, Marseilles,
imports annually a larger amount of peanuts than was
produced a few years ago in the entire United States. In
Marseilles the principal use of these imported African and
Indian peanuts is for the manufacture of oil, a use for
which the peanut has not been extensively employed in
the United States.

443. Description. — The peanut plant belongs to the
pea family (Papzlionacece), which also includes the clovers,
vetches, and beans. Like the others just mentioned, the
peanut is a soil-improving plant. Its roots bear numerous
enlargements, or tubercles, through which the plant is able
to draw its nitrogen from the air (Fig. 201).

This plant is peculiar in bearing its seed or fruit under-
ground. The flowers are borne on small stems springing
from the axil of the leaf. The flower stem turns down-
ward, and after the flower is fertilized, the tip of the
pistil, which is sharp, grows into the ground. Soon after
the long slender portion, called the “ peg” has pierced
the ground, its lower tip enlarges and becomes the pod or
shell. The inclosed seeds, which are commonly called nuts,
are more properly peas.

The peanut plant is annual, making its growth in the
warm season, and easily killed by frost. Each leaf con-
sists of four leaflets, and these have the interesting habit
of folding together at night or while rain is falling.

Each plant bears a number of branches, which in some
varieties lie flat upon the ground, while in other varieties
the branches are erect. The pod contains from one to
three or sometimes even four seeds.
°

PEANUT 465

 

 

 

 

 

Fie. 201.— THe Lower Part or A PEANUT PLANT.
Showing roots, root tubercles, and nuts or seeds borne on the end of
‘“‘needles,’’ or elongated pistils.
2H
466 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

444. Composition. — The following table shows that
all parts of the peanut plant are rich in nutritive qualities :

 

 

| NITROGEN-
FREE
Extract

Peanut Water | PRoreEIN | Fiser Fat

 

 

 

 

J
14.20 | 35.00
14.27 | 49.20
j 46.95 1.84
9; 19.42 2.68
3| 27.26 8.84

Peanut with hull
Peanut kernels
Peanut hay

Peanut hulls
Peanut meal or cake

 

 

A crop of 60 bushels of peanuts per acre, together with one
ton of hay, has been found to contain i ae aba ac <> pounds
of nitrogen, 15 pounds of phosphoric acid, 32 pounds of potash,
and 46 pounds of ime. Most of the lime and potash is con-
tained in the hay, while the greater part of the phosphoric acid
and more than half of the nitrogen are found in the nuts.

445. Soils. — A sandy or sandy loam soil is preferred.
Nuts of the highest market quality, that is, with the
brightest shells, are produced on light-colored, sandy soil.
Red or dark soils, especially when containing much clay,
stain the hulls, and hence reduce the market price. Such
soils, however, are fully as good for peanuts that are to
be consumed on the farm. While a stiff soil is usually
avoided for peanuts, — partly because of the staining of the
shells and partly because peanuts cannot be erazed by live-
stock on such soils while wet, — yet these heavier soils some-
times make larger yields of nuts than do very sandy fields.

In the choice of soils for peanuts it must be constantly
remembered that a loose, friable condition of the surface
layer is necessary in order that the “ pegs,” from which
the pods will develop, may easily enter the soil.
PEANUT 467

446. Liming soils. — A considerable amount of lime in
the soil increases the yield. However, the percentage
of lime in the soils of the eastern peanut region is low,
so that this element is usually supplied artificially. The
absence of lime is generally believed to be one of the causes
leading to a large proportion of ‘‘ pops,” that is, shells
without nuts. Potash is said to reduce the number of
“pops.” Probably one of the good effects of lime is its well
known effect of making available the potash in the soil. On
soils extremely deficient in lime, as are most light-colored,
sandy soils, an application of lime is usually advantageous.
A minimum of 10 bushels or a maximum of 50 bushels
of slaked lime per acre may be used. The smaller appli-
cation repeated at frequent intervals is preferable to larger
application once every four or five years. Where lime is
used special care must be taken to maintain an abundant
supply of humus in the soil. Lime is best applied broad-
cast and harrowed in, but when very small amounts are
employed, it is sometimes placed in the drill, or even
drilled on top of the ridge after the seed have been
planted.

447. Fertilizers. — Other fertilizers for peanuts should -
be placed in the drill, though some farmers in Vir-
ginia apply a few hundred pounds of land-plaster per acre
after the plants have made considerable growth. It seems
to be better practice, instead of using plaster, to increase
the amount of acid phosphate, since nearly half of the
weight of acid phosphate consists of land-plaster. In
either form, the plaster converts a part of the potash of
the soil into a more available form.

The fertilizer most generally needed by peanuts is a
468 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

mixture of acid phosphate and some form of potash, such
as kainit or muriate of potash. A good general fertilizer
is at least 200 pounds of acid phosphate and 50 pounds ot
muriate of potash per acre.

If the land is extremely poor, there is some advantage in using
a small amount of nitrogenous fertilizer, so as to promote the
early growth of the plant before it is able to draw its nitrogen
from the air. For this purpose about 40 pounds of nitrate of
soda per acre may be placed in the furrow at the time of planting,
or, better still, applied on one side of each row of plants at the
first cultivation. The later application of nitrate has the ad-
vantage of not stimulating the growth of weeds and grass as
early in the season as would be the case if it were applied at or
before planting.

However, for the greater part of the supply of nitrogen re-
liance must be placed on that drawn from the air by the tubercles
on the roots of the peanut plant.

448. Preparation of the land. — The first step in pre-
paring peanut land is to remove any coarse litter, such as
stalks of corn or cotton, which might interfere with ger-
mination and cultivation. The land should be plowed
and thoroughly harrowed. The time of planting depends
on the locality, the soil, and the nature of the preceding
crop. Generally it is well to plant peanuts after some
hoed crop which has been well cultivated, such as cotton.
Some farmers find it advantageous to plow the land at least
a month before planting. This gives time for weed seeds
to germinate. This crop of young weeds should then be
destroyed by the use of the disk harrow or other suitable
implement.

Furrows should be opened at regular intervals and in
these the fertilizer drilled, generally by the use of a machine.
PEANUT 469

A cultivator or other implement frequently follows the
fertilizer distributor, in order to better mix the fertilizer
with the soil. When planting on ridges is to be practiced,
the land is next ridged, either by means of turn-plows,
cultivators with suitable points, or by means of special
implements. These ridges, just before planting, should
be partially pulled down, and flattened by the use of a
weeder or spike-toothed harrow.

449. Method of planting. — On this low, flattened list
or ridge the seed are then planted either by means of a
planter, — which opens, drops, and covers, all at one
time, — or by means of hand-planting in a furrow opened
by a scooter and covered by the use of a double foot or
other suitable device.

On stiff lands a depth of 13 inches suffices early in the
season. The depth generally preferred is about 2 inches.
When planting is done at a late date or on dry soil, a still
greater depth is advisable.

On very dry soils, especially when planted late, no ridges
are formed, the seed being planted about 2 inches below
the surface level.

450. Distance between rows and between plants. —
With the Spanish peanuts or other erect varieties, the
distance between rows is usually 24 to 30 inches, and from
30 to 36 inches with the running kind. Spanish peanuts
on good land may advantageously be planted as close as
4 inches apart in the drill, but cultivation is more econom-
ically done if more space is given, usually 8 to 12 inches
between hills, with two peas in a place. In experiments
at the Arkansas Experiment Station the yield of Spanish
peanuts decreased as the space between rows was made
470 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

wider than 2 feet and as the distance between plants was
increased above 6 inches.

451. Seed. — To plant an acre of either Spanish or
running peanuts rather thickly, requires about two bushels
of unhulled nuts, or about half a bushel of hulled peanuts.

The seed intended for planting should be harvested
before the plants are killed by frost and so stacked and
stored as to avoid heating. Varieties having large pods
require the shelling of the seed peas, but shelling is not
necessary with the Spanish variety. The latter is usually

 

Fic. 202. — A Pranour ‘ Popper.”

A device for shelling peanuts.

simply broken, each piece being planted with the inclosing
shell. In this case, some growers find it advantageous to
soak the Spanish peanuts for a few hours before planting, so
as to hasten germination. Shelling affords a more nearly
perfect stand and more rapid germination, thus giving
the crop an opportunity to begin growth before grass and
weeds start.

Shelling of seed peanuts should usually be performed
by hand, since the use of machines for this purpose some-
times breaks the thin coat surrounding the nuts. Any
injury to this thin layer is apt to interfere with germina-
PEANUT 471

tion. In the hand shelling of peanuts the work may be
hastened and the fingers spared by the use of a simple
device known as the ‘‘ popper.” This is a thin piece of
white oak or other suitable material bent into the shape
of a pair of tongs (Fig. 202). While the seed peas are
being shelled, defective seed should be separated and
rejected.

452. Breeding. — No form of plant-breeding has been
generally applied to the peanut. However, since the selec-
tion of seed from the best plants largely increased the
yield of other crops, a similar increase is to be expected
by the process of saving seed from the best single plants
of peanuts (Fig. 203).

453. Time of planting. — The time of planting varies
greatly with the latitude. In Virginia the greater part
of the crop is planted in May, and this is the preferred
month for planting the running varieties throughout most
parts of the cotton-belt. However, these varieties are
often planted in April in the southern part of the United
States. The Spanish peanut requires less than four
months for maturing a crop. Henée, this kind can be
planted at any date desired after cotton comes up, and
up to the first of Julv. Even later plantings of this va-
riety are sometimes made, but at the sacrifice of yield.
Spanish peanuts can be planted after any of the small
grains are harvested; but unless the season be especially
favorable, maximum yields are not to be expected where
grain stubble is plowed under in June, because of the
tendency of such fields to dry out or otherwise get into
poor mechanical condition.

454. Tillage. — After planting and before the plants
 

 

 

 

Fic, 203.— A Fre.p oF Spanisu PEANUTS GROWN FROM SELECTED SEED.
A792,
PEANUT 473

appear above ground, the peanut field may be tilled with
a weeder. As soon as the line of plants can be seen,
tillage begins with some form of cultivator equipped with
fine teeth or with scrapes. After the young plants have
attained some degree of toughness, the weeder is brought
into use at frequent intervals. It is best run diagonally
across the rows. By this means much of the young grass
along the line of the drill is destroyed, thus saving much
‘work with the hoe. One hoeing, or, if necessary, a second
one is given, but only when needed. Grass growing
among the prostrate branches of the running varieties
should be pulled by hand; large weeds in such positions
are better cut off, since the pulling of large grass or weeds
after the nuts form, disturbs the buried nuts and does
more harm than good.

The cultivator is used as often as necessary. The first
cultivation may be rather deep. Unless level culture is
practiced, it is customary for the cultivator to throw some
earth around and among the plants, thus making a low
ridge or bed of loose soil in which the “ pegs ”” may become
imbedded.

455. Rotation. — Peanuts should generally follow a
crop kept clean by the use of the hoe. Among such crops
are cotton and sweet and Irish potatoes.

When the vines are returned to the land and evenly
distributed, or when the crop is grazed on the land, the
peanut enriches the soil, especially in nitrogen. However,
when peanuts are grown for market, both the nuts and
vines are usually removed from the land, making a heavy
draft on soil fertility, and necessitating a judicious rota-
tion. On some fields in the peanut region this crop is
474 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

grown without due attention to rotation. The result
is a notable decline in yield, due to the exhaustion of the
supplies of humus, potash, phosphoric acid, and lime,
and in some cases to the occurrence of disease or insect
injury.

The best rotation varies with a number of conditions.
Where peanuts constitute the main sale crop, they are
often rotated with corn. An improvement would be the
sowing of either cowpeas or of crimson clover among the
corn rows. Peanuts can also be rotated with small grain,
the oats or wheat being followed by cowpeas and this crop
by peanuts. When cotton is the preceding crop and when
the germs of cotton wilt are not present in the soil (para-
graph 380), crimson clover seed should usually be sown
in the cotton plants in September, and the young clover
plants can then be plowed under for fertilizer the next
spring, in time for the growth of a crop of peanuts.

456. A recommended rotation. — A suitable rotation
for those fields in the southern part of the cotton belt in
which the presence of cotton wilt prevents the frequent
growing of cotton, is the following : —

First year: corn with Iron cowpeas between the rows.
Second year: cotton.
Third year: peanuts.
Fourth year: fall-sown oats, followed by Iron cowpeas.

From such a rotation, crimson clover is omitted because
it might be the indirect means of increasing the amount
of wilt in the next cotton crop. This is because crimson
clover is attacked by nematode worms (see paragraph 385) ;
but the peanut is exempt from this injury, and hence the
 

 

 

VIRGINIA’ NO) 11

 

Fic. 204.— Pops anp Pras or THREE VARIETIES OF PEANUTS.
475

 
476 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

latter constitutes a good crop to grow on fields where the
organisms of either nematode worms or cotton wilt are
present.

457. Varieties. — There are but few varieties of pea-
nuts grown in the United States. The most important
are described below (Fig. 204).

Virginia Runner. — This is a variety having long
branches flat on the ground, and bearing pods throughout
the entire length. The pods are of light color and usually
two or sometimes three in a pod. The pods de not adhere
well to the vines in digging. The weight of this and of
other large varieties is twenty-two pounds per bushel.

Virginta Bunch is an erect variety bearing its fruits
only near the base of the plant. The nuts are similar
to those of the Virginia Runner.

The North Carolina, sometimes called the Wilmington
and sometimes the African, has spreading prostrate stems,
and the plant is of somewhat smaller size than the Virginia
Runner. The pods and peas are also smaller than those
of the Virginia Runner, but larger than Spanish peanuts.
The percentage of oil is high as compared with other
American varieties, but lower than that of peanuts grown
in Africa. The weight of the North Carolina variety is
twenty-eight pounds per bushel.

The Spanish is the earliest variety of American peanuts.
The branches grow upright, and the pods are clustered
around the base of the plant (Fig. 205). Hence, in sandy
soil practically all of the nuts adhere to the vines when
the latter are pulled, after being loosened. The pods are
short and slender, usually containing two nuts. The hull
lies in close contact with the nut, so that moisture is quickly
PEANUT

Fic. 205.— A Bunch oF SPANISH PEANUTS.

 
478 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

conveyed to the latter; as a result, Spanish peanuts sprout
more quickly, if left in the land after maturing, than do
varieties with larger pods and more space between nut
and shell. Hence, Spanish peanuts must be dug or used
as hog feed soon after ripening, while the large-podded
varieties may remain sound enough for hogs to eat through-
out the first half of the winter.

Spanish peanuts require less than four months from
planting to maturity, or at least a month less than most
other varieties. Hence they may be planted later. They
are sometimes planted after oats are harvested, but under
these conditions the yield is reduced. The latest date
for planting Spanish peanuts with the expectation of a
fair yield is about July 1, in the central part of the cotton-
belt. Spanish peanuts can be grown on poorer soil and
on soil with less lime in it than can most other varieties.

458. Uses. — The peanut constitutes an important
human food. It is eaten roasted, for which use the va-
rieties having large pods are preferred. The shelled peas
are extensively used in confectionery, and to this use the
Spanish and the smaller peas of the other varieties are
largely devoted. In Marseilles, France, and in other
localities in Europe, large amounts of peanuts from Africa
and India are converted into oil and peanut cake. Peanut
oil commands a higher market price than cotton-seed oil
and is largely used as a substitute for olive oil. There
is need for further investigation to determine whether it
is practicable for Southern cotton oil mills to manufacture
peanut oil from some of the African peanuts, rich in oil,
which could doubtless be successfully grown in the
South.
PEANUT 479

Peanut butter, made from the ground peas or nuts,
with or without the addition of oil, is a palatable and
nutritious article of human food and is rapidly growing
in popularity.

459. The peanut and its by-products as food for live-
stock. — Outside of those regions in which the peanut
is grown as a sale crop, its principal use is as a food for
hogs, the hogs doing the harvesting. To make the season
in which peanuts are available as long as possible, there
should be a succession of plantings of Spanish peanuts at
intervals of a few weeks; this succession of Spanish pea-
nuts should be planted in addition to the necessary acreage
in the running varieties, the latter being grown largely
with a view to use in December. Hogs make satisfactory
growth on peanuts alone, but the addition of a small
amount of corn makes the gain more rapid and improves
the quality of the meat and lard produced.

Hogs fed on peanuts make very soft pork and lard that melts
at a low temperature. Hence, it is advisable to remove pea-
nuts from the ration at least a month before the animals are
killed.

In growing peanuts as an article of sale, the nuts left in the
field and the immature or unmarketable pods may be used in
fattening hogs.

The Spanish and other varieties of peanuts having an erect
habit of growth produce from 1 to 2 tons of excellent hay per
acre. This must be mowed before many of the leaves fall or
become spotted. The field may then be grazed by cattle and
finally hogs turned in to consume the nuts.

Peanut meal is quite similar in composition to cotton-seed
meal, and suitable for the same uses.

In some regions the entire plants — vines with attached nuts
—are fed to horses.
‘SLONVAd DNIHOVLS — ‘90% “DIT

 

 

 
PEANUT 481

460. Harvesting. — The principal harvesting season is
the months of September and October. Peanuts for mar-
ket or for seed should be dug before frost. They are
ready for harvesting as soon as the pods about the base
of the plant show a tendency to shed, or easily become
detached from the vine. Harvesting may be done in a
variety of ways. The usual method is to remove the
moldboard from a turn-plow and run the share under the
row on each side at a sufficient depth not to sever the pods
from the branches. The side from which the moldboard
has been removed is kept next to the row.

Sometimes a special blade is attached to the plow in
such a way as to run under the line of plants. The plants
are then lifted by hand or by means of forks and thrown
into small piles on every third row. They are stacked,
usually on the same day as dug, and before the plants
have thoroughly dried. The stacks are as slender as
possible and only about five feet high (Fig. 206). They
are made around poles seven feet long, driven securely
into the ground. The tops are turned outward and
the nuts inward, so as to protect the latter from rain,
dew, and sunshine, and from the attacks of birds and
other animals. Before making the stack, a few short
poles are placed on the ground so as to keep the nuts
from resting on the latter; a little space for ventila-
tion is left around each stack-pole. The stack is capped
with grass, hay, or other material suitable for shedding
water.

461. Yields of peanuts. — At the branch Experiment
Station at Newport, Arkansas, a yield of 172 bushels per
acre was made by planting Spanish peanuts 4 inches apart

21
482 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

in drills 2 feet apart.1 This is probably the largest yield
on record. <A yield of 60 bushels or more of any variety
may be regarded as a good crop. The average of the
entire country in most years is below 35 bushels per acre.

462. Enemies. — The peanut has few enemies either
among insects or among the minute organisms usually
concerned in the diseases of plants.

The most common disease is a form of leaf-spot (Cercospora
personata). The symptoms are the appearance of brownish
spots on the leaves. This disease is more frequently noted on
sour or poorly drained land. If it appears late in the life of the
plant, it will often be practicable to mow the erect varieties for
hay before the disease has rendered the vines unfit for this use.

In a few localities, especially around old premises, the peanut
plant is sometimes killed by a form of root rot (Fusarium). The
symptoms are the presence of a mass of white threads on the stem
just below the surface, together with the appearance of minute
round, whitish, or brownish bodies, about the size of mustard
seeds,- clustered around the stem, close to the surface of the
ground.

Doubtless rotation of crops, keeping off of the infected fields
most of the legumes and other susceptible crops, is the best means
of avoiding injury by this disease.

LABORATORY EXERCISES

1. Determine the weight of 100 shelled nuts of the Spanish
and of some larger variety.

2. Determine the pereentage of hulls in the unshelled dry
nuts of both the Spanish and some larger variety.

3. If growing peanut plants are available, make a drawing
showing where the ‘‘ pegs” or “needles ’’ originate, and the
enlargement which they undergo after penetrating the soil.

4. The principal laboratory work to accompany this chapter

1 Ark. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 58.
PEANUT 483

should be the actual performance or observation of the field
operations herein mentioned.

LirERATURE

Hanpy, R. B. Peanuts: Culture and Uses. U.S. Dept. Agr.,
Farmer’s Bul. No. 25.

Beattie, R. W. Peanuts. U. 8. Dept. Agr., Farmer’s Bul.
No. 356.

Newman, C. L. Peanuts. Ark. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 84.

Roper, Wittram N. The Peanut and its Culture. Petersburg,
Virginia.

Corbett, L. C. Peanuts. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. 2, pp. 514-
519.
CHAPTER XXIX
SUGAR-CANE — SaccHARUM OFFICINARUM

SuGAR-CANE is one of the family of the grasses. Like all
the grasses, sugar-cane has a jointed stem with a leaf origi-
nating at each node. The leaves are arranged in two
vertical ranks, and are borne alternately on two sides of
the stalk. The plant grows to a height of 8 to 12 feet, or,
in tropical countries, to a greater height.

The stem is large and upright, except when bent or
reclined by wind or by its own weight. A number of
stalks usually grow together in a cluster, due to the fact
that this plant throws up additional stems from the buds
at its lower nodes below the surface of the ground.

463. Duration. — Sugar-cane is perennial. In some
tropical countries a number of harvests are secured from
a single planting. In Louisiana usually only two or three
crops are grown before the stubble becomes too thin to
produce profitable yields. In the pine-belt east of Loui-
siana and north of the latitude of Florida, a planting of
sugar-cane usually affords but a single crop, annual plant-
ing being necessary. In this region the cane is usually
cut and made into sirup within eight months after the
date of planting. In tropical countries, the plants are
often permitted to grow for fourteen months or more
before being harvested.

484
SUGAR-CANE 485

464. Leaves. — The leaves of sugar-cane are broad and
long, sometimes reaching a length of three feet. In some
varieties minute prickles occur on the leaves, making the
harvesting of the crop disagreeable. The leaves have a
central midrib, which gives a moderate degree of stiffness
to the lower part of the leaf-blade.

The leaf of the sugar-cane, like that of corn, has special
cells which, when the supply of water is not sufficient,
roll it together, thus reducing the loss of moisture. The
leaf-sheath, or part that folds around the stem, serves
to protect the bud, or eye, which it incloses. As the plant
matures, the leaves unclasp from the stem and hang loosely
or fall. The falling of any leaf is regarded as an indication
of the maturity of the internode next below this leaf.

In the cells of the leaves the green coloring matter
during daylight manufactures starch from the carbonic
acid gas of the air and the water brought from the roots.
This starch is then changed and conveyed to all parts of
the plant, a large part of it being finally deposited in the
pith cells of the stem in the form of sugar. Thus, sugar,
the valuable product of cane, is made up almost entirely
of water and of a gas occurring in abundance in the air;
if only sugar were removed from the land there would be —
practically no exhaustion of the plant-food by the growing
of sugar-cane.

465. Roots. —A small part of the main stem of cane
is below the surface of the ground, connected below either
with the cane that was planted or with another cane,
from one bud of which it grew. The nodes, and hence
the buds, on this underground part of the stem are very
close together, making it possible for a number of stems
486 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

to spring up in a cluster or stool as the result of the growth
of these underground buds into suckers, or young canes.
In a band around the stalk at each node are a number of
nearly transparent dots. From these dots spring true
roots when this joint is kept moist by
contact with the soil. The roots are
fibrous and usually they do not pene-
trate to great depth.

466. The stem. — The part most
valued is the stem, from which sugar
and sirup are manufactured. The
stem is large and cylindrical, and con-
sists of a series of internodes of vari-
able length, separated by joints, or
nodes (Fig. 207). The internodes
(often popularly called ‘ joints ’’) are
short at the base and longer toward
the middle or upper part of the stalk.
The length of internodes varies greatly
with different varieties and is de-
creased by drought, or by other con-
dition unfavorable to growth. The
Fic. 207.—Parr or a rind or outer portion of the stalk con-
PEE Oe ee eters chiefly of strong fibrous tissue,

A, buds or eyes; B, Se
joints; C, nodes: D, in. glVing strength and hardness to the
ternodes; X,dotswhere stem. The rind, and hence the stalk,
Poe era eee is of various colors, depending on the
variety. Among the most common colors are purple
(or reddish), striped purple and white, and green. Yellow,
white, brown, and other colors also occur, especially in
varieties grown in tropical countries.

 
SUGAR-CANE 487

467. Structure of the stem. — On cutting across a stalk
of cane, one finds the greater part of the space within the
rind occupied by white pith cells. It is within these

 

Fie. 208.— Cross Section oF Part oF A STEM OF SUGAR-CANE.

The dark spots inclosing smaller white spots are the bundles which
contain the tubes and vessels through which liquids circulate ; the greater
part of this section consists of pith cells. Greatly enlarged.

white pith cells that the sugar is contained. ‘Lhe enormous
pressure of a mill is required to expel the juice in which
the sugar is dissolved.
488 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

At intervals among these pith cells may be found strands of
tougher tissue running parallel to the length of the stalk (Fig.
208). These tough, strong strands are the bundles of fibrous
tissue that serve for the circulation of liquids within the plant.
Each bundle (Fig. 209) contains (1) several vessels, that is, organs

 

 

Fic. 209.—Cross Section THROUGH A BUNDLE FROM THE STEM OF
SUGAR-CANB.
V, vessels for upward current ; S, sieve tubes for the descending sap;
P, pith eclls containing sugar. Greatly enlarged.

for the earrying of water and dissolved plant-food from the soil
upward to the leaves; (2) a number of smaller earriers, called
sieve tubes, through which the digested sap is returned from the
leaves to all the other parts of the plant.
SUGAR-CANE 489

The bundies are most numerous just beneath and within
the rind, where they serve to give strength and stiffness to the
stem. At the joints or nodes the bundles branch and inter-
mingle, a part being continued into the leaves, and a part enter-
ing the next upperinternode. The larger the amount of fiber, the
smaller is the amount of sugar, and the greater the difficulty of
expelling the juice. Therefore, canes with short internodes,
and hence consisting largely of the fiber that constitutes the hard
nodes, are less desirable than those with long internodes. The
internodes are longer where all conditions are favorable to a
luxuriant growth; for example, abundance of plant-food, an
ample supply of moisture, and judicious cultivation.

468. The buds or eyes. — At each node or joint on the
stem is borne a bud. This is the part of the plant from
which the next crop must grow, just as the eye of the Irish
potato serves instead of seed to perpetuate that plant.
The buds occur alternately on opposite sides of the stem.
A bud is about the size of half of a pea. It is closely
enfolded and protected by the leaf-sheath. Moreover,
each bud consists of the inner part, which is capable of
growth, and of several outer protecting coats.

The aim in harvesting before frost that part of the cane
crop intended for planting and the banking or windrow-
ing cf cane in winter is to protect the buds from freezing.
The life of the bud is easily destroyed by freezing weather,
especially if moisture has collected under the leaf-sheath
and around the bud.

469. Method of propagation. — For commercial pur-
poses, the only method of propagating sugar-cane consists
in planting the stalks or sections of stalks on which are
borne the eyes. Stimulated by the moisture and heat of
the soil, the bud swells and grows into a sucker, or young
490 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

cane. This develops a stalk, with buds at each node.
The growth of clusters of stalks results from the
growth of several of the buds on the base of the young
plant, usually from those nodes located below the surface
of the ground. Thus, a cluster or stool consists of stalks
of various sizes and ages, only one of which grew from
the planted bud, but all indirectly tracing back -to that
bud. The percentage of the eyes of planted cane capable
of growth varies greatly with different varieties, and is not
the same for the buds growing on the upper and lower
part of the stalk. Care in planting results in an increase
in the number of buds that grow, thus affording a thicker
stand. The young sucker draws its nourishment from
the mother stalk (planted cane or older growing plant)
until its own roots have sufficiently developed to supply it
with the necessary food and moisture.

470. Propagation of sugar-cane from seed. — In trop-
ical countries, some varieties of sugar-cane “‘ arrow,”
or produce from the top of the stem, when a little more
than a year old, a flower stalk, on the top of which is borne
a silky head consisting of innumerable very small flowers.
Each flower when mature resembles a small, chaffy grass
seed. Until the latter part of the nineteenth century it
was thought that no seed reached such a degree of develop-
ment as to be capable of germination and growth. How-
ever, scientists have now learned methods by which a very
small proportion of the seeds of sugar-cane produced in
tropical countries may be made to grow. The plants pro-
duced by seed grow very slowly, requiring several years
to attain the size that is ordinarily reached in a few months
by cane propagated from buds.
SUGAR-CANE 49\

471. Improvement of cane. — It has been proved that
sugar-canes propagated from buds differ among themselves
in the percentage of sugar and in other useful qualities.
It has also been found that the selection for planting pur-
poses of canes from clumps or stools the stalks of which
are rich in sugar, results in an improvement in the quality
of the next crop. By this mede of selecting good stalks,
some improvement can be made in sugar-cane.

An experiment conducted at the Louisiana Sugar Experiment
Station through six generations showed a decrease in yield from
the repeated planting of small canes. Taking the average for
all years the continuous planting of large canes produced an
average crop of 30 tons of cane per acre. The repeated planting
of medium-sized canes yielded 29.85 tons; and the continuous
planting of small canes afforded an average crop of only 25.95
tons of cane per acre. The decrease from using small seed canes
was greater in the first crop, or ‘“‘ plant cane,”’ than in the second
crop, or ‘‘ stubble cane.”’

However, it is a general rule that plants grown from
seed show greater differences among themselves than do
the same kinds of plants when propagated from buds.
Taking advantage of this, selection is made of those seed-
ling canes which show especially desirable qualities, and
these strains are thereafter propagated by planting the
canes in the usual way, thus retaining and perpetuating
the quality desired. The planting of true seed is now the
first step in the usual method of bringing into existence
new varieties of sugar-cane.

CoMPOSITION

472. Proportion of parts of the cane. — At the Louisi-
ana Sugar Station, for each ton of stripped cane of the
492 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Red or Purple variety there was found about three quar-
ters of a ton of tops, leaves, and roots. Nearly 90 per
cent of the weight of the stripped cane may consist of
juice. However, the small mills having only three rollers
usually extract only about half of the total juice.

The large and powerful mills connected with sugar-houses
extract from 75 to SO per cent of the weight of the cane as juice.

A ton of stripped cane is expected to yield between 150 and
180 pounds of sugar. Exact data for the yield of sirup are not
abundant, but the output may be roughly estimated at 12 to
15 gallons per ton of stripped cane crushed in small, poor mills,
or as much as 22 gallons in gocd mills in Louisiana.

473. Relative composition of sugar-cane in the sugar-
belt and in the coastal pine-belt. — The sandy uplands of
the coastal pine-belt of the United States afford a cane fully
as rich in sucrose, or crystallizable sugar, as the canes of
Louisiana, the sucrose usually ranging from 10.50 to 14
percent. But the shorter season in the pine-belt makes the
percentage of glucose, or non-crystallizable sugar, greater
here than in Louisiana. This higher glucose content would
be a great disadvantage in manufacturing sugar, since glu-
cose not only fails to crystallize, but its presence also causes
some of the sucrose to fail to make sugar.

On the other hand, this high percentage of glucose is a
positive advantage in sirup making, because the greater
the amount of this substance the smaller is the tendency
for the sirup to crystallize, or to turn to sugar, — a change
that is extremely undesirable.

474. Removal of plant-food from the land. — At the
Louisiana Sugar Station (Bul. No. 59) the following facta
were learned as to the amount of plant-food removed by
SUGAR-CANE 493

a ton of stripped Red or Purple cane with the accompanying
waste parts : —

 

 

| Pounps per Ton or Srrippep

 

 

 

CANE
Nitrogen | Phosphoric) Potash
In 1 ton of stripped canes . . . | 1.08 | 1.04 1.22
In leaves and tops (1376 lb.) . . 1.73 0.49 1.21
Total in cane, leaves, and tops. | 2.81 | 1.53 ee 2.43

 

 

In Louisiana, the tops and leaves are usually burned on the
land, thus saving their quota of phosphoric acid and potash, but
losing all of the nitrogen. Under these conditions the loss of
plant-food represented by a crop of 25 tons per ‘acre of stripped
cane would be

Nitrogen . . ~ sie & &% «© = “61 pounds
Phosphorie sad Shin ki oy x oo <3 326-pounds
Potash. 5 8 @ oa OG & ce 6 4 BO pourids

When the leaves and tops are burned, sugar-cane is an exhaust-
ing crop. It makes a demand for a large porportion of nitrogen
in the fertilizer, or else for much nitrogen supplied by growing
a preceding crop of cowpeas or velvet beans. Some analyses of
cane grown in Hawaii and in foreign countries show a larger
draft on the fertility of the soil than is indicated by the analyses
of American cane.

SOILS AND FERTILIZERS

475. Soils. — The sugar-cane bears a large number
of broad leaves and presents a very extensive surface en-
gaged in transpiring water. Hence, the most important
requirement in a soil for sugar-cane is that it shall afford
a generous supply of moisture throughout the growing
494 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

season. W. C. Stubbs says that the best soil for sugar-
cane should be capable of holding 25 per cent of its weight
of moisture.

In a hilly country alluvial bottoms make the best soil
for sugar-cane, provided they are well drained, and the soil
somewhat sandy, but fertile. Especially in the northern
part of the region where sugar-cane is grown, a stiff or
poorly drained soil is unsuitable for this plant. On such
soils, the yield of cane and the quality of the sirup are
unsatisfactory.

Soils for sugar-cane should be fertile, and well supplied
with vegetable matter.

Stubbs states that the soils of the sugar-belt of Louisiana con-
tain on an average

AMCs as Gk cea ee A Se ae ap (OMSeper-eent
Potash . ....... =. . O4 per cent
Phosphoric acid . . . . . . . O.1 per cent

He calculates that if the entire growth were removed from the
land, a soil of this composition contains enough of the above
fertilizer constituents for the following number of crops, each of
25 tons of cane, besides tops and leaves : —

INTHPO@ENMOR Gai ee wi oe. he, Hy Ae 70 crops
Phosphoric acid for . . . . . . 150 crops
Potash for Sos ae & ee Se es UB S8cerops
Tame tor - a « a4: 2 <: « 4 « 1250.erops

Asa matter of fact, the yield would decline to an unprofitable
amount long before any one form of plant-food would be com-
pletely exhausted.

476. Uplands for cane. — Most of the uplands on which

sugar-cane is sometimes grown east of the Mississippi
River are much more sandy, and hence much more de-
SUGAR-CANE 494

ficient in plant-food, than the soils of the sugar-belt of
Louisiana. Therefore, on such upland the yield of cane
per acre is usually lighter. However, there is partial com-
pensation in the fact that cane grown on the pine lands
is ordinarily richer in total sugars than cane grown on
the alluvial lands in Louisiana.

477. Fertilizers. — Under the system generally prac-
ticed in Louisiana, the tops and leaves are annually burned
on the field, thus returning to the soil a part of the phos-
phoric acid and potash, but robbing the soil of practically
all of the nitrogen contained in the above-ground part
of the plant. Therefore, the principal fertilizer constituent
needed is nitrogen. Experiments at the Louisiana Sugar
Station have indicated that as much as 48 pounds of nitro-
gen per acre can be applied with prot in the form of com-
mercial fertilizers. This amount is contained in about 340
pounds of nitrate of soda or in larger amounts of cotton-
seed meal, dried blood, or tankage. An application of 36
pounds of phosphoric acid per acre was found to be suffi-
cient for Louisiana soils. This amount is contained in
about 250 pounds of acid phosphate. Louisiana experi-
ments showed that cane grown on the soils of the sugar-
belt needed but little, if any, potash. No fertilizer was
found to influence notably the percentage of sugar in the
juice, when the fertilizer was used in moderation on rich
alluvial soils.

Part of the commercial fertilizer is advantageously ap-
plied before the planting of the cane, and a part may be
reserved for application soon after growth begins. If
nitrogenous fertilizer is applied too late in the summer, it
delays the ripening of the cane, and hence reduces the yield
496 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

of sugar, or injures the quality of sirup. Phosphates tend
to hasten the ripening of cane, as also of other plants.

478. Source of nitrogen. — The demands for a large
amount of nitrogen are met by the planters of Louisiana by
plowing under, every third or fourth year, a luxuriant
growth of cowpeas, usually grown in the corn in rotation
with sugar-cane. In the pine-belt east of the Mississippi
River, nitrogen should be supplied by plowing under,
the year before planting cane, a luxuriant growth of vel-
vet beans or of the Iron variety of cowpeas.

479. Fertilizer experiments with cane in the pine-belt. —
An extensive series of fertilizer experiments was conducted
for two years by the United States Department of Agri-
culture on sandy pine land in the southern part of Georgia.

This field had been in cultivation for a number of years.
When cane was not preceded by a soil-improving crop, the
results were as follows : —

(1) The fertilizer formula that can be recommended as the
result of these tests consists of

600 pounds high-grade acid phosphate,
100 pounds cotton-seed meal,
300 pounds nitrate of soda,
_100 pounds sulfate or muriate of potash,
1100 pounds, total per acre.

Such a fertilizer would contain about 86 pounds of available
phosphoric acid, 50 pounds of nitrogen, and 50 pounds of potash,
and would analyze approximately as follows : —

8.0 per cent, of available phosphoric acid,
4.5 per cent of nitrogen,
4.5 per cent of potash.

In these tests 1200 pounds, and even 2000 pounds, of a com-
plete fertilizer was more profitable than 800 pounds on sandy
SUGAR-CANE 497

soil not previously improved. However, 800 pounds was suffi-
cient on a similar soil where the entire growth of velvet beans
had been plowed under a few months before planting the cane.

(2) These quantities of fertilizer were found more effective
when divided into two applications, one before planting and one
late in May, than when all the fertilizer was used at the time of
planting.

(3) As a source of nitrogen, nitrate of soda was superior to
2otton-seed meal; the nitrogen in cotton-seed meal was more
effective and profitable than an equal weight of nitrogen in the
- form of cotton seed.

(4) For land where a crop of velvet beans had been plowed
under, the results justified the recommendation of an applica-
tion of

1100 pounds of high-grade acid phosphate,
100 pounds nitrate of soda,

_100 pounds muriate of potash,

1300 pounds, total per acre.

This mixture would analyze about
11.5 per cent available phosphoric acid,
1.1 per cent nitrogen,
4.0 per cent potash.

480. Forms of plant-food for sugar-cane.—TIt is a
common practice among the farmers of the cotton-belt
who grow cane on a small scale, to fertilize it with 25 to
60 bushels of cotton seed per acre at the time of planting,
in addition to some commercial fertilizer. At prices
of cotton seed prevailing in recent years, the necessary
nitrogen can be supplied more economically in the form
of commercial fertilizer, and still more economically by
plowing under a preceding crop of cowpeas, velvet beans,
or other soil-improving plant. The use of much stable
manure, while not unusual, is apt to give the sirup a dark

color and inferior flavor.
2k
498 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

For plants like sugar-cane, in which a high quality of

product is important, it is usually regarded as better to
enspitsy, sulfate of potash than muriate of potash or kainit.
: were, this point needs further investigation.
Summary regarding fertilization of cane. — On
previously enriched, sugar-cane requires a fertilizer
‘éh-inhitrogen. Potash is needed on the sandier lands,
but apparently not on the rich alluvial soils of Louisiana.
Phosphoric acid should generally be supplied, but acid
phosphate need not constitute so large a proportion of the
fertilizer for cane as for cotton.

 
  
 

CuLtuRAL MeEtTHops

482. Propagating material. — Sugar-cane is propagated
by planting the stripped stalk, from the buds or eyes of
which grow suckers. In the sugar-belt the stubble of cane
lives through the winter, so that there cane is usually
grown two or three years in succession from a single plant-
ing. In the tropics one planting serves for many years.

In the greater part of the American sirup-belt, the stub-
ble is so often killed that,a good stand from this source
is not expected. Yet at least as far north as Montgomery,
Alabama, a small portion of the stubble lives through
the winter, and this amount can be increased by plowing
two furrows over the stubble before killing frosts occur
in the fall. In this region the plants grown from stubble
cane are usually small and short-jointed. Hence, stubble
cane here is usually not ground, but used as seed material
for the next crop.

483. Preparation of the land in Louisiana. — A crop
of cowpeas grown with corn is plowed under with four-,
SUGAR-CANE 499

six-, or eight-horse plows in August or September. Since
the cane fields are flat and wet, drainage is here a most
important matter. To improve the drainage, the~land
is thrown into high beds early in the fall, and about.a
month after the land was first plowed. These beds are
usually 5 to 7 feet wide. Plowing is deep. Water-fur-
rows are opened with a double moldboard plow,. as an
additional step in draining the land.

Throughout the season these beds are kept high and the
water-furrows kept open. To better facilitate drainage,
“quarter drains” are run across the rows at suitable
intervals at a depth of about six inches below the level
of the water-furrows. These ‘“ quarter drains” empty
into narrow, deep ditches, which are about 100 or 125
feet apart and parallel to the rows of cane. Tile drains
are in many respects preferable to open ditches, but in
the sugar-belt they are liable to become stopped by sedi-
ment, deposited when water is backed up in them.

484. Planting in Louisiana. — In the top of each bed
a furrow is opened with a double moldboard plow, the
bottom of which should not be as deep as the water-furrow.
In this newly opened trench is planted a double row of
cane. The amount of “seed”’ required by this method of
planting is about four tons per acre. The cane is then
covered by the use of a disk cultivator. Fall-planted cane
is covered with a considerable depth of earth as a protec-
tion from cold in winter.

In Louisiana, planting begins as early in the fall as the
cane reaches sufficient maturity for the buds to germinate.
It continues at least until the grinding season begins in
November, when the laborers and teams are needed for
500 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

the cutting and hauling of the crop. Whatever areas are
not planted in the fall or early winter are planted in Feb-
ruary or March, using cane that has been protected
throughout the winter in windrows.

Fall planting is usually considered better than spring
planting, the former affording an earlier growth and a

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fie. 210.— OnE Form or Cane Loapben.

larger harvest. In Louisiana the entire uncut stalk is
used for seed. In some warm countries the tops are
planted as soon as cut, thus utilizing for planting that part
of the plant which is of least value for sugar-making.
485. Planting in the pine-belt. — The land is plowed
into beds 5 or 6 feet wide. In the water-furrow is strewn
commercial fertilizer, or frequently 25 to 50 bushels of
SUGAR-CANE 501

cotton seed per acre. Cotton seed is usually so high in
price that other nitrogenous fertilizers may be profitably
substituted for it. When cotton seed is used, it should
be supplemented by acid phosphate, or phosphate and
potash, mixed in the furrow with the seed. Where much
fertilizer is used, a furrow should be made through it, so
as to mix it with the soil, thus preventing the eyes of the
cane from coming into immediate contact with the ferti-
lizer ; this is because the eyes or buds may be killed by con-
tact with certain fertilizers. A single line of cane, the
ends of the stalks slightly overlapping, is then planted
in the water-furrow. The cane is covered and a list or
bed formed above it. This covers the cane so deeply that
it is desirable to remove a part of the soil before the young
plants come up. This is best done by running a spike-
tooth harrow on the rows and parallel with them. This
removes the excess of soil, kills sprouting weeds, and, by
retaining moisture below the layer of loosened soil, causes
an increased number of eyes on the planted cane to grow.

Planting is done chiefly in the first half of March, but
in parts of Florida, fall planting is sometimes practiced.

486. Tillage. — In Louisiana in the spring, a part of the
soil is removed with the hoe from above the fall-planted
cane and the row “barred off” and fertilized. Then
the soil is thrown toward the rows. Subsequent tillage
is effected chiefly by the use of a disk cultivator, supple-
mented by the use of some other suitable implement in
the middles, or water-furrows, which must be kept open
continuously to afford drainage.

In the sandy lands, the more common implements of
tillage are the serape or sweep and various styles of one-
502 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

horse cultivators. Here there is no need to use the hoe
to remove the surplus soil, for on sandy land this can be
done with a harrow before the young plants appear. Fre-
quent cultivations and occasional hoeings are given up to
the time when the cane affords shade enough to keep down
weeds and grass. After the first one or two cultivations,
the depth should be shallow. On well-drained soils in the
pine-belt, there is not the same necessity as in the sugar-
belt for making the beds high.

In Louisiana when a crop is grown from the stubble, the
dried tops and leaves of the preceding crop are burned
in winter; the first tilling then consists in loosening the
soil with the ‘stubble digger.” Previous to this, any
stubble on which the upper eyes have been injured is cut
off below the surface of the ground by the ‘stubble
shaver.” Fertilizer is applied in a furrow near the line
of stubble, and the soil is then thrown back towards the
row.

Dr. W. C. Stubbs thus describes the usual steps in the culti-
vation of sugar-cane in Louisiana: ‘t As soon asa stand is secured
jn either plant or stubble cane, the dirt is returned and the mid-
dles split out with a two-horse plow and the latter then sent to
the tool-room, to remain until the next season. The first culti-
vation is made by straddling the cane with the disk cultivator,
using three unequal disks, running them very shallow and throw-
ing very little dirt to the cane. The middle or diamond culti-
vator follows, working completely the middle of the row. In
this operation, both mules walk between the eane.

“The next cultivation is made in the same way, or if the cane
has grown considerably and requires more dirt, the three unequal
disks are removed and two or three of equal size are substituted.
These disks can be dished to throw much or little dirt. Having.
displaced the three unequal disks with those of equal size, the
SUGAR-CANE 503

cultivation continues with them, followed immediately by the
diamond or middle cultivator until ‘lay by’ is desired. Then
a single large disk is substituted on either side for the smaller
equal ones on the disk cultivator, and the two forward shovels
on the middle cultivator are turned up, leaving only three for
work, and with these the cane is laid by.”’

487. Burning. — The burning of the dried tops and
leaves results in the loss of all the nitrogen, but is consid-
ered advisable in the sugar-belt of Louisiana as a means
(1) of destroying many cane borers; (2) of causing the land
to dry out more rapidly than if the litter were left on it;
and (3) of disposing of the unrotted vegetable matter
that would interfere with cultivation.

Suggested system of cultivation in Cuba.— Earle (‘‘ Southern
Agriculture,” pp. 133-135) recommends for Cuba the following
as an improvement over the system generally practiced in that
country in the care of cane grown from stubble : —

“As soon as the cane is cut, take an ordinary horse hay-rake
and drive so as to cross the cane rows, taking the trash from one
middle and dumping it in the next one. This quickly and cheaply
clears half the ground so that it can be plowed and cultivated, and
it provides a double mulch of trash for the other half, so thick
and heavy that practically no grass or weeds can come through,
and these middles will require no further attention for the season.

‘““ Keep the alternate middles well cultivated until the begin-
ning of the rainy season, and then sow them down to cowpeas....
The next year, of course, the middles are reversed, so that all
the soil is thoroughly aerated and pulverized every two years. ...
Plowed strips make an efficient fire break; .-.. (fire) is an enemy
more dreaded than any other by the Cuban planter.”

488. Rotation for sugar-cane. — As a means of restor-
ing the nitrogen removed in the stalks and in the burning
of the leaves, the sugar planters of Louisiana grow and
504 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

 

 

Fig. 211.— A Fretp or VeLvet Beans.

One of the best legumes for improving very sandy soils.

plow under cowpeas before planting cane. Their usual
rotation is :—
First year: Corn with broadcast cowpeas sown as early
SUGAR-CANE 505

as practicable and at the rate of 1 to 3 bushels per
acre.

Second year: Sugar-cane from planted canes.

Third year: Sugar-cane from the old stubble. If the
stand of stubble is good and the land very rich, a third
crop of sugar-cane may be harvested, this also springing
from the old stubble.

The Louisiana Sugar Experiment Station found that
when the entire growth of cowpeas was plowed under as
usual, the subsequent yield was larger by 7.4 tons of cane
per acre than where only the stubble of the cowpeas was
used as fertilizer.

In the pine-belt north of Florida, annual planting of sugar-
cane is generally necessary. In this region sugar-cane
should usually be preceded either by the Iron variety of
cowpeas or by a crop of velvet beans (Fig. 211), plowed
under for fertilizer. Since the sugar-cane plant is attacked
by nematode worms, this plant should not be grown on
land where nematode worms and cotton wilt are found.
(See paragraphs 385 and 380.)

VARIETIES

489. Standard varieties. By far the most popular
variety in the pine-belt is the purple or red cane. The
striped, or true ribbon cane, is used to a limited extent.
For sale in the local markets for chewing, the green variety
is most popular, and the single stalks of this usually sell
at about double the price of other kinds. Green cane is
but little used for sirup-making, (1) because this variety
matures later than purple cane, and the yield of sirup is
believed to be less; (2) because green cane is more easily
506 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

injured while in the seed-bed; and (3) because it is re-
garded as less able to withstand drought.

490. Other varieties. — In the sugar-belt red or purple
cane and striped cane are the standard kinds. In recent
years two seedling canes introduced by the Louisiana
Experiment Station have been extensively grown in Louisi-
ana. These are D 74 and D 95. Both have afforded
in Louisiana greater yields, a greater per cent of crystalliz-
able sugar, and higher purity than the ordinary purple
cane.

D 95 is a large, erect, purple cane. It has long joints,
large stalks, and pale green foliage; it ‘ suckers” or
“rattoons ”’ well and is fully as hardy toward cold as
ordinary purple cane.

D 74 is a tall, erect, green cane, with long joints, and a
deep green foliage. It “suckers” abundantly and pro-
duces large stalks and heavy yields.

The leaves of both of the above varieties are upright in
growth and adhere closely to the stalk, which habit may
cause them to be topped too low. The yield of these
varicties is greater than that of purple cane; the sugar
produced has been found to average nearly $30 more in
ralue (La. Bul. 78, p. 21) than that from an acre of ordi-
nary cane. Moreover, these varieties are more easily
harvested, being straighter than ordinary cane.

The Louisiana Experiment Station made many field
and sugar-house tests, comparing red or purple with striped
cane. The striped cane had the following adv imtages:
The stalks grew slightly larger, affording a large yield of
cane; the stalks were softer and somewhat more easily
crushed and manufactured into sugar.
SUGAR-CANE 507

The red or purple cane was hardier and multiplied
better, producing about 16 per cent more suckers than
did striped cane. The stalks of the former were smaller,
due to the thicker stand.

491. Japanese sugar-cane.— This cane is quite dis-
tinct from the other kinds generally cultivated in the
United States. The canes are more slender, which makes
stripping of leaves more expensive and thus decreases
the value of this variety for the manufacture of sirup.
Japanese cane is much hardier toward cold than other
varieties. The stubble, even as far north as latitude 33,
puts out a sufficient number of shoots to insure a stand
the next year. A single planting may suffice for a number
of years. Only a thin stand is needed at the beginning
of the season, since this cane suckers very profusely, fifty
or more stems sometimes arising from the same cluster.
Its hardiness makes Japanese cane available for sirup
even above the central part of the Gulf States. However,
its best use here is as a green soiling food for live-stock,
especially for hogs.

HARVESTING AND USES

492. Stripping, topping, and cutting (Fig. 212).— Where
cane is grown for. sugar, the plant is mature enough
to be stripped of its leaves when the lower leaves have
become brown and partly loosened on the stalk. Another
rule as to the best time for cutting cane for sugar-making
is to wait, if practicable, until the fresh juice is thick enough
to show a test of 8 degrees on the Baumé spindle. When
the usual time for killing frost draws near, stripping and
harvesting must be done, even though only a few leaves
508 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

 

 

 

Fic, 212.— Curtina SuGAR-CcANE IN LOUISIANA.
SUGAR-CANE 509

have loosened. Every additional week during which the
cane grows now adds to its percentage of crystallizable
sugar (sucrose) and’to the purity of the juice and ease of
manufacture into sugar.

Stripping and topping are usually done while the plants
are standing. However, in the sirup-belt, the expectation
of frost sometimes makes it necessary to cut the cane before
stripping. In this case, the canes are piled and protected
by their leaves and tops until the stalks can be stripped
and ground. After lying thus in piles for a week or more,
the leaves somewhat loosen their hold on the stalk, but
this is more than overcome by the extra labor required
in handling the cut stalks while stripping the leaves.

For stripping the standing plants of cane, a patented stripper

enables the laborer in the pine-belt to work about twice as rapidly
as by using only his hands, but the stalk is not stripped quite so

 

Fie. 213.— A Device ror Srrippinc THE LEAVES FROM SUGAR-CANE.

clean of green leaf-sheaths as by handwork. <A stripper (Fig.
213) consists of a wooden handle, to one end of which are fastened
two curved, flexible, dull blades, so arranged that they easily
spring apart to admit the stalk between them. By a thrust
against the stalk it slips into the space made by the curve in the
blades; then a downward stroke removes the leaves from each
side of the plant.

At the time of stripping, the tops also are removed, usually
by a cane knife, at a point just above the uppermost joint that
is mature or colored. The cut is made higher up for sirup
making than for sugar making, because the uncrystallizable sugar
510 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

contained in the upper joints is not harmful in sirup, but unde-
sirable in the manufacture of sugar. After being stripped and
topped, the canes are cut near the ground with cane knives or
sharp hoes, and piled at convenient intervals, ready to be hauled
to the mill.

Ina single test (U. S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Chem., Bul. 75, p. 29),
it was found by chemical analysis that stripping ten days before
topping and harvesting had the effect of reducing the percentage
of total sugar. It probably also decreased the weight of cane.

By the use of ropes or hay slings laid in the wagon before
loading the cane, unloading can be hastened, the large bundles
being removed from the wagons by cranes.

‘

In the pine-belt, stalks intended for planting are dug
rather than cut. This is in order to save the eyes at the
base of the stalk and to decrease the danger of decay of
the cut cane. Experiments are needed to determine
whether the extra labor of digging is justifiable and whether
the cut cane would keep as well as dug cane if the ends were
dipped in tar or in some disinfectant.

493. Bedding the cane. — In the pine-belt, before the
occurrence of the first killing frost in the fall, that part
of the crop intended for seed cane is dug, with its adhering
leaves and tops, and piled in beds as follows : —

A layer of eane is placed on the ground, and over this is placed
another layer, its roots also resting on the ground, the leaves and
tops of this second layer covering most of the first layer. In
this way the bed is formed, each layer projecting the lower part
of its stalks about 10 inches beyond the layer beneath, the tops
and leaves of each layer covering the canes below after the manner
of shingles. The width of the bed is usually 6 to 10 feet, and the
length varies with the amount of seed cane to be kept.

When all the cane has been put in, it is covered with eane
leaves, and over all is thrown a layer of earth, completely cover-
SUGAR-CANE 511

2

ing the bed to a depth of 3 inches in the southern part of the
cotton-belt and slightly deeper farther north.

A rule often followed is to save one sixth of the crop to plant
an equal area the next year, The stalks saved for seed usually
include all those that are too small to be profitably ground.

494. Harvesting sugar-cane in Louisiana. — Harvest-
ing is done by hand, the laborers at one operation topping,
stripping, and cutting the standing cane, using a cane
knife. Cane loaders (Fig. 210) are now widely used in
Louisiana. These usually consist of a swinging boom
mounted on a heavy wagon; a grapple fork, lowered from
the end of the boom and operated by a small gasoline
engine, lifts the cane from the heaps on the ground to the
carts, or from the carts into the railroad cars.

Several cane harvesters have been patented, but up to
1910 none of them has come into general use. One great
difficulty in securing a satisfactory cane harvester is the
crooked condition of many of the stalks.

There are elaborate devices for unloading cars at the
sugar factories and for carrying the canes thence to the
rollers of the mills. Much of the crop is transported by
rail from the fields to the sugar house.

495. Time of harvesting. — That part of the crop in-
tended to be planted in the fall is cut early, chiefly before
the grinding season begins, and is promptly planted. The
canes intended for planting in the spring are cut later,
but before being injured by frost, and immediately placed,
without being topped, in windrows in every second water-
furrow, the tops and leaves of the uppermost plants
covering and protecting the stems of those below, lapping
like shingles.
512 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Furrows are then thrown on the windrows and the cover-
ing of earth is completed by the use of hoes. In spring
the surplus soil is removed, and the cane is pulled out by
driving suitable implements across the windrows.

This method of keeping planting cane in Louisiana
differs from the practice in the pine-belt.

496. Yields of cane. — The average yield for Louisiana
is about 20 to 22 tons per acre; 25 tons is a fair yield and
many fields produce 30 tons or more per acre. A good
average yield of sugar is 150 to 160 pounds per ton, giving
an average of more than 3000 pounds per acre, and under
favorable conditions and in special cases, a yield of 4500
pounds of sugar. An average yield of sugar is accom-
panied by a yield of molasses amounting to about 100 to
120 gallons per acre. In making sirup alone an average
yield in the alluvial lands of Louisiana would be 500 to
600 gallons per acre.

In the sandy uplands of the pine-belt, the yield is usually
smaller, or 12 to 15 tons of cane per acre. However, on
the sandier soil the cane is richer in total sugars. In this
region, it is a poor yield or a poor mill that affords less
than 300 gallons of sirup per acre. Under favorable
conditions and with good mills, yields above 600 gallons
per acre are sometimes made.

In Hawaii, by means of irrigation and the liberal use
of fertilizers, yields of more than 100 tons of cane and
24,000 pounds of sugar per acre have been produced. The
average yield of the irrigated plantations in Hawaii is
said to be 7 tons of sugar per acre.

497. Uses. — Sugar-cane is more extensively used for
the production of sugar than for any other purpose. This
SUGAR-CANE 513

is its almost exclusive use in countries where the warm
seasons are long, as in Louisiana, Hawaii, and Cuba. In
those regions where the climate is warm enough for the
growing of sugar-cane, but where fall frosts occur too early
for the plant to reach the degree of maturity necessary for
profitable sugar-making, this plant is used for the produc-
tion of sirup. Since, in the United States, sugar-cane can
be grown for sirup over an area considerably larger than
that suitable for profitable sugar production, a larger num-
ber of farmers are probably engaged in growing this plant
for sirup than for sugar. However, the average sirup
maker grows but a few acres at most, while in the sugar-
belt, single plantations include hundreds or even thou-
sands of acres of cane.

Sirup is the product obtained by boiling the juice from
the cane. Molasses is a by-product in the manufacture
of sugar, and, in its unadulterated form, much less exten-
sively used on the table than is sirup. Blackstrap is the
name of a very inferior grade of molasses, chiefly valuable
as food for live-stock.

The chief difficulty in extending the market for sirup
lies in the fact that there is such a wide variation in the
quality of sirup made by different farmers. Certain im-
provements in the methods of making sirup as shown in
later paragraphs would result in a more uniform product
and in an increased demand.

498. By-products. — The tops and green leaves of sugar-
cane make a satisfactory food for live-stock. The crushed
stalks, called “ bagasse,” are seldom utilized in the pine-
belt, but they are used as fuel in the sugar houses. From
this material also paper has been successfully made.

2L
514 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Srrup-MaAkING

499. The equipment. — Since the making of sugar is a
highly specialized branch of manufacturing, and not a part
of farm work, a discussion of sugar making would be out
of place in this book. On the other hand, the making
of sirup is usually a part of the farmer’s operations ; hence
it will be briefly discussed here.

The usual equipment for the making of sirup is not
expensive. It consists essentially of a mill for crushing
the cane and of a shallow pan, heated by furnace heat or
by steam, for evaporating the juice of the cane down to
the density required in sirup.

The small roller mills operated by a single horse often
extract only about half of the juice, thus causing an enor-
mous loss. A first-class three-roller mill, properly set,
will extract 60 per cent of the weight of the cane or 70
per cent of the total juice. More powerful mills with a
larger number of rollers and usually driven by steam, may
express more than 80 per cent of the juice.

The evaporator is usually a rectangular pan placed above
a home-made furnace, in which wood furnishes the neces-
sary heat. The bottom of the pan consists of a sheet of
copper or galvanized iron, and the sides are usually of
wood. In the pan are three divisions, separated by par-
titions, in which are gates or openings intended to regulate
the flow of juice from one compartment to the next one.

When steam is available, it is more convenient to cook
the sirup by means of the heat given off by coils of steam
pipes laid in the bottom of the evaporating-pan. The
advantage of steam heat consists in the ability to regulate
SUGAR-CANE 615

by a cut-off, the amount of heat, and thus to avoid any
danger of scorching the sirup.

After being expressed by grinding, the fresh juice is
strained. In addition, it is sometimes strained through
a barrel of black moss. From the strainer the juice is
conveyed to the evaporator. Here it is heated rather
slowly. Heat causes the solid impurities to coagulate or
collect in masses of scum. This scum is removed before
boiling begins, and repeated skimmings remove all other
scum that rises. The boiling is continued in the next two
compartments of the evaporator until the hot sirup has
a ropy consistency, or, better still, until a Baumé hy-
drometer, dropped into a slender deep vessel of hot sirup,
sinks to the mark on the scale indicating a density of
34°. This instrument, costing only about $1, is a far
safer guide as to when to stop the cooking than is the
eye, even of an experienced sirup maker. The use of a
hydrometer is essential for all who would make a uniform
grade of sirup.

500. Preventing sirup from turning to sugar. — The
first aim in making sirup is to produce an article of an
agreeable flavor and nearly clear, or of bright color. The
use of immature cane or of cane injudiciously fertilized
results in injury to the flavor and appearance of the sirup.

Another important aim in making sirup is to make a
product that will not, at a later date, crystallize or turn to
sugar. The larger the proportion of glucose (or non-
crystallizable sugar) in the sirup the less is the danger of
the sirup turning to sugar.

Conditions favorable to a large proportion of glucose, and hence
to a sirup not easily crystallized, are the following : —
516 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

(1) Cane not thoroughly ripe in the upper joints, that is, cane
topped rather high, since it is these partially ripened internodes
that contain the largest proportion of nonerystallizable sugar.

(2) Juice that is slightly acid, as indicated by its changing
blue litmus paper to a reddish color. If the perfectly fresh
juice is not distinctly acid, it becomes acid after standing for a
time, and after being repeatedly strained, by which it is brought
into contact with acid-forming germs.

(3) Slow cooking is desirable, since crystallizable sugar may be
changed to glucose when heated for a long time in the presence
of an acid, as in the acid juice.

(4) Stopping the cooking before the sirup becomes very con-
centrated checks the tendeney to erystallize.

(5) Exelusion of air, by canning or bottling while hot, is an
effective means by which sirup is kept from turning to sugar.

501. Effects of canning. — The sirup that commands
the highest price is that which, while still beiling hot, is
placed in cans, jugs, bottles, or other air-tight vessels,
and promptly sealed, using solder on tins or sealing wax
on top of the corks of jugs or bottles.

The reason for placing sirup while hot in air-tight
vessels is to prevent the entrance of germs, which would
cause the sirup to ferment. Intense heat destroys what-
ever germs may be already present in the empty vessels.
However, it is best first to sterilize these vessels, that is,
to kill the germs in them, by the use of steam. It has been
found possible to preserve sirup in an unfermented con-
dition in tight barrels which had been sterilized by steam
and sealed while the sirup was still very hot. However,
it is usually not possible to keep barreled sirup in a com-
pletely sterile condition. Hence, barreled sirup should
be consumed in winter, while that preserved in sealed cans,
jugs, or bottles may be safely kept for use in warm weather.
SUGAR-CANE 517

502. Use of chemicals in sirup-making. — Certain
simple chemical substances are freely used in the manu-
facture of sirup. The clear color and the degree of acidity
desirable to prevent sugaring of unsealed sirup are some-
times attained by passing the juice downward in thin
layers through a box or barrel in which it is exposed to the
ascending fumes of sulfur, burned in a small furnace con-
nected with the bottom of the sulfuring vessel.

Lime, slacked to a thin paste, is often added to clear
the juice by causing the vegetable impurities in the juice
to settle. Care is taken not to add enough lime to over-
come the acidity of the juice unless means of overcoming
the effects of lime are at hand. If the juice should become
alkaline, its acidity may be restored by the addition of a
little of a preparation called “ clariphos,’ (a pure form
of phosphate of lime, which also assists in clarifying the
juice).

History AND STATISTICS

503. Early cultivation. — Sugar-cane is a native of
Asia and probably of India. It was cultivated in India
and China long before the Christian era. Yet not until
after the discovery of America did sugar become a very
important article of consumption among the inhabitants
of Europe and America. The ancient Greeks and Romans
seem to have lacked the luxury of sugar.

From Asia, sugar-cane was carried to the islands of
Oceania and to Africa. The Portuguese carried it to the
Madeira and Canary Islands, southwest of Europe, whence,
soon after the discovery of the New World, it was uel
to the West Indies.
518 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

From the West Indies, sugar-cane was introduced into
Louisiana and Florida about the middle of the eighteenth
century.

The first sugar from sugar-cane in what is now the
United States was made in Louisiana in 1791, but so small
was the quantity that the product was rather an article
of curiosity than of use. In 1795 sugar was first manu-
factured in Louisiana on an extensive scale. De Bore, the
pioneer in sugar-making in the United States, made a
fortune in growing sugar-cane and in manufacturing sugar
on his plantation in Louisiana.

504. Production. — From this small beginning the
production of sugar increased so rapidly that at the be-
ginning of the Civil War, within two thirds of a century
after the first sugar was manufactured in Louisiana, the
annual production of sugar in that state had reached about
a quarter of a million tons. The Civil War reduced the
yield to a small fraction of this amount. At the end of
the first decade of the twentieth century Louisiana was
producing annually about a third of a million tons of sugar.
During this decade the sugar industry in the southern part
of Texas has developed rapidly.

Hawaii produces somewhat more sugar, and Porto Rico
somewhat less, than does Louisiana. Cuba manufac-
tures considerably more sugar than the total product
of all the American states and territories just named. Cuba
and Java are the world’s largest producers of sugar from
sugar-cane.

In recent years the world’s annual crop of sugar of all
kinds is about 14,000,000 tons, more than half of which
is made from sugar-beets. Sugar-cane affords about
SUGAR-CANE 519

5,000,000 tons of sugar annually. Sorghum, the sugar
palm, and the sugar-maple tree afford relatively insig-
nificant amounts of sugar.
505. Home consumption. — The United States con-
sumes a larger quantity of sugar in proportion to popula-
tion than any other country; it produces in the Southern
States and in Hawaii and Porto Rico, less than half of
the sugar consumed in the United States. Therefore,
there is room for immense expansion in this country in
the growing of sugar-cane for the manufacture of sugar.

ENEMIES

506. Insects. — The cane-borer (Diatrea  saccharalis)
is the principal insect enemy of sugar-cane in Louisiana,
and this pest is widely distributed in cane-growing coun-
tries. It is the larva, or caterpillar form, of a yellowish
moth. The full-grown larva measures about one and
a quarter inches in length. The injury is done by boring
into the stalks of cane. Sorghum, Johnson grass, and corn
are also attacked; this insect is also known as the “ larger
corn-stalk borer.”

The best treatment is merely preventive, and consists in
burning the tops and other litter of the cane in those regions
where this borer is found, and in destroying any Johnson
grass in and near the cane-fields. Since the borer has
not been reported extensively, if at all, in the American
sirup-belt, where cane is not grown for several years
in succession on the same land, care should be taken
not to import this pest in seed canes from any infested
region.
520 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

The Southern grass-worm (Laphygma frugiperda) is some-
times troublesome in Louisiana after overflows. Treatment
consists in attaching a light piece of timber to the cultivating
implement in such a way as to jar the cane, which causes the
caterpillars to fall to the ground, where they are covered with
soil by the cultivator. Dusting plants with one part Paris green
to five parts of slacked lime is also reeommended by Stubbs.

The sugar-cane leaf-hopper occurs in Hawaii, having been
accidentally introduced in seed canes from Australia. The
method of combating it consists in the importation of its insect
enemies or parasites. This leaf-hopper is not known in the
United States. a

507. Diseases. — Red cane, a discoloration of the in-
terior of the stem following cuts or bruises, is harmful if
such injured canes are planted.

There are several serious fungous and bacterial diseases
of sugar-cane occurring in tropical countries. Among
the means of escaping many of these are the selection of
varieties that show the greatest resistance to these
diseases.

Root disease. — This is due to a fungus (Marismius sacchari),
which may live from season to season in the soil or in the dead
and decaying parts of the diseased cane plants. The disease
may be shown above ground by the formation of a white, mold-
like growth on the lower leaves. The plants appear as if suffering
from severe drought, due to the loss of many of the small roots,
killed by this disease. Preventive measures consist in burning
the cane litter or diseased areas and planting canes free from
disease. It is best for the canes for planting to be grown ina
special seed field, the ‘“‘ seed eane”’ for which has either been
carefully examined, or perhaps disinfected (La. Expr. Sta., Bul.
100). Any methods of improving conditions for the growth of
cane, as drainage and good cultivation, minimize the injury from
this disease.
SUGAR-CANE 52)

LABORATORY EXERCISES

(1) Count and record the number of true roots from a node
just under the surface of the ground; also the number of dots on
a node about a foot above the ground. Do roots develop from
most of the dots?

(2) Measure and record in order the length of each internode
from the surface of the ground to the uppermost part of the stem.

(8) Cut a cross section through a stalk of sugar-cane and make
a drawing showing the relative number of bundles near the center
and near the rind.

(4) Dip the cut end of a cane bearing green leaves into diluted
red ink, and afew hours later split the next few joints above,
and trace the red liquid rising in the water vessels. Make a
drawing of one such longitudinal section.

(5) When a cane mill is next seen at work, note the dropping
of the liquid from one end of the cane as soon as the roller presses
the other end.

(6) If cane that has been kept over winter or subjected to
cold weather can be found, cut lengthwise through a live bud
and through a dead bud, and make a drawing or description of
the appearance of each.

(7) Wash away the soil from around a cluster of canes and
attempt to determine which is the oldest and which the youngest
cane in the cluster.

LITERATURE
General.

Srusss, W. C. Sugar-cane. Vol. I. La. State Dept. Agr.,
Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Srusss, W. C., Buourn, R. E., and Dopson, W. R. La. Expr.
Sta., Buls. Nos. 59, 66, 70, 78, 100.

Earte, F. S. Southern Agriculture. ¢The Macmillan Co.),
New York, pp. 117-141.

Earuez, F. 8S. Cuba Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 2 (English Edition).

Coss, N. A. Sugar-cane. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. II, pp.
599-611.
522 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Wicut, J. B. Sugar-cane. Association of Commissioners ot
Agr. of Southern States, Proceedings of Fourth Annual
Meeting (1902), pp. 66-75.

Manufacture of sirup.

Ross, B. B. Ala. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 66, 103, 183. (All out
of print.)

SrocxsripGcs, H. E. Fla. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 44.

Ross, R. E., and McQuarris, C. K. Fla. Farmers’ Institutes,
Bul. No. 1.

Witey, H. W., and others. U.S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Chem.,
Buls. Nos. 70, 75, 93, 103.
CHAPTER XXX
TOBACCO — NIicoTiIANA TABACUM

Tosacco belongs to the nightshade family (Solanacee).
This family also includes the Irish potato, tomato, and
the Jimson weed.

Tobacco is used chiefly for human consumption, the
habit of chewing and smoking being general throughout
a large part of the world. Snuff, insecticides, and some
other articles are also manufactured from tobacco. The
stems and other cheap by-products make valuable fer-
tilizers.

508. Description. — Tobacco is annual and makes its
growth during the warm season. The plant has a stout
stem, usually 4 to 7 feet high, from which grow large, thin
leaves, which constitute the valuable part of the plant.
The root system is rather shallow; the leaves vary in size
and shape in different types and varieties of tobacco.
They are arranged in eight vertical ranks, so that the
ninth leaf is immediately above the first or lowest leaf, a
fact which enables the farmer to top the plant to a definite
number of leaves without stopping to count all of them.

509. Distribution of tobacco. — The first settlers in
America found the Indians cultivating tobacco, and this
crop soon became the leading cash crop of the Virginia

and Maryland, colonists. It even became the medium
523
624 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

of exchange, taking the place of money. Tobacco is now
extensively grown in certain restricted sections from Con-
necticut to Texas. Among the Southern States Kentucky
is the largest producer, followed by Virginia and North
Carolina. In recent years, the production of a high-grade
cigar tobacco has become a leading industry in the north-
ern part of Florida and in other localities in the Gulf States.

510. Composition. — All kinds of tobacco contain vary-
ing quantities of the narcotic alkaloid, nicotine, which is
a recognized poison. The heavier and stronger the leaf,
the larger, as a rule, is the proportion of nicotine.

All parts of the tobacco plant are rich in potash and
nitrogen and also contain considerable amounts of phos-
phoric acid. Tobacco is an exhausting crop.

511. Soils and their relation to types of tobacco. —
None of the ordinary crops of the farm is so much influ-
enced in quality by the soil on which grown as is tobacco.
For this reason tobacco culture is largely confined to re-
stricted areas and to particular soils. An exact de-
scription of the soils suited to each type is not easily
made. In general, cigar tobacco and other kinds in
which a thin leaf is desirable succeed best on rather
light or sandy soils. On the other hand, heavy or
dark tobacco is best suited to stiffer land. Burley tobacco
is grown almost exclusively on limestone soils, chiefly in
Kentucky and adjacent states.

For most grades of tobacco, newly cleared land is pre-
ferred, since an abundance of humus is desirable. For
this reason, growers of this crop have cleared most of the
forests from the best soils of the tobacco districts.

The dark export tobacco of Virginia is largely grown
TOBACCO 525

on the reddish soils described as Cecil sandy loam and
Cecil clay.

Cuban cigar tobacco thrives best on gray sandy soils
and on the Orangeburg series, consisting of a fine sandy
loam, or clay loam, with stiffer, reddish clay-loam subsoil.

For Sumatra tobacco in Florida, gray, sandy, hammock
land, new and rich, is preferred. There are many other
speeial kinds of soil suited to particular types of tobacco.

512. Fertilizers. — As shown before, tobacco removes
from the soil a large amount of potash and nitrogen. For
this and for many other reasons (including the desirability
that the plant should make a rapid and continuous growth),
tobacco is liberally fertilized. The chief reliance is on
commercial fertilizers.

The form in which potash is applied is especially im-
portant. Muriate of potash and kainit should both be
avoided, because of the large amount of chlorine found in
both, which element is unfavorable to the burning quali-
ties and other properties of tobacco. Instead, potash is
best applied in the form of carbonate or sulfate of potash.

513. Nitrogen supply. — Nitrogen may be applied in
several forms: Organic nitrogen, supplied by cotton-seed
meal, dried blood, etc., is a preferred form. Nitrate of
soda is also used in moderate amounts. A mixture of
organic nitrogen and of nitrate of soda is apparently
preferable to either alone. Barnyard manure usually
makes the leaf coarser than it would otherwise be; yet
cow manure has been advised for shade-grown Sumatra
tobacco in Florida, especially with the view to supplying
humus and making the growth of the root system so rapid
as to cause the production of new roots more rapidly than
526 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

the nematode worms (paragraph 385) can destroy the older
roots.

514. Formula. — A fair proportion of acid phosphate
is customary in all tobacco fertilizers, but an excess of
this constituent has been found to injure the quality of
the leaf. A complete fertilizer similar in composition to
one in common use in North Carolina may be made as
follows : —

300 pounds acid phosphate per acre,
50 pounds nitrate of soda,
200 pounds dried blood, and
150 pounds high-grade sulfate of potash.

For shade-grown Sumatra tobacco, the amount of fertilizer
used is several times larger than indicated above. For this pur-
pose A. D. Shamel recommends the following kinds and amounts

per acre: —
1000 pounds cotton seed,

1000 pounds cotton-seed meal,
300 pounds carbonate of potash,
700 pounds fine ground bone,

_800 pounds lime,

3800 pounds, total.

515. Types and varieties of tobacco. — “ The principal
types of tobacco are the following: (1) Cigar wrapper and
binder; (2) cigar filler; (3) chewing or plug; (4) smoking;
(5) export tobaccos.”” Types refer chiefly to the principal
use made of each kind, and to the market for each.

Cigar wrapper and binder tobacco is produced from
several widely different varieties, the kind commanding
the highest price being the Sumatra, grown under cloth
or slat shade, chiefly along the Gulf coast. The best of
TOBACCO 527

the shade-grown Cuban tobacco is also sold as high-priced
cigar wrappers. Cuban tobacco grown without shade
is chiefly employed for cigar fillers; that is, for the body
of cigars. In the United States it is grown chiefly in
Connecticut and near the Gulf Coast.

The dark, heavy tobaccos of southern Virginia and of
Tennessee, — for example, the varieties Blue Pryor and
Orinoco, — belong chiefly to the
chewing or plug and to the export
types. The greater part of the
bright tobacco of North Carolina
and of the light-colored tobaccos
of Virginia and Maryland are
employed for smoking.

The White Burley, grown in
Kentucky, is chiefly used for
chewing tobacco, but also for
smoking.

516. Saving seed, and tobacco
breeding. — The large, conspicu-
ous flowers (Fig. 214) of tobacco
are borne in clusters. The
flowers are either self-pollinated
or cross-pollinated. Experiments
have demonstrated that by in-
closing the: flower buds under
paper bags so as to prevent cross-
pollination, the plants from seed
thus produced are more uniform, productive, and vigorous
than when cross-pollination is permitted. Any variety
of tobacco can be improved by careful selection of the

 

 

Fic. 214.— Diacram or Tos
BACCO FLOWER.
528 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

 

 

Fic. 215. — SHowING THE RESULTS OF BREEDING A STRAIN OF TOBACCO
REsISTANT TO DISEASE.

 

 

 

 

 

Fic. 216.— Youne Topacco PLants.

The largest plant, on the left, is from the heaviest seed.
TOBACCO

best plants (Fig. 215) and by thus bagging the flowers
to insure self-pollination. Only the central cluster of
flowers should be bagged, the others being removed.

The seeds of tobacco are extremely small. The
largest of these produce much better plants than
the smallest (Fig. 216). A special device or blower
has been invented for use in removing the smaller
seed from those to be planted (Fig. 217). This
device consists of a glass tube about five feet long,
with a fine-mesh wire screen near the bottom, and
a small bellows connected with the lower end of the
tube.

In growing Sumatra and Cuban tobacco, it is
customary to import the seed every year or every
few years from Sumatra and Cuba.

CuLturAL Mertrsops

517. Seed-bed. — The seed
of tobacco are so minute, re-
quiring about 5,000,000 to
make one pound, that it is
necessary to germinate the

 

 

seed and start the young Fic. 217.—A Tosacco Sze

plants in a specially prepared Pee

seed-bed, from which they are later transplanted to the
field. The preferred location for a seed-bed is on recently
cleared land, where the soil contains much vegetable
matter and few seeds of grass and weeds. A well-drained
spot, sheltered on the north, is usually best. The seed-
bed should be convenient to water, since the bed must be

2M
530 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

watered often enough to keep it continually moist, in
order to insure the prompt germination of the seed and
the rapid growth of the young plants.

 

 

 

 

 

Vig. 218.—A Cioru SHADE or TENT, HERE USED AS A SEED-BED.

As a rule, brush and wood are burned on the chosen
spot until the soil has been well heated to a depth of about
TOBACCO 531

3inches. The chief object in this is to destroy weed seeds.
Then the soil is spaded or dug and thoroughly prepared
by raking. The bed is inclosed on all sides by a frame
made of inch boards placed on edge.

Since the burning drives off much of the nitrogen, and since
the seeds are so small as to furnish practically no food to the
young plant, the bed must be fertilized liberally, using quickly
soluble, complete fertilizers rich in nitrogen. About 20 pounds
of nitrate of soda for each 100 square yards of surface is especially
helpful. Most of this may be applied before planting, but ad-
ditional amounts of nitrate of soda may be added in very dilute
solution in the water applied to the young plants.

After raking in the fertilizer, preferably a week or more before
planting the bed, the seed are sown and the frame covered with
light cotton cloth. The purpose of the canvas covering is to
retain the moisture and heat and hence to hasten germination
and growth. The cloth also keeps out some injurious insects.
This covering should be removed about a week before the plants
are to be set in the field, so that they may become toughened.

518. Sowing the seed. — The seed are sown in January
or February, or, in the cooler parts of the South, in March.
The seed are first mixed with wood ashes or corn meal,
so that they may be more evenly distributed. To further
insure uniformity of distribution, half of the seed are usually
sown broadcast in one direction over the entire bed, and
the remainder are then sown crosswise to the direction
of the first sowing. The seed are pressed into the soil
with a light roller or by the use of the feet, sometimes
after the surface has been very lightly raked, brushed,
er whipped.

The quantity of seed varies greatly with different
growers. An amount frequently used is from 1 to 2
tablespoonfuls for each 100 square yards of tobacco bed
532 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

519. Preparation of land. — For tobacco the land should
be thoroughly prepared a number of weeks or even months
before the plants are to be set in the field. The first
plowing is level or broadcast. Rows are opened at the
desired distance apart, the fertilizer is drilled in these and
mixed by the use of some cultivating implement. Then
a ridge or “list ” is thrown up above the fertilizer. The
details of preparation vary greatly in different regions,
the tobacco being sometimes planted on ridges and else-
where practically on a level, the “list ’’ which covered
the fertilizer having been first pulled down with a harrow
or board.

520. Distance between plants. — Practice varies greatly
with different types of tobacco and in different regions.
In the dark tobacco district of Virginia and Tennessee,
the rows are usually 3} feet apart and the plants about
3 feet apart in the rows. On the other hand, White
Burley tobacco in Kentucky stands nearly twice as thick
as this in the row; while under shade in Florida, Cuban
tobacco is set 14 inches apart and Sumatra tobacco only
about 12 inches apart in rows 34 to 4 feet apart.

521. Setting or transplanting. — After the plants are
of sufficient size, all danger of frost past, and the soil
thoroughly warmed, the young plants are set in the field
at the desired distance apart. In Florida, setting of Cuban
tobacco should be finished by the middle of May and the
transplanting of Sumatra tobacco should be completed
by the middle of June, the bulk of each crop being set
considerably earlier.

In Virginia the period for setting plants extends from
the middle of May to the latter part of June Here early
TOBACCO 533

setting is much preferred, partly because, with tobacco
cured with little or no artificial heat, conditions are much
better for curing the early crop than for tobacco that ripens
after cool weather begins.

Plants are usually ready to be set in the field 9 to 10
weeks after the sowing of the seed, or at a shorter interval
when the seed-bed is planted late.

Before removing the young plants from the seed-bed, the latter
is thoroughly moistened. Then the young plants are carefully
lifted, carried to the field, and set with the least possible delay.
Some Florida growers prefer to wash from the roots the adher-
ing soil of the plant bed.

Setting of plants is usually done by the use of a short, sharp-
ened stick or peg. For setting large areas, a transplanting
machine is advantageously employed. This machine (Fig. 219),
manned by a driver and by two men to drop the plants, sets,
waters, and places soil around the plants at one passage along the
row.

In three or four days after setting, or as soon as the dying
plants can*be detected, the field should be reset.

522. Cultivation or tillage. — About a week after the
plants are set, the field should be tilled. The first culti-
vation may be deep, if loosening of. the soil is rendered
necessary by previous tramping while setting the plants
or by the compacting of the soil as the result of heavy
rains. All later tilling should be shallow and repeated at
frequent intervals. With shade-grown tobacco, cultivation
is given weekly. Usually two hoeings are required. Tillage
usually ceases, especially in shade-grown tobacco, when
the buttons or flower heads appear or when the leaves
become too large.

523. Topping. — This practice consists in removing
SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

534

‘OOOVEAOF ONILLAG UOL ANIHOVIT ONILNVIdSNVUL, V — ‘613

‘DIL

 

 

 

 
TOBACCO 5385

the main or central flower bud together with such a num-
ber of the upper leaves as will save, to mature on the
plant, only the number of leaves found best for each va-
riety of tobacco and for each class of soil.

The object of topping is (1) to increase the size of the
remaining leaves, by concentrating in them more of the
elaborated plant-food; (2) to make the leaves thicker and
of stronger quality; and (3) to make the crop mature as
uniformly as possible. The general rule is that the fewer
the leaves left, the larger, thicker, and stronger in quality
will they be. On the other hand, high topping results
in leaves of reduced size, but having the thinness that is
prized in cigar wrappers.

The number of leaves left varies greatly among the different
types. In heavy tobacco, it is usually 8 to 10, in Burley at least
14, in Cuban at least 16; in shade-grown Sumatra 25 or more
leaves may be permitted to mature. With Sumatra tobacco,
grown under shade, topping is sometimes omitted if the land is
very rich, the aim in this case being to make the leaves thinner
than if the plants were topped.

524. Suckering. —Soon after the plants are topped,
branches or suckers grow from the axils of the leaves.
These should be pinched or broken off before they have
received much of the plant’s supply of nourishment. This
process of suckering, or removing of suckers, should be
done at such frequent intervals as to prevent their reach-
ing a length of much more than 2 inches. The object in
suckering is to prevent the diversion of plant-food and
growth into these branches and to concentrate growth
in the best or middle leaves.

525. Growing tobacco under shade. —It has been
SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

536

 

 

 

 

SHADE

A Lata

UNDER

@ TosBacco PLANTS GROWING

Youn!

220.

Fia.

ALABAMA.

IN
TOBACCO 5387

found by experience that tobacco grown under artificial
shade affords the highest quality of cigar wrappers and the
largest proportion of leaves fit for this use. This is the
common method of growing Sumatra and Cuban tobacco
for cigar wrappers.

A “shade” consists of a field inclosed by a solid wooden
wall about 9 feet high, the entire area of the field being covered
at this height with thin cotton cloth or with laths (Fig. 220).
The purpose is (1) to exclude a part of the sunlight, thereby
making the leaves thinner, and (2) to increase the amount of
moisture in the air and the soil, the result of which is a luxuriant
and rapid growth. Shade-grown tobacco plants grow tall,
often standing 9 feet high. They mature a large number of
thin elastic leaves.

When laths are used, they are usually so arranged as to afford
half shade; that is, the space between laths is equal to the width
of a lath. The covering of laths or cloth is supported by a
suitable framework of wood and crossed wires. The cost of
shading an acre with laths is several hundred dollars. Tobacco
under shade is more highly fertilized than is customary with
tobacco grown in the open, and extreme care is taken to make
all conditions of preparation, fertilization, and cultivation favor-
able to rapid growth. The result is a large proportion of leaves
free from any blemish, and possessing the size and quality to
command the highest price that is paid for any American tobacco.

526. Place of tobacco in the rotation. — The following
six-year rotation is recommended in Bulletin No. 165 of
the Virginia Experiment Station for tobacco fields in the
dark-tobacco district of Virginia.

First year: tobacco.

Second year: wheat.

Third and fourth years: mixed grasses and clover.

Fifth year: corn.

Sixth year: cowpeas.
588 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

This brings tobacco immediately after cowpeas, after
which the rotation is repeated.

In the limestone region of Kentucky the best position for
tobacco is believed to be after a blue-grass sod, which supplies
the necessary vegetable matter. Tobacco is then grown two
years. It is followed by wheat, in which is sown a mixture of
the seeds of clover, timothy, and blue-grass, with a view to again
getting the field, after a few years, into blue-grass. For the
same region the following four-year rotation has been suggested,
where it is not practicable for tobacco to follow blue-grass : —

First year: tobacco.

Second year: wheat with grass seed.

Third year: clover and timothy.

Fourth year: clover and timothy.

In the bright-tobacco districts of North Carolina a good
plant to furnish the necessary vegetable matter and nitrogen is
erimson clover, which may enter the rotation as a catch crop
after cotton or corn and either immediately before, or a year
preceding, the time when tobacco is to occupy the field.

HARVESTING AND CURING

627. Indications of maturity. — Tobacco will usually
be ready for harvesting in three to three and a half
months after the plants are set, or somewhat more than
a month after the date of topping. The ripening of to-
bacco is shown by the following symptoms: (1) The
leaves change from a deep green to a lighter shade of green,
with a faint tendency to yellowing or to yellowish mottling.
(2) The leaf tends to crumple, especially along the edge.
(3) The leaf veins become quite brittle, so that when the
leaf is folded between the fingers, a clear, distinct break
is made. (4) The leaf becomes heavier and somewhat
less smooth to the touch.
TOBACCO 539

528. Two methods of harvesting. — The two methods
of harvesting are (1) priming, that is, removing the leaves
separately, and (2) cutting the stalks. While the object
of topping is largely to cause the remaining leaves to ripen
more nearly together, yet they will not all arrive at the best
stage for harvesting on the same date. On account of
this difference in the time of ripening of the leaves on the
same plant, it has become customary, especially with
high-priced tobacco, to harvest each leaf separately,
priming it, or going over the field several different times.

The other method. of harvesting consists in cutting the
entire stalk with the attached leaves. The stalk is then
split from the top to near the base, and 6 to 10 of the split
plants are then straddled over a split stick or lath, or
otherwise strung on a stick which is about 44 feet long.
The plants are then allowed to wilt slightly, taking care
that they are not injured by too much exposure to the
sun. After wilting they are hung for a few days on a
scaffold in the field, and later carried to the curing barn;
or they are taken directly from the field to the barn,
where they are to be cured.

When the leaves are harvested separately, or primed,
they are strung on wires or strings, being arranged in
pairs with the upper surfaces facing each other, so as to
prevent excessive crumpling.

529. Methods of curing. — Methods of curing differ
widely, varying with the type of tobacco and with other
conditions. They may be divided into (1) curing with
open fires; (2) flue-curing; and (3) air-curing. Special
barns are built to suit the method of curing. Those in-
tended for the flue-curing process are supplied with ven-
540 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

tilators in the top, with a furnace, and with flues of terra-
cotta or other suitable material for conveying the heat
through the barn. Structures in which air-curing is to
be done should have numerous ventilators on two
sides.

All curing barns are supplied with the necessary in-
terior framing to support the sticks on which the tobacco
is hung.

Fire-curing.— The method practiced in the dark-tobacco dis-
trict of south-central Virginia is thus described in Bulletin No.
175 of the Virginia Experiment Station :—

“The yellowing stage is the first step in the curing process.
The change to yellow is caused by a breaking down of the green
chlorophyll granules during the first few days after the plant is
cut. The riper the tobacco, the more quickly will this change
take place. Therefore, to yellow uniformly, the plants should
be cut as nearly as possible at a uniform stage of ripeness. This
change in the leaf is favored and hastened by a gentle warmth
(about 90° F.), by moderate moisture, and by dampness. It is
not customary to use artificial heat in yellowing this type of
tobacco, especially with early-cut tobacco... .

“The next change that takes place in the leaf is from the yellow
to the brown stage, and for this purpose artificial heat is used. . .
The first fires built under this tobacco should be very small to
avoid danger of premature drying of the tips of any of the leaves
not yet fully yellowed. The temperature should not be raised
above 95° F. or 100° F. at this first firing, and should be main-
tained only long enough to dry out the surface moisture and start
the tips of the leaves, already well yellowed, to turn brown. A
few hours at this time will generally be sufficient. ... This
process should be repeated every few days until all the gum
has disappeared from the leaf and the tips of the leaves have
begun to take on the brown color. After these conditions have
been attained, a somewhat higher temperature may be used
safely if the moisture supply is sufficient not to result in the dry-
TOBACCO 541

ing of the leaf before the color changes have taken place. It
will not usually be found desirable for the temperature to rise
above 125° F. for any length of time. ... After the barn has
been fired three or four times, the leaf will require no further
attention, until it is desired to take the tobacco down, perhaps
several weeks later.

“As a general principle, to cure tobacco light it should be
spread thinly in the barn and enough fires used to cause a quick
cure without drying the leaf too rapidly. To darken or blacken
tobacco, the principle is to delay the cure and not to dry off
excessive moisture faster than is necessary to prevent actual
damage. ... Tobacco once darkened cannot be lightened
again; it is possible for the manufacturer to take light tobacco
and darken it.’’

530. Flue-curing.— Most of the bright tobacco of
North Carolina and Virginia is flue-cured in specially
constructed barns, the process requiring only three or
four days.

“ As soon as the barn is filled with tobacco, fires should be
started, and the temperature raised to 90° F., where it should
remain for 24 to 30 hours, during which time the tohacco becomes
a uniformly bright yellow. Then the temperature is raised from
90° to 120° F., from 15 to 20 hours. This process is commonly
known as ‘ fixing the color.’ The temperature may then be
increased gradually to 125° F., at which point it should be main-
tained for about 48 hours. By this time the leaves should be
almost, if not entirely, yellow, but the stalk will still be green.
In order to cure the stalk, the ‘temperature can be raised to
175° F., at the rate of 5° an hour, where it should remain until
the stalks are thoroughly dried.”” — A. D. SHamet in Bailey’s
“Cyclopedia of Agriculture,” Vol. II, p. 652.

531. The air-curing of Cuban cigar tobacco in Florida. —
Most Sumatra and Cuban cigar tobacco is subjected to
air-curing, as are also many other types, including White
642 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

Burley. The curing of Cuban cigar tobacco in Florida
is thus described : —

“When the tobacco is primed from the stalk, it should not
take longer than two weeks to cure; when hung on the stalks,
three or four weeks are nocessary.... In a general way it
may be said that if a barn is filled with green tobacco, and the
weather is hot and dry, the ventilators should be tightly closed
for about three days, by which time the tobacco will be quite
yellow. The barn should then be opened at night and kept
closed during the day. This is done to prevent rapid curing,
as rapid curing destroys the life of the leaf and gives uneven
colors. If there are frequent showers, and but lttle sunshine,
the barn should be closed and the fires started in small charcoal
heaters distributed throughout the barn. These fires should
be continued as long as is necessary to keep the barn in proper
condition. Where the charcoal heaters are not available, wood,
which has little odor and as little smoke as possible, should be
used... . To obtain the best results, the tobacco should be-
come fairly moist and be fairly dried out once in every 24 hours.

‘“ When the stems of the leaves are thoroughly cured, they are
ready to be taken to the packing house. To get the tobacco in
a condition to be handled, all of the places for ventilation are
left open for one night. The next morning the tobacco will
be in what is called ‘good ease’; that is, it will have taken up
moisture and become soft and pliable. The barn is then tightly
closed in order to retain the moisture. The tobacco is taken
from the poles and stripped from the stalk or taken from the
string, as the case may be, and is packed in bundles that weigh
from 35 to 40 pounds and delivered to the packing house as
quickly as possible.””, —M. L. Froyp in Report No. 62, U.S.
Dept. Agr.

532. General remarks on curing tobacco. — The meth-
ods of curing are so different in each section that no writ-
ten directions will alone suffice. Tobacco curing is a matter
of local experience. Whatever the method employed, it is
TOBACCO 543

usually advantageous to fill the barn promptly so that all
of the tobacco may at the same time reach a similar stage
in the curing process. The changes brought about in the
curing and subsequent fermentation of tobacco are largely
the result of chemical ferments or enzymes.

533. Further treatment on the farm. — After curing is
completed, tobacco cured on the stalk must be stripped
from the stalk, and the
leaves tied into bundles,
after great pains have
been taken to assort them
into their different grades,
which are usually four or
five in number.

Subsequent treatment
of tobacco, including sev-
eral steps in the ferment-
ing of certain types, are
usually performed in the
factory, and hence are

: Fic. 221.— DIAGRAM SHOWING THAT
not discussed here. Broap Tospacco LEAVES AFFORD A

534. Yields and prices. mucH LARGER NUMBER OF WRAPPERS
THAN DO Narrow Leaves.

 

—A fair yield of cured
tobacco in the dark-tobacco district of Virginia is 800
pounds or more per acre. The same figure represents
somewhat above the average yield of the bright-tobacco
region of North Carolina. In Kentucky a good yield
of Burley tobacco is from 1000 to 1500 pounds per acre.
In Florida, shade-grown Cuban or Sumatra tobacco is
expected to yield between 1200 and 2000 pounds per
acre.
544 SOUTHERN FIELD C'ROPS

Prices are highest for the best grades of cigar wrappers,
the farmer frequently receiving for such tobacco 40 cents
to one dollar or more per pound, and the finished wrappers
after proper treatment in the factory selling for several
dollars per pound. However, by no means all of the crop
of shade-grown tobacco consists of high-grade wrappers.

The coarser and heavier the type or grade of tobacco,
the lower, as a rule, is the price. The price of tobacco
has fluctuated widely in recent years.

ENEMIES

535. Diseases. — A number of diseases attack the
tobacco plant. Among them are wilt and the mosaic
disease. Rotation of crops and disinfection of the seed-
beds are the most common methods of combating the
diseases of tobacco.

536. Insect enemies. — Among the insect enemies of
this plant are the tobacco worm (Fig. 222), the budworm,
cut-worms, and wire-worms. The nematode worm attacks
the roots of tobacco plants. The methods of combating
this pest, including rotations, are discussed in paragraph
385.

For the Southern tobacco worm (Protoparce Carolina)
dusting or spraying with Paris green in very dilute form
is employed. In addition, the plants must be ‘‘ wormed ”’
every few days; that is, examined for the purpose of
killing any insects and eggs that may be found.

Paris green, diluted with some dry material, is dusted on the
buds or young leaves as a means of destroying the budworms.

Cut-worms are combated by the use of poisoned bait placed
in the field before the plants are set.
TOBACCO 545

The wire-worm (Chambus caliginosellus) is injurious to to-
bacco plants in the Virginia tobacco fields. It is especially
abundant on fields which have recently grown up in weeds. The
means of reducing the amount of injury consists in preventing
_ the growth of weeds, especially of the Iron weed (Vernonia), in
fields where tobacco is soon to be grown. In case this weed is

 

fl

a, adult moth; b, full-grown larva; c, pupa.

present, it is recommended that instead of plowing it under it
should be mowed and burned. By setting tobacco very late,
this enemy is largely avoided, but the yield of tobaccc ‘s reduced.

LABORATORY EXERCIS S

In high schools located in regions where tobacco is not an

important crop, it will usually be advisable to omit this chapter.

The fact that the tobacco plant makes most of its growth
2N
546 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS

during the period of school vacation renders it difficult to arrange
for a comprehensive line of exercises on this plant. However,
in regions where this is an important crop, it may be practicable
for pupils to prepare and plant a small tobacco bed and to par-
ticipate in the cultural operations connected with the early
growth of the young plants.

Seeds of tobacco should be examined and germinated by plant-
ing a definite number of seeds by different methods, some on
the surface, some in the shallowest possible furrows, and some
in furrows about half an inch deep. From the results students
should write conclusions as to the best depth for planting seed.

LITERATURE

Kintuesrew, J. B., and Myrick, H. The Tobacco Leaf. New
York.

Kituesrew, J. B. The Culture and Curing of Tobacco in the
United States. Tenth U. 8. Census (1880), Agriculture.

Bonpurant, A.J. Tobacco. Ala. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 64.

Watney, Mitton. Tobacco Soils of United States. U. S.
Dept. Agr., Bur. Soils, No. 11.

Froyvp, M. L. Cultivation of Cigar-leaf Tobacco in Florida.
U.S. Dept. Agr., Report No. 62.

McNess, G. T., and Ayres, L. W. Experiments in Growing
Cuban Seed Tobacco in Texas and Alabama. U.S. Dept.
Agr., Bur. Soils, Buls. Nos. 27 and 37.

Scuutts, J. I. The Work of the Agricultural Experiment
Stations on Tobacco. U.S. Dept. of Agr., Report No. 63.

McNess, G. T., and others. The Improvement of Fire-cured
Tobaceo. Va. Expr. Sta., Bul. No. 166.

Davinson, R. J. [Chemical Composition of Tobaeco.] Va.
Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 14, 50, 51.

Carpenter, F.B. [Chemical Composition of Tobaceo.] N. C.
Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 90 A and 122.

Len, J.G. La. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 20, 25, 33.

Garman, H., and others. Ky. Expr. Sta., Buls. Nos. 28, 45,
55, 63, 66, and 129.
TOBACCO 547

Scuerrrius, W. H., and others. The Cultivation of Tobacco
in Kentucky and Tennessee. U. 8. Dept. Agr., Farmer’s
Bul. No. 343.

Harper, J. N. Syllabus of Illustrated Lecture on Tobacco
Growing. U.S. Dept. Agr., Office Expr. Sta., Farmers’
Institute Lecture 9.

Suame., A. D., and Copry, W. W. Varieties of Tobacco. U.S.
Dept. Agr., Bur. Plant Ind., Buls. Nos. 91 and 96.

Wuitney, Mitton. Methods of Curing Tobacco. U.S. Dept.
Agr., Farmer’s Bul. No. 60.

Loew, Oscar. Curing and Fermentation of Cigar-leaf Tobacco.
U.S. Dept. Agr., Report No. 59.

SHamet, A. D. Tobacco. Bailey’s Cyclo. Agr., Vol. II, pp
639-653.
 
GLOSSARY

Acid phosphate. <A fertilizer usually containing 12 to 18 per
cent of available phosphoric acid; it is made by treating
ground rock phosphate with sulfuric acid.

Alabama argillacea. The scientific name of the cotton caterpillar.

Aleurone layer. The thin layer just below the seed-coats and
constituting a part of the endosperm of the seed.

Amides. Organic compounds rich in nitrogen, but not serving
all the uses of certain other forms of protein.

Analysis. Statement of chemical composition.

Andropogon sorghum. The scientific name of all the sorghums,
including sweet sorghum, kafir, and milo.

Angoumois moth. The larve of this insect is a serious pest of
wheat and corn grain.

Anthers. Pollen cases.

Anthronomus grandis. The scientific name of the Mexican
cotton boll weevil.

Aphids. Small insects, usually called plant lice, injuring young
cotton and other plants.

Arachis hypogea. The scientific name of the peanut plant.

Ash. Ashes, or the incombustible mineral residue left after
burning vegetable or animal matter.

Auricle. Clasps, or small projections where leaf-blade and leaf-
sheath unite.

Axil of the leaf. The angle between the leaf and the stem from
which it springs.

Back-furrowing. That form of plowing in which successive pairs
of furrow slices are thrown toward each other.

Bacteria. Minute vegetable organisms, some of which cause
certain diseases of plants and animals.

Bagasse. The refuse or crushed stalk of sugar-cane or sorghum
after the juice is pressed out.

Bagging. The common cloth covering around cotton bales.

Bake. To form a crust or clod.

Balk. A narrow unplowed strip of ground between rows.

Barring-off. Throwing the earth away from a line of plants by
using a turn-plow.

549
550 GLOSSARY

Beam. That part of the plow to the front end of which the team
is attached. :

Beards. Long, stiff bristles projecting from the hull of certain
seeds.

Bedding. The act of so plowing land as to form considerable
ridges, or elevated beds. ;

Benders. A commercial term for cotton fiber intermediate in
length between short-staple and long-staple lint; so called
because it is largely grown on the bottom land in the bends
made by rivers.

Bin. A tight storage place for threshed grain.

Binder, or self-binder. A machine for cutting and tying grain
plants into bundles.

Blade. See leaf-blade.

Blissus leucopterus. The scientific name of the chinch bug of
the fields. ;

Bluestone. See copper sulfate.

Boll. The pod within which cotton seed and lint develop.

Brace-roots. Roots of the corn plant originating at a node above
ground. See p. 82.

Bracts. In the cotton plant the three leaf-like parts that closely
inclose the bud, bloom, or boll.

Branching wheat. See p. 40.

Bristles. Minute hairs, as at the base of a spikelet of oats.

Broadcast. Scattered, not sown in drills.

Budworm. See p. 206.

Bur (of cotton). The hull of the open boll.

Butt. The end of the corn ear near the point of attachment.

Calcium sulfate. A chemical combination of lime and sulfurie
acid. Gypsum or land plaster is nearly pure calcium
sulfate.

Calcodermis a@neus. The scientifie name of the cowpea-pod
weevil.

Callandra oryza. The scientific name of the weevil that is most
destructive to corn.

Canthook. A short pole with a hook attached used in handling
logs.

Capillary attraction. The force that causes moisture in the soil
to move toward the surface or toward the dryer part of the
soil.

Capped. Covered, as with an extra bundle of grain placed on
top of a shock of sheaf-grain.

Carbon dioxid. Carbonie acid gas; a gas existing in the at-
mosphere and used by plants. It consists of one part
carbon and two parts oxygen.
GLOSSARY 551

Carbon disulfide. A liquid which readily turns to a vapor that
is fatal to insect life.

Cereal. Any edible grain.

Chaff. The inclosing portion of the wheat flower that is re-
moved from the grain in threshing.

Cheat. An annual grass that is a serious weed in fields of wheat
and oats.

Check-rower. A planter by the use of which corn can be planted
in checks. See Fig. 88.

Chess. See cheat.

Chinch bug. An insect attacking corn, wheat, and other plants ;
it is entirely unlike the household pest of the same name.

Chit. The germ or heart of the grain, as in the corn kernel.

Chrysalis. The pupal or changing stage of certain insects.

Clasps. See auricles.

Club wheat. A class of wheat plants distinguished by the club-
shaped head, which is largest at the upper end.

Cockle. An annual weed with large pink flowers.

Colletotrichum gossypii. The scientific name of cotton anthrac-
nose, which is the most common form of boll rot.

Compresses. Establishments where bales of cotton are again
pressed and made denser and smaller.

Convolvulacee. The name of the family to which the sweet
potato belongs.

Copper sulfate. A chemical combination of copper, sulfur, and oxy-
gen useful for destroying the germs of many plant diseases.

Corn binder or harvester. See pp. 198 and 199.

Corn blades. See p. 99.

Corn stover. See p. 99.

Cotton, absorbent. Cotton fiber so prepared by chemicals as
to be able to absorb much water ; absorbent cotton is largely
used in medicine and surgery.

Cotton caterpillar. A caterpillar formerly very destructive to
the leaves of cotton; it was often inaccurately called the
army worm.

Cotton-seed meal. The meal made from cotton seed after the
oil is pressed out.

Cotton ‘‘square.” The young bud of the cotton flower, with its
three surroundings leafy bracts.

Coulter, rolling. A revolving disk attached to the beam of a
plow in order to cut the soil or the vegetation on it. See
Fig. 195.

Cowpeas. A soil-improving forage plant, often called “‘peas,’
or ‘‘field peas.”

Crease. The depression or furrow on one side of a grain of wheat
or rye.

’
do2 GLOSSARY

Crossing. Hybridizing, or transferring pollen to the stigmas of
a different plant, variety, or species.

Crown. That part of certain plants, as grains and grasses, from
which a number of stems spring.

Crude fiber. The woody portion of plants.

Culms. Stems or erect hramelice:

Current cross. Immediate hybridization, as shown in the hybrid
seeds developed in the same season in which impregnation
oceurs.

Cylas formicarius. The scientific name of the sweet-potato
root-borer.

Delinters. Used on p. 383 for establishments, such as cotton-oil
mills, which aalint cotton seed, that is, subject them toa
second ginning.

Delta Region. A region in the western part of Mississippi, con-
sisting of rich river bottom land.

Diabrotica 12-punctata. The scientific name of the budworm,
an insect attacking the stem of very young corn plants.
Dibble. A small implement or sharpened stick for making holes

in the ground.

Diplodia. The name of a genus of fungi causing some of the
rotting of corn ears.

Diplosis sorghicola. The scientific name of the minute insect
which destroys the seeds of the sorghums, and which is
largely responsible for the failure of the crop of sorghum
seed in the humid regions of the South.

Disinfection. Destruction of the germs of disease, usually by
treatment with chemicals or with heat.

Disked. Tilled with a disk-plow or disk-harrow.

Disk-harrow. <A harrow consisting of a number of circular con-
cave disks.

Disk-plow. A plow in which the work of cutting and inverting
the soil is done by a large, coneave, circular disk which re-
volves. The supporting framework for the disk is shown
in Fig. 80.

Dolochonyx oryzivorus. The scientific name of the rice bird or
bobolink.

Dominant quality. That one of a pair of contrasted qualities which
shows in the larger proportion of the offspring. See p. 143.

Double fertilization. That process occurring in the impregna-
tion of some plants by which the pollen influences not only
the germ of the seed, but also the endosperm.

Dough stage. The stage of a maturing grain when the seed is
in the stage of firmness represented by dough.

Duets. The channels through which the crude sap of plants
circulates.

  

 
GLOSSARY dog

Einkorn. The German word for ‘‘one grain’’; the name of one
kind of wheat.

Elementary species. Groups of similar plants ; often subdivisions
of what has generally been assumed to be one variety.

Embryo. The germ of the seed or grain.

Embryo-sac. A part of the ovary which incloses the female
germ cell.

Emmer. <A kind of wheat. See p. 40.

Endosperm. The part of the grain or seed around the germ.

Entomologists. Persons skilled in the knowledge of insects.

Environment (of plants). Surrounding conditions, for example,
soil, rainfall, fertilizer, distance between plants.

Fertilization of corn grain. The act or fact of union of the male
and female elements; the usual result of pollination.

Fibrous-rooted. Having numerous fine roots without a tap-root.

Firing. The premature drying of leaves on growing plants.

eee The name given to the pupal stage of the Hessian

Ye

Floats. See raw phosphate.

Floret. A flower.

Flush plowing, or flushing. Plowing land without forming
ridges or deep depressions; ‘‘broadeast’’ plowing.

‘‘Podder.’”’ A term often applied in the South to corn blades or
leaves. See p. 99.

Forage. Coarse food for live-stock; forage plants are those that
afford pasturage, hay, etc.

~ Forceps. Pincers.

Formalin. A liquid consisting of water in which has been
dissolved a pungent disinfecting gas, formaldehyde. This
liquid readily evaporates, and the fumes destroy germs.

Friable. Easily crumbled.

Fruit limbs or branches. On the cotton plant those branches
on which boll stems are directly borne. See p. 250.

Fungous. The adjective derived from fungus.

Fing’us, plural fin’gi. A class of vegetable organisms having no
green coloring matter, and including the rusts, smuts, and
most other plant diseases.

Fusarium. The name of a class of fungi, some of which cause
a part of the rotting of corn ears.

Galechia cerealella. See grain moths. , :

Galled spots. Areas of soil which have been impoverished by
the washing away of the surface soil.

Garlic, wild. A small onion growing wild; a troublesome weed.

Genus. <A group of closely related species of plants.

Germination. The act of sprouting, as with seeds.
554 GLOSSARY

Germination-box. A box in which seeds are sprouted to deter-
mine the proportion of seeds able to grow. See p. 138. _

Ginnery. The building, including the equipment, in which
cotton is ginned.

Gleosporium manihot. The scientific name of the fungus causing
the ‘‘Frenching”’ disease of cassava.

Glucose. A non-crystallizable form of sugar.

Gluten. See p. 39.

Gossypium. The scientific name of the genus that includes all
kinds of wild and cultivated cotton plants.

Gossypium arboreum. The scientific name of a group of cottons
largely grown in India.

Gossypium barbadense. The scientific name indicating first the
genus and next the species of Sea Island cotton.

Gossypium hirsutum. The scientific name of the genus and
species of American upland short staple and American long
staple cotton.

Gossypium obtusifolium. The scientific name of one group of
cottons grown largely in India.

Gossypium peruvianum. The scientific name of a species of
cotton supposed to have originated in Peru and largely
cultivated in Egypt.

Grain drills. Implements for sowing grain and other seed in
narrow rows.

Grain moths. Several small moths, the larve of which attack
wheat, corn, and other grain.

Graminee. The botanical name of the grass family.

Granary. A place or bin for storing grain.

““Green-bug.”’ A small plant-louse injuring grain plants.

Guano horn. A cheap metal tube with a funnel at the upper end,
used in the application of fertilizer by hand.

Head rice. Prepared rice of the highest grade.

Heaving. Lifting of plants and soil as the result of freezing of
the soil.

Heliothis obsoleta. The scientific name of the corn ear-worm and
cotton boll-worm.

Hessian fly. See p. 62.

Hopper-dozers. Devices to be pulled through fields for catching
grasshoppers. An essential feature is a vertical cloth, which
the flying grasshoppers strike and thence fall into a large
pan containing kerosene, which kills them.

a et The part of the oat grain which tightly enfolds the
cernel.

Sue Partly decayed vegetable or animal matter in the
soil.
GLOSSARY 556

Hybridized. Crossed.

Impregnation. See fertilization.

Internodes. That part of a stem lying between two nodes or
joints. , :

Intertillage. Cultivation among growing plants.

Ipomea batatas. The scientific name of the sweet-potato plant.

Johnson-grass. A perennial grass, difficult to eradicate.

Kernel. In common usage, a grain or seed.
Kiln. A term usually applied to a house or room in which some
article is to be dried by artificial heat.

Lady-beetle. See lady-bug.

Lady-bug. A group of small beetles, many of them preying on
harmful insects.

Land plaster. An impure form of sulfate of lime. It is some-
times bought as a fertilizer ; it is also obtained free as a neces-
sary filler in acid phosphate, about half the weight of which
consists of land plaster.

Larva, plural larve. The grub or caterpillar stage of any
insect; this is the stage in which most insects feed most
ravenously and in which they make most of their growth.

Leaching. The dissolving of plant food in the water of the soil
and its removal in the water that drains away.

Leaf-blade. The expanded part of a leaf.

Leaf-sheath. See sheath.

Feet sur The stalk, which supports the expanded part of
a leaf.

Leaflets. The separate, complete, leaf-like parts that make up
what is botanically a leaf of locust, pecan, ete.

Legume. A plant bearing a pod; the legumes in common use in
agriculture, such as cowpeas, clovers, etce., ,are chiefly
valuable because the enlargements (tubercles or nodules)
on their roots store up nitrogen from the air for the enrich-
ment of the soil. Moreover, most cultivated legumes are
valuable forage plants.

Leguminous plants. See legumes.

Lint. The word commonly used to designate the fiber of cotton.

Linters. The very short lint removed from cotton seed subse-
quent to ginning; the removal of linters is usually done at
the cotton oil mills.

Lissorhoptrus simplex. The scientific name of the water weevil,
which injures rice plants. :

List. A small ridge formed by throwing two furrow-slices
together.
556 GLOSSARY

Lister. A double moldboard plow used in the Southwest for
opening a deep furrow in which to plant crops. ;

Lock of cotton. The seed and attached lint contained in one
division or compartment of a boll of cotton.

Lubricant. A substance used to oil machinery to reduce fric-
tion.

Macaroni wheat. <A class of hard or durum wheats, from which
is manufactured the human food macaroni.

Maize. Another name for corn.

Malvacee. The scientific name of the Mallow family, which
includes cotton, okra, ete.

Manthot utilissima. The scientifie name of the cassava plant.

Mating area. A tract of land on which two or more valuable
strains, as of corn, are planted in adjacent rows for the
purpose of effecting cross-pollination.

Maturity. Ripeness.

Melilotus alba. See sweet clover.

Mendel’s law. A principle discovered by Mendel, which explains
the mathematical proportions in which certain qualities are
inherited by hybrid plants or animals.

Middle burster. A plow with both a right-hand and a left-hand
moldboard, thus at the same time throwing the soil both
to right and left.

Middling. A certain commercial grade of cotton.

Midge. A particular insect of small size. For the sorghum
midge, see p. 233.

Milk stage. The stage of ripeness of a grain in which the eon-
tents of the seed are of the consistency and color of milk.

Mower. A mowing machine.

Muleh. A covering, usually of loose soil or litter.

Multiplication plot. An area of some crop grown chiefly with
a view to increasing the amount of good seed for planting,
without special reference to improvement in the quality of
the seed. See p. 135.

Muriate of potash. A salt-like fertilizer containing about 50
per cent of potash.

Nematode worms. Minute worms which enter the roots of
certain plants and cause harmful enlargements.

Neocosmospora vasinfecta. The scientific name of cotton wilt or
black root.

Nitrate of soda. A combination of sodium and nitric acid, form-
ing a soluble and prompt fertilizer, containing 14 to 16 per

_ cent of nitrogen,
Nitrogen. A chemical element, which in certain combinations is
GLOSSARY 557

an important fertilizing material and in other forms a valu-

able part of the food of men and lower animals.
Nitrogen-free extract. In plants nutritive compounds contain-

ing no nitrogen and consisting chiefly of starch, sugar, ete.
Noctuide. The scientific name of one group of cut-worms.
Node. A joint on a stem where a leaf is usually borne.

Oryza sativa. The scientific name of the rice plant; the first
word is the name of the genus, and the second is the name
of the species.

Oxygen. <A gas existing in the atmosphere and required in some
form by all forms of life. Oxygen also exists in combination
soe numerous other elements, forming gases, liquids, and
solids.

Panicle. A branching seed-head, as of oats.

Papilionacee. The name of the family to which peanuts,
clovers, and most other cultivated legumes belong.

Parasite. An animal (or vegetable) organism which lives on and
obtains nourishment from the body of another.

Peduncle. In the cotton plant, the stem supporting the square,
bloom, or boll.

Peppergrass. An annual weed of the Mustard family, seeding
about the same time as wheat.

Phosphatic. Containing a large proportion of phosphorus or
phosphoric acid.

Phosphoric acid. The chemical compound of the elements
phosphorus and oxygen that makes acid phosphate a
valuable fertilizer.

Piedmont section. The elevated country at the eastern base of
the Appalachian Mountains.

Pine needles. Pine leaves.

Pistil. The central portion of a flower at the base of which seed
may develop.

Polish wheat. See p. 41.

Pollen. The male element in the fertilization of a flower ; usually
dustlike or in the form of minute particles.

Pollen tube. A slender outgrowth from the pollen grain after the
latter finds lodgment on a receptive stigma. ;

Pollination. The act or fact of conveying pollen to the receptive
stigma.

Pores. Openings. i

Potash. The compound of the chemical elements potassium
and oxygen that makes kainit a valuable fertilizer.

Pouland wheat. See p. 40. ;

Protein. Certain compounds rich in nitrogen, found in plants
and animals.
558 . GLOSSARY

Pupa, plural pupe. See pupal stage. ; :

Pupal stage. That stage in the life of most insects which follows
the larval or “caterpillar” or ‘“‘grub”’ stage and which im-~-
mediately precedes the stage of the mature insect. The
pupal stage is not usually a period of growth, but of in-
activity and of change of form.

Quarter drains. Shallow cross-drains in a field of sugar-cane.

Rachis. The portion of the stem on which flowers and seeds are
borne.

Raw phosphate. See p. 330. : ou

Recessive quality. That one of a pair of contrasting qualities
that appears in the smaller proportion in the hybrid offspring.

Red clover. Commonly called clover; a biennial forage plant
with roundish, pinkish flower heads.

Rhizoctonia. The seientific name of the damping-off or sore-shin
disease of young cotton plants.

Rice bran. See p. 220.

Rice polish. See p. 220.

Rice weevil. Though named for the rice plant, this weevil does
most injury to stored corn.

Rick. <A long stack.

Ridging. See bedding.

Rivers. See benders.

Rotation of crops. The succession of crops that follow each other
on the same field in regular order.

Rust. Diseases of certain plants due to the presence of definite,
minute, vegetable organisms.

Score-card. A numerical standard of excellence.

Screening. Separating by means of sieves.

Sea Island cotton. The plant that produces the longest, finest
cotton fiber; its name is taken from the fact that. this
species of cotton is grown chiefly on islands along the South
Atlantic seacoast.

Self-pollination. Conveyance of pollen to the pistil of the same
plant. Oats and wheat are self-pollinated.

Shank. In the corn plant, the support for the ear.

Shatter. To drop the grains prematurely.

Sheaf oats. Oat-plants not threshed, including grain and straw.

Sheath. The lower or stem-encircling part of the leaves of grass-
like plants.

Shock. A collection of bundles of grain plants leaning together ;
a small pile of hay.

Shocker. See p. 198.

Shovel. A shovel plow is intermediate in width and shape be-
GLOSSARY 559

tween a scooter and a sweep. It is used to open a trench or
furrow and is attached to the foot of a plow-stock.

Shredder. A machine for tearing into small pieces the coarse
stems and other parts of corn stalks and other forms of
coarse forage. See Fig. 98.

Shucks. Corn shucks, the Teal like parts inclosing the ear.

Sieve-tubes. Plant structures for the circulation of sap.

Silo. See p. 99.

Single-tree. The short wooden bar to which the traces of each
horse or mule are hitched.

Slips. The slips of the sweet potato are also called ‘‘sets’’ and
“draws.’’ They consist of the young shoots growing out of
the potato that is bedded. See Fig. 191.

Small grains. A term applied collectively to wheat, oats, rye,
and barley in distinction from the larger grain, corn.
Smut. A disease of certain plants due to the growth of certair

minute vegetable organisms.

Sorghum vulgare. The scientific name which is used by some
authorities to include all the sorghums.

Species. A group of plants having certain qualities in common.

Spelt. See p. 40.

Sphacelotheca sorghi. The scientific name of the fungus causing
the kernel smut of the sorghums. See p. 233.

Spheronema fimbriatum. The scientific name of the organism
causing the black-rot of sweet potatoes; until recently the
first part of the name was usually written as Ceratocystis.

Spikelets. A small cluster of flowers or seeds.

Spores. Minute bodies which serve the purpose of seed for the
fungi, that cause most plant diseases.

Stamens. Anthers or pollen cases together with their supports.

ne In plants, failure to produce a normal number of
seed.

Stigma. The upper part of the pistil on which pollen must lodge
and grow to effect fertilization of the flower.

Stomata. Minute openings in the outer layer of plant. tissue,
especially on the under sides of leaves, through which open-
ings the leaf gives off moisture and takes in carbon dioxide
gas and oxygen.

Strains. Subdivisions of a variety.

Subsoil plow. A plow for loosening without inverting the soil.
See Fig. 78.

Subsoiling. See p. 163.

Subspecies. A division of a species.

Suckers. In the corn plant, stems springing from some of the
lower nodes of the main stem.

Sucrose. Crystallizable sugar.
560 GLOSSARY

Sulfate of potash. A fertilizer containing 37 to 50 per cent of
potash. i ; :

Sweet clover. Melilotus alba; a biennial, summer-growing leg-
ume valuable for soil improvement, pasturage, and hay for
home use.

Tap-root. The main central root of such plants as cotton.

Tare (in cotton). The allowance for weight of the covering, or
bagging and ties, on a cotton bale; in practice it is usually
24 pounds or less in American markets.

Tassel. The panicle of male flowers borne at the top of a flower-
ing corn plant.

Teosinte. A tropical forage plant closely related to corn.

Tetranychus gloveri. The scientific name of the red spider, a
small mite that attacks cotton leaves.

Threshing. The act of separating the grain of wheat, oats, etc.,
from the straw and chaff.

Throw-board. See Fig. 92 and p. 191.

Tillage. Cultivation. f

Tiller. To branch from the crown; to stool.

Tilletia horrida. The scientific name of the fungus causing black
smut in rice.

Tip. The end of a corn ear farthest from the point of attach-
ment.

Toxic. Poisonous.

Toxoptera graminum. The ‘‘green bug,’ a plant-louse injuring
grain plants.

Transpiration. The loss of water from plants by its passing
into the air from the leaves, ete.

Triticum. The name of the genus to which wheat belongs.

Turn-plow. The kind of plow most generally used for turning
over the soil. It includes a concave moldboard for twisting,
pulverizing, and inverting the furrow-slice.

Ustilago maydis. The scientific name of the fungus causing corn
smut.

Variety. A subdivision of a species; a group of individual plants
possessing in common certain botanical or agricultural
characteristics.

Vegetable matter. Material now or recently existing in the form
of plant tissue.

Vegetative branches or limbs. On the cotton plant, those
branches on which no boll stems are directly attached (see
p. 250); common equivalent terms are ‘‘base limbs” and

vc ”

‘suckers,
GLOSSARY 561

Vermicelli. A form of macaroni, manufactured from wheat.

Vetch, hairy. A winter-growing, annual, a gong plant,
suitable for soil improvement, pasturage, and hay.

Vine cuttings. Sections of vines cut off and planted, as with
sweet potatoes.

ae In seed, ability to sprout and to produce strong young
plants.

Vs., versus. Against, or in comparison with.

Water furrows. The depressions or shallow trenches between
two elevated beds of soil.

Weeder. ee form of light harrow, with long, flexible teeth. See
Fig.

Whorls. Sets or groups.

Wild onion. See garlic.

Windrows. In sugar-cane culture this applies to the rows of
heaped and covered cane intended for planting.

Winter-killing. The dying of young plants from cold or heaving.

Zea mays. The scientific name of Indian corn.

2o0
INDEX

[Numbers refer to pages.]

Acid phosphate, how prepared, 330.
Alabama argillacea, 408.
Alabama Canebrake
Station, 294.
Alabama Experiment Station, 12,
18, 31, 119, 126, 145, 157, 161,

Experiment

178, 187, 188, 205, 266, 270,

273, 293, 299, 313, 325, 326,

333, 339, 406, 522, 546.
Alabama, productive varieties of

corn in, 119.

Alabama, productive varieties of
cotton in, 293.

Albino corn plants, 140.

Alfalfa, root-rot on, 414.

Allard, H. J., 266.

Allison method of cotton and corn
culture, 180.

American Breeders’ Association, 31,
145, 314.

Anderson, A. P., 230.

Andropogon sorghum, 231.

Anthracnose of cotton, 415.

Anthronomus grandis, 392.

Arachis hypogea, 464.

Arkansas Experiment Station, 119,
230, 247, 469, 483.

Arkansas, productive varieties of
corn in, 119.

‘Atkinson, G. F., 420.

Auricles of oats, 2.

Austin, A., 230.

Ayres, L. W., 546.

Bailey’s Cyclopedia of American
Agriculture, 67, 77, 97, 135,
149, 247, 266, 360, 420, 424,
456, 483, 521, 547.

 

Ball, C. R., 246, 247,
Barley, 74.

beardless, 76.

clasps, 75.

composition, 75.

description, 74.

enemies, 77.

fertilizers for, 76.

laboratory exercises, 77.

literature, 77.

smut, 77.

soils for, 76.

sowing, 76.

species and varieties, 75.

uses of, 74.
Batts, J. F., yield of corn, 204.
Beal, H. W., 230.
Beattie, R. W., 483.
Bennett, R. L., 314.
Bessey, C. E., 67.
Bishop, F. C., 216.
Blackstrap, definition of, 513.
Blissus leucopterus, 211.
Blue stem wheat, 41.
Bluestone, 61.
Bobolinks, 229.
Bondurant, A. J., 546.
Bowman, M. L., 205, 216.
Boyce, 424.
Boykin, E. B., 266, 314.
Branching wheat, 40.
Breeding of cotton, 300.

of corn, 127.
Broom-corn, 241.

climate, soils, and fertilizers, 242,

culture, 243.

description, 241.

enemies, 245.

563
564

Broom-corn (continued)
harvesting and preparation for
marketing, 244.
standard and dwarf, 242.
statistics and yield, 241.
varieties, 242.
Budworms of corn, 206.
Burkett, C. W., 360, 376, 387.
Burnette, H. F., 456.

Callandra oryza, 211.
Calvin, M. V., 340.
Canada Experiment Farms, 20.
Cannabis sativa, 422.
Carbon disulfide, 64, 202, 212.
Carleton, M. A., 65.
Carpenter, F. B., 547.
Cassava, 457.
climate and distribution, 458.
cultural methods, 459.
enemies, 461.
fertilizers for, 459.
““frenching,”’ 461.
harvesting, 460.
kinds, 457.
laboratory exercises, 462.
literature, 462.
poisonous constituent in, 458.
propagation, 460.
soils for, 459.
storing ‘‘ seed canes,” 461.
uses and composition, 458.
Cercospora personata, 483.
Census, U. 8. Bureau of, 287, 341.
Chalcodermis ceneus, 408.
Cheat, 59.
Check-rower, 166.
Chemistry, U. 8S. Bureau of, 462.
Chess, 59.
Chinch bugs, 63, 211.
Close breeding in corn, 140.
Clover, crimson, in rotation, 47.
red, in rotation, 47.
Club wheat, 41.
Cobb, N. A., 521.
Cobey, W. W., 548.

 

INDEX

Coburn, F. D., 205, 246.

Cockle, 60.

Colletotrichum gossypii, 415.

Composts, 335.

Connecticut State Experiment Sta-
tion, 136, 143, 149.

Conner, A. B., 246.

Convolvulacee, 425.

Copper sulfate, 61.

Corn, accidental versus
excellence, 131.
Corn, albino plants, 141.
Allison method of culture, 180.

Angoumois moth in, 213.

barren stalks, 130.

binder or harvester, 198, 199.

blades, 99.

brace-roots, 82.

breeding, 127.

breeding for composition, 136.

breeding, laboratory exercises,
148.

breeding, literature of, 149.

breeding, systems of numbering,
136.

budworms, 206.

butts, 108.

characters needed, 114.

checking, 175.

cob, color of, 104.

color of grain, 94, 117, 141-144.

comparative yields of breeding
rows, 132.

composition, 98.

composition influences shape, 137.

composition, laboratory exercises,
110.

composition, of grains from tip,
middle, and butt,146.

composition, varied by selection,
136.

cowpeas with, 181.

cribs, 201.

crossing versus selection, 139.

““erossed,”’ 180.

cultivation of, 158.

inherited

 
   
INDEX

Corn (continued)

cultivation, laboratory exercises
in, 188.

cultivation, literature of, 188.

cutting and shocking, 192.

cutworms attacking, 207.

dates of planting, 168.

definition of, 78.

dent, 113.

depth of planting, 167.

depth of plowing for, 162.

distance between plants, 178.

dominant and recessive qualities,
143.

draft on fertility, 100.

ear, 91.

ear-branch, 84.

ear, length and circumference,
109.

ear, proportion of grain, 109.

ear, rots, 215.

ear, shank, 116.

ear, shape influenced by com-
position, 137.

ear, space between rows, 108.

ear-to-row system of breeding,
123,

ear-worm, 208, 209, 210.

early varieties, 125.

effect of change of climate on,
147.

effects of cross-breeding, 14.

effects of in-breeding, 140.

enemies, 206.

enemies, laboratory exercises, 215.

enemies, literature of, 216.

fertilizers for, 153, 187.

fertilizer formulas for, 154.

fertilizer, time to apply, 155.

fertilizing, laboratory exercises,
147.

fertilizing, with legumes, 154.

fertilizing, literature of, 157.

fertilization of the flower, 90.

flint, 113.

“fodder,” 99.

 

Corn (continued)

fungous diseases, 214.

germination, test of, 138.

grading seed grains, 147.

grain, color in, 94.

grain, composition, 93.

grain, cross-section of, 93.

grain, shapes of, 109.

grain, structure of, 92.

handling the ears, 189.

hardness of grain, 114, 117.

harrowing, 170.

harvesting, 189.

harvesting, laboratory exercises,
204.

harvesting, literature of, 205.

height of ear, 129.

hereditary qualities, 129.

implements for, 164.

improvement of varieties, 127.

Indian meal moth in, 213.

in a 3-year rotation, 152.

in a 4-year rotation, 153.

inheritance of color, 144, 145.

inheritance of flint or dent struc-
ture, 143.

insects, 206.

judging, 98, 101.

judging, laboratory exercises, 102.

judging, literature, 111.

kernel, 92.

kernels, best shape, 109.

large-eared varieties, 122.

“laying by,” 179.

leaves, 83.

leaves, curling, 84.
structure, laboratory exercises,

97.

level preparation and planting,
161.

literature, 97.

maturity, 114.

means of improvement, 128.

Mendel’s law applied to, 143.

methods of applying fertilizers,
156.
566 INDEX

Corn (continued) Corn (continued)

methods of cutting, 194.

Mexican June, 125.

modified ridging system, 160, 162.

number of ears per plant, 86.

number of plants per hill, 177.

other crops with, 179.

place in rotation, 152.

planting, 166.

planting in water-furrow, 161.

pod, 114.

pop, 113, 114.

pop corn crossed with dent, 127.

position of ears, 86, $7, 116.

productive varieties of corn, 120.

products, 100.

prolific varieties, 122.

proportion of parts, 99.

“pulling fodder,” 191.

pulling the ears, 189.

qualities accompanying
yields, 116.

qualities needing improvement,
116.

quantity of fertilizer, 157.

races and varieties, 112.

rat-proof cribs, 201.

relationships between corn plants,
139,

remnants of breeding ears, 135.

removal of tip grains, 146.

replanting, 169.

ridging versus flushing land, 159.

roots, 79, 80, 81.

rotations for, 150.

rotation, literature of, 157.

saving by shocking, 192.

score-card for, 101.

seed from-tip, middle, and butt,
145.

selecting and crossing, 128.

selecting according to composi-
tion, 138.

selection in field or erib, 130.

shanks, length of, 130.

shape of ear, 105.

high

  

 

shapes of grain, 92, 117.

shocker, 198,

shocking horse for, 194.

shredding, 200.

shucks, 84, 116.

silks, 88.

simple selection, 131.

size of ears for planting, 130.

sled cutter, 197.

smut, 214.

soft, 113, 114.

soils for, 150.

space between kernels near cob,
169.

stem, 82.

stover, 99, 193.

stripping the blades, 191.

subsoiling for, 163.

sweet, 113, 114.

tassel, 86.

thickness of planting, 176.

thinning, 177.

time of plowing, 159.

tips, 108.

top and bottom ears, 144.

topping, 192.

trueness to type, 109.

two-horse cultivators for, 174.

uses of, 78,

varieties, 116.

varieties, illustrations of, 124.

varieties, laboratory exercises,
125.

varieties, literature of, 126.

varieties, yields of, 118.

vitality, 104.

weevil-resistance, 114, 115.

weevils in, 202, 211.

Williamson method of culture,
185.

yellow varieties, 122.

yields, 204.

   

,

 

 

   
 

Cotton, absorbent, 263.

Allen Long-staple variety, 299.
angular leaf-spot, 418,
INDEX

Cotton (continued)

annual crop of Egypt, 384.

annual crop of India, 384.

antagonistic qualities, 307.

anthracnose, 415.

Asiatic, 281.

bacterial blight, 419.

bagging, 369.

bale, round, 369.

bales, tare on, 369.

baling, 367.

bark and stems, 254.

barring off, 352.

-belt, extent of, 383.

“benders,” 277.

Bengal, 276.

big-boll group, 288.

Blue Ribbon variety, 291.

boll-rot, 415.

bolls, 257.

boll-stems or peduncles, 255.

boll-weevil, 392.

boll-weevil, burning
against, 398.

boll-weevil, extent of injury, 392.

boll-weevil, food of, 393.

boll-weevil, grazing stalks against,
398.

boll-weevil, illustrations of, 171,
172, 173.

boll-weevil, insect enemies of , 404.

boll-weevil, minor methods of
combating, 400.

boll-weevil, map of region in-
vaded by, 403.

boll-weevil, nature of injury by,
395.

boll-weevil, picking squares for,
404.

boll-weevil, poisoning, 400.

boll-weevil, principal preventive
measures, 398.

boll-weevil, rapid multiplication,
396.

boll-weevil, rate of spread, 402.

boll-weevil, stages of, 395.

stalks

 

567

Cotton (continued)

boll-weevil, widening rows against,
401.

boll-weevil, winter quarters of,
397.

boll-worm, 210, 388.

boll-worm, preventive measures,
390.

breeding, 300.

breeding, for a small number of
qualities, 308.

breeding, laboratory
313.

breeding, literature, 314.

burning of stalks, 397.

burs, plant food in, 272.

care of baled, 370.

caterpillar, 404.

causes of scant profits, 320.

chopping, 354.

classification of varieties, 283.

classing, 372.

cleaning middles, 355.

Cleveland variety, 298.

cluster group of, 283.

color of lint, 374.

commercial grades, 372.

commercial grades, value of, 375.

competition by foreign countries,
385.

competition, means of meeting,
387.

composition, 267.

composition, laboratory exercises,
273.

composition, literature, 273.

composts for, 335.

compresses, 371.

Cooke Improved variety, 298.

crop, statistics of, 379.

crossing of American and Asiatic
species, 276.

crossing versus selection, 301.

cultivation, 341, 351.

cultivation, laboratory exercises,
360.

exercises,
568

Cotton (continued)

cultivation, literature, 360.

culture in presence of the boll-
weevil, 405.

culture in U.S., 379.

culture in U. 8., distribution of,
383.

defects in bolls, 306.

depth of cultivation, 357.

depth of plowing for, 343.

description of varieties, 296.

directions for crossing, 302.

distance experiments, 359.

distribution of fertilizer, 347.

draft on fertility, 315.

early King-like group, 288.

easy deterioration of varietics,
300.

effects of raw and acid phosphate,
330.

Egyptian, 280.

family and genus, 274.

fertilizers, 309.

fertilizers, advantages of home
mixing, 321.

fertilizers, amounts per acre, 324.

fertilizers, amounts of crop in-
crease from, 322.

 

fertilizers, factory-mixed, 320.
fertilizers, laboratory exerc
340.

fertilizers, profits from, 323.

fiber, breaking strength, 26:

fibers of several varieties, 29

fiber, size, 263.

fiber, uses of, 272.

flowers, 256.

flowers, time required for de-
velopment, 265.

forming beds for, 345.

frequency of cultivation, 356.

fruit, stages in life of, 265.

fruiting branches, 250.

gin, 370, 379.

gin, roller, 370.

gin, saw, 370.

 
 

 

 

INDEX

Cotton (continued)

ginning, 366.

ginning, Long Staple, 370.

ginning, Sea Island, 369.

glands, 257.

grade, how determined, 374.

ground phosphate rock for, 329.

harvesting and marketing, 361.

harvesting, laboratory exercises,
376.

harvesting, literature, 376.

hastening maturity against boll-
weevil, 400.

Hawkins variety

history and sta
377.

hoeing, 356.

immature fibers, 262.

implements used in cultivation
of, 354.

improvement profitable, 301.

Indian, 258, 276.

indications of need of nitrogen,
319.

insect enemies, 388.

Jackson, 296.

King variety, 297.

late cultivation, 356.

Layton variety, 297.

leaf-worm, 404.

leaves, 255.

leaves, weight of, 271.

lime for, 335.

lint, 262.

lint, composition of, 267.

lint, effect of storage on,

lint, plant food in, 271.

lint, proportion of plant,

linters, 383.

list of leading varieties, 293.

literature, 3¢

locks, 257.

long-limbed group, 290.

long-staple upland, 290.

maturity affected by fertilizers,
327.

296.
cs in America,

   
 

 

263.

271.

 

 
INDEX

Cotton (continued)

maturity or earliness, 254.

methods of plowing for, 342.

methods of separating large
seeds, 313.

mildew, 418.

minor leaf diseases, 418.

nitrogenous fertilizers, 325.

no indications revealing the need
for phosphorus, 318.

not fertilized according to com-
position, 317.

pasting the seed of, 348.

Peruvian, 280.

petals and sepals, 257.

Peterkin variety, 296.

picker, Dixie, 365.

picker, Lowry, 365.

picker, Oliver, 366.

picker, Price-Campbell, 366.

picker, Thurman Vacuum, 366.

pickers, mechanical, 361.

pistil, 257.

plant breeder’s methods of im-
proving, 309.

plant, composition of
of, 270.

plant food in, 271.

plant, habit of, 274.

plant in budding stage, 401.

plant-to-row method of breeding,
310.

planters, 348.

plants, weight of stems, leaves,
etc., 271.

pollen, 256.

pollination of, 256.

principal qualities
plant, 305.

principal species, 274, 275.

principal uses, 267.

-producing countries, 384.

productiveness of varieties, 291.

quality affected by fertilizers, 338.

qualities needing improvement,
307.

parts

desired in

 

Cotton (continued)
reasons for variation, 282.
Rio Grande group, 287.
rivers, 277.
roots, 254.
roots, plant food in, 271.
roots, weight of, 271.
root-knot, 414.
root-rot, 414, 415.
Russell variety, 297.
rust, checked by potash, 333.
score-card for, 313.
Sea Island, 276, 279.
seed, 264.
seed as fertilizer, 325
seed, composition of, 268.
seed, effects on hogs, 272.
seed, effects on young calves, 273.
seed, germination of, 264.
seeding, 381.
seed, number per bushel, 349.
-seed meal, poisonous effects of,

225

-seed meal versus manure, 328.

-seed meal, sometimes unprofit-
able, 328.
seed patch, 306.

seed, plant food in, 271.

-seed products, 270.

seed, production and uses of, 381.

seed, proportion of fiber, hulls,
and meats in, 264.

seed, proportion to entire plant, |
2¢l.

seed, rolling, 349.

seed, time to apply as fertilizer,
327.

seed, uses of, 272.

seed versus cotton-seed meal as
fertilizer, 269, 326.

semicluster group, 285.

size of seed for planting, 312.

soils, 315.

sowing seed in, 357.

species, American group, 276.

species, Asiatic group, 276.
570

Cotton (continued)

species, laboratory exercises, 281.

species, literature, 281.

stalk cutter, 399.

stalks, loss in burning, 406.

statistics, laboratory exercises,
387.

stems and branches, 248.

stems, plant food in, 271.

stems, weight of, 271.

“storm resistance,’’ 261.

structure and general character-
istics, 248.

structure, laboratory exercises,
265.

structure, literature, 266.

subsoiling for, 344.

tillage by weeder and harrow, 350.

time of planting, 347.

time of plowing for, 342.

tinges and stains, 374.

Toole variety, 296, 297.

Triumph variety, 298.

Truitt variety, 298.

twist in fibers, 262.

upland species, 276.

variation and selection, 303.

varieties, 282.

varieties, laboratory
299.

varieties, literature, 299.

vegetative branches, 249, 250.

where potash is needed, 318.

wilt, description of, 412.

wilt, persistence of, 413.

wilt-resistant varieties, 414.

wilt, spread of, 412.

wilt, treatment of, 413.

young plants of, 353.

Cowpeas, in corn, 181.

drilling versus broadcast sowing,
181.

fertilizer for, 184.

methods of drilling, 184.

methods of sowing broadcast,
183.

exercises,

 

INDEX

Cross-breeding, effects of, in corn,

141.
in corn, 140.

“Crossed corn.’’ See page 180.

Crossing versus selection in cotton,
301.

Crossley, B. W., 205, 216.

Current cross, 127.

Cutworms, 207.

Cylas formicarius, 452.

Davenport, E., 149.
Davidson, R. J., 547.
Dewey, L. H., 281, 424. ;
Diabrotica 12-punctata, 206.
Diatrea saccharalis, 520.
Dioscorea, 431.
Diplodia, 215.
Diplosis sorghicola, 233.
Disk-harrow, 16.
for forming beds, 347.
Dodlinger, P. T., 67.
Dodson, W. R., 157, 230, 247.
Dolochonyx oryzivorus, 229.
Dominance of qualities
brids, 143.
Double fertilization, 90.
in corn, 142.
Drake, Z. J., yield of corn, 204.
Drilling versus broadcast sowing of
wheat, 54.
Duggar, B. M., 456.
Duggar, J. F., 31, 126, 157, 188,
205, 299, 340, 360, 455.

in hy-

Earle, D. E., 376.

Earle, F. S., 521.

Ear-to-row system of corn breed:
ing, 133.

East, E. M., 143, 149.

Einkorn, 40.

Elliott, E. E., 67.

Embryo-sac, 90.

Emmer, 40.

Endosperm, 90,

 
INDEX

Entomology, Georgia State Board
of, 52.
Entomology, U.S. Bureau of, 31.
Evans, W. E., 281.
Experiment Station, U. S. Office
of, 117, 126, 205, 3, 281,
‘

(

3
287, 340, 360, 376, 547.

Fertilizers, advantages of high grade,
323.
advantages of home mixing, 321.
distribution of, 347.
effects of, on soil, 320.
for corn, 153.
for cotton, 315.
nitrogenous, 325.
time of application to corn, 154.
Fitz, James, 455.
Floats, 330.
Florida Experiment Station,
462, 522.
Floyd, M. L., 546.
Freeman, C. F., 246.
Freeman, E. M., 246.
Frost, date of first killing, 52.
Fulcaster wheat, 42, 43.
Fultz wheat, 42, 43.
Furman compost formula, 336.
Fusarium, 215.

459,

Galechia cerealella, 64.

Gammie, G. O., 276, 281.

Garlic, wild, 60.

Garman, H., 547.

Georgia Experiment Station, 18, 31,
99, 120, 145, 154, 178, 187, 192,
205, 294, 324, 333, 340, 360.

Georgia, productive varieties of
corn in, 120.
productive varieties of cotton
in, 393.

Germination box, 138.

Gleosporium manihot, 461.

Gossypium, arboreum, 276.
barbadense, 276.
hirsutum, 276.

 

571

Gossypium (continued)
obtusifolium, 276.
peruvianum, 276.

Grain drill, 17.

Grain-moths, 64.

Graminee, 1, 68.

Grasshoppers, 209.

“ Green-bug,’”’ 25.

Guano horn, 347.

Hammond, H., 360, 376.
Handy, R. B., 483.
Harper, J. N., 299, 340, 547.
Harrow, spike-tooth, 171.

use in cultivating cotton, 350.
Harshberger, J. W., 98.

Hartley, C. P., 130, 145, 146,
247.
Hays, W. M., 67, 205.

Heaving, 19.
Heliothis obsoleta, 210.
Hemp, 422.
cultural methods, 423.
fertilizer for, 423.
harvesting, 423.
laboratory exercises, 424.
literature, 424.
soils, 423.
Hessian fly, 62.
Heterodera radicicola, 411.
Hinds, W. E., 63, 208, 211, 212,
213, 214, 393.
Hinds chain cultivator, 402.
Hopkins, C. G., 5, 97, 136.
“ Hopper-dozer,”” 209.
Hunt, T. F., 4, 67, 97, 247, 376.
Hunter, 8. J., 25, 31.
Hutchinson, W. L., 273.
Illinois Experiment Station, 129,
136, 215, 216.
In-breeding, 139.
Indiana Experiment Station, 111.
Insect pests of oats, 25.
Iowa Experiment Station, 111.
Ipomea batatas, 425.
572

Johnson-grass seed, 21.

Kafir, Black-hulled White, 238,
239.

composition of grain and stover,
232.

description and uses, 239.
harvesting, 240.
Red, 234.
soils and planting, 240.
Kansas A. & M. College, 66.
Kansas Board of Agriculture,
247.
Kansas Experiment Station, 20, 31,
246.
Kentucky Experiment Station, 546.
Kilgore, B. W., 67, 126, 273.
Killebrew, J. B., 546.
Kimbrough, J. M., 340.
Knapp, 8. A. 221, 228,

205,

230.

Lady-bug, beneficial, 25.
Laphygma frugiperda, 521.
Legumes a cheap source of nitro-
gen, 154.
Leidigh, A. H., 246.
Lime, 335.
for wheat, 45.
Lissorhoptrus simplex, 229.
Litter, disposal of, 341.
Lloyd, F. E., 90.
Louisiana Crop Pest Commission,

399.

Louisiana Experiment Station, 120,
157, 219, 230, 247, 294, 521,
546. .

Louisiana, productive varieties of
corn in, 120.

productive varieties of cotton in,
393.
Lyon, Ty L., 31, 67,211.

Macaroni wheat, 40.
Mallow family, 274.
Malvacee, 274.

Manihot utilissima, 457.

 

INDEX

Manure, increase in cotton from
use of, 325.

Marismius sacchari, 520.

McBryde, J. B., 270, 273, 340, 360.

McDonnell, C. C., 219, 230.

MeNess, G. T., 546.

MeNider, G. M., 360.

McQuarrie, C. K., 522.

Mell, P. H., 266.

Mendel’s law in corn,
results of, 145.

Mercier, W. B., 360.

Metcalf, H., 230.

Mexican cotton boll-worm, 392.

Middle burster, 346.

Miller, T. S., 376.

Milo, 240.

Milo compared with Kafir, 241.

composition of grain, 231.

Milo maize, 240.

Minnesota Experiment Station, 205.

Mississippi Experiment Station,111,
120, 273, 294.

Mississippi, productive varieties of
corn in, 120.

productive varieties of cotton in,

393.

Molasses, defined, 513.

Montgomery & Lyon, 31, 67, 111.

Moracee, 422.

Morgan, H. A., 456.

Moore, C. C., 462.

Moorehouse, L. A., 205.

Myrick, H., 188, 546.

practical

Nebraska Experiment Station, 20,
22. 67,

Nelson, R. J., 230.

Nematode worms, 474.

Nesbit, D. M., 456.

Newman, C. a 247, 299, 483.
Newman, J. 8., 246, 3: 39, 456.
Nicotiana ee um, 523.

Nitrate of soda, 15, 48, 156, 327.
Nitrogen, a rational system of fertil:
ization with, 329.
INDEX

Nitrogen (continued)
cost of, 328.
need of cotton soils for, 328.
sources of, 327.

North Carolina, Department of
Agriculture, 67, 77, 119, 120,
126, 263, 266, 295, 340, 360.

Experiment Station, 188, 216,
546.
productive varieties of corn in,
120.
productive varieties of cotton
in, 394.

Nitrogen, effects on maturity of

cotton, 367.

Oats, Appler, 9.
Bancroft, 9.
Burt, 6, 9.
change of seed, 21.
composition, 4, 5.
Culberson, 9.
cultural methods for, 16.
diseases of, 23.
draft on soil fertility, 5.
drilling versus broadcast sowing,

17;

fertilizers for, 13, 15.
fungous diseases of, 23.
grain, 4.
harvesting and marketing, 26.
heaving of, 19.
improvement of, 12.
in rotation, 14.
insect pests of, 25.
inter-tillage of, 22.
laboratory exercises, 29.
leaves, 2.
literature, 3.
“May,” 9.
nitrate of soda for, 15.
open-furrow method, 18.
panicle and spikelet, 2.
pasturing, 22.
pollination of, 2.
preparation of land for, 16.

 

573

Oats (continued)
quantity of seed, 19.
Red Rust-proof, 6, 7.
roots, 1.
rotation for, 14.
rust of, 23.
size of seed, 20.
smut, 23.
soils for, 13.
stems, 1.
teams and labor, 28.
time to sow, 16.
Turf or Grazing, 6, 11.
types of Southern, 6.
varieties of, 6.
weeds in, 23.
winter-killing of, 19.
with crimson clover, 27.
Ohio Experiment Station, 20, 106,
149.
Oklahoma Experiment Station, 43,
51, 58, 121.
Oklahoma, productive varieties of
corn in, 121.
Ontario Agricultural College and
Experiment Farms, 20.
Orton, W. A., 420.
Oryza sativa, 217.
Ozonium, 414.

Parker, E. C., 205.
Pasturing oats, 23.
Pasturing wheat, 57.
Patterson, L. C., 273.
Peanuts, 464.
as stock food, 479.
breeding, 471.
composition of, 466.
hulls, 466.
kernels, 466.
meal, 466.
nut, 466.
cultivation, 471.
distance between plants, 469.
effects on pork and lard, 479.
enemies, 482.
574

Peanuts (continued)
fertilizers, 467.
harvesting, 452.
in rotation, 473.
laboratory exercises, 482.
land-plaster for, 467.
leaf-spot, 482.
liming soil for, 467.
literature, 354.
method of planting, 469.
North Carolina, 476.
oil from, 464, 478.
plant, description of, 464.
preparation of land for, 468.
preparation of seed, 470.
soils, 464.

Spanish, 476.

time of planting, 471.

uses of, 476.

varieties, 476.

Virginia Bunch, 476.

Virginia Runner, 476.

yields, 481.
Pepper-grass, 60.

INDEX

Potash (continued)
for checking cotton rust, 333.
need for, 332.
sources of, 337.

Poulard wheat, 40.

Price, R. H., 455.

Protoparce Carolina, 544.

Prussic acid in cassava roots, 458.

Raw phosphate in composts, 337.
Red cane, 520.
Redding, R. J., 145, 155, 205, 340,
360.
Red May wheat, 43.
Red rice, 228.
Rhode Island Experiment Station,
444.
Rice, 217.
amount of seed, 221.
birds, 229.
bran, composition of, 219.
composition of, 219.
distribution, 217.
fertilizers for, 221, 227.

Phosphate, effect on maturity of fungous diseases, 229.

cotton, 337.
need of cotton soils for, 332.
raw or ground rock, 330.

harvesting, 227.
Honduras, 220.
hulls, composition of, 219.

Phosphates, effects of different implements and labor, 221.

forms of, 33.
Phosphoric acid, cost of, 332.
sources of, 330, 331.
Plant breeding a specialty, 312.

Plant Industry, U. 8. Bureau of,

266, 299, 547.
Planter, hand, 169.
check-row, 166.
Plowing, depth of, 343.
time of, 159, 342.
Plumb, C. 8., 188.
Poe, C. H., 360, 376, 387.
Polish wheat, 40.

insect enemies of, 229.
irrigation, 223.

Japan, 220.

laboratory exercises, 229.
60, literature, 230.

polish, composition of, 219.
preparation of land for, 221.
production of, 217.

rust, 229.

smut, 229.

soils, 221.

sowing, 221.

straw, composition of, 219.

 

  

Pollen-tube, course of, 89. upland, 225.
Potash, effect on maturity of cot- varietie

ton, 338.
Potash fertilizers, 332.

 

water weevil, 229.
weeds in, 228,

 
Rice (continued)

weevil, 211.

yield of, 228.
Ridgway, C. 8., 89.
Roberts, H. F., 246.
Robinson, T. A., 376.
Root-knot, 413.
Roper, W. N., 483.
Rose, R. E., 522.

Ross, B. B., 270, 271, 273, 522.

Rotation for oats, 14.
for wheat, 45, 46.

Rust of oats, 23.

Rusts of wheat, 60.

Rye and barley, 68.
and crimson clover, 72.
clasps on leaf, 69.
climate for, 70.
description, 68.
enemies, 73.
ergot in, 73.
fertilizers for, 70.
heads of, 69.
laboratory exercises, 77.
literature, 77.
pollination in, 70.
preparation and sowing, 71.
soils for, 70.
uses, 68.
utilization, 72.
varieties, 70.

Saccharum officinarum, 484.
Sargent, F. L., 77, 97.
Scherffus, W. H., 547.
Schulte, J. I., 205, 546.
Scofield, C. S., 67.
Score-card for corn, 101.

for cotton plant, 312.

for oats, 31.

for wheat, 66.
Seed, change of, 57.
Seeding machines, 55.
Seed wheat, best size of, 56.
Self-pollination in corn, 139.
Shamel, A.D., 547.

 

INDEX 575

Shiver, F. S., 373.

Shocker for corn, 198.

Shocking horse, 194.

Shoesmith, V. M., 111.

Shredder, 193, 200.

Silage, 99.

Silo, 99.

Sirup, defined, 513.
making, 513.

Smith, L. H., 136, 149.

Smut, of barley, 77.
loose, of wheat, 61.
of corn, 214.
of oats, 23.
of wheat, 61.

Soils, acid, for corn, 151.
for oats, 13.

U.S. Bureau of, 157, 340, 346.

Sorghums, 231.
laboratory exercises, 245.
literature, 47.

Sorghum vulgare, 231.
Amber, 234, 235, 236.
composition of, 232.
crossing, 233.
cultivation, 237.
effects on soil, 232.
enemies, 233.
fertilizer for, 236.
general description, 231.
groups of, 231.
harvesting, 237.
kernel smut, 233.
midge, 233.

Orange varieties, 235, 236.
planting, 237.
preparation for, 237.
Red Top or Sumac, 235.
saccharine, 234.
smut, 234.
soils for, 236.
sweet, composition of seed
and of cured plant, 232.
sweet, description and use, 234
varieties, 235.
where grown, 235.
576

Soule, A. M., 67, 149, 188.

South Carolina, Clemson College,
376.

South Carolina Experiment Sta-
tion, 121, 187, 219, 230, 246,
270, 295, 299, 333, 340, 359,
406.

South Carolina, productive varieties
of corn in, 121.

productive varieties of cotton in,
394.

Spachelotheca sorghi, 233.

Spheronema fimbriatum, 454.

Stalk cutter, 158.

Statistics, U. 8. Bureau of, 387.

Stevens, F. L., 215, 420.

Stockbridge, H. E., 462, 522.

Stubbs, W. C., 230, 521.

Sturtevant, E. L., 92, 117, 126.

Subsoiling, 163, 343.

Suckers on corn, 83.

Sugar, consumption of, 519.

production of, 518.

Sugar-cane, 484.

bedding, 510.
borer, 519.
buds, 489.
burning refuse, 502.
by-products, 513.
composition, 492.
cowpeas as fertilizer for, 505.
cultivation, 501.

in Cuba, 503.
cultural methods, 498.
digging, ‘‘seed cane,’’ 510.
diseases, 520.
duration of, 484.
extraction of juice, 492.
fertilizer experiments, 496.
fertilizers, 495.
harvesting, 507.

in Louisiana, 511.
history, 517.
improvement of, 491.
insect enemies, 519.
Japanese, 507.

 

INDEX

Sugar-cane (continued)
laboratory exercises, 521.
leaf-hopper, 520.
leaves, 485.
legumes as fertilizer, 497.
literature, 521.
on uplands, 489.
plant food removed by, 492.
planting in Louisiana, 50.
planting in Pine Belt, 500.
preparation for, 498.
propagation, 489, 498.

from seed, 490.
proportion of parts, 492.

* roots, 485.
rotation for, 503.
sirup, effects cf canning, 516.
sirup-making, chemicals in, 517.
sirup-making, equipment for, 514.
sirup, prevention of  sugaring,

510.
soils, 497.
source of nitrogen in, 496.
source of potash for, 498.
Southern grass-worm, 520.
stem, 486.
stripper, 509.
stripping and cutting, 507.
structure, 487.
tillage, 501.
varieties, 505.
yields, 512.

“Sugar millet,” 231.

Sweet-potato, 425.
banking, 450.
bedding, 438.
black-rot, 454.
classification of varieties, 432.
conditions in storing, 449.
cultivation, 446.
cultural methods, 438.
desirable qualities, 432.
distance between plants, 445.
draft on soil fertility, 430.
drawing the slips, 442.
dry-rot, 455.

 
INDEX

Sweet-potato (continued)
effect on land, 437.
fertilizers, 435.
fire hot-beds, 439.
flowers and seeds, 427.
fungous diseases, 454.
harvesting, 447.
high and low beds for, 446.
humus for, 435.
insects, 452.
laln drying, 450.
kind and quantity to bed, 440.
laboratory exercises, 455.
literature, 455.
manure bed for, 438.
market demands, 431.
methods of harvesting, 448.
place in the rotation, 436.
preparation of land for, 445.
propagation of, 438.
pruning the vines, 447.
root-borer, 452.
root-rot, 414.
slips, 441.
soft-rot, 455.
soils, 434.
starch and alcohol from, 429.
storage house, 451, 452.
time to dig, 447.
time of transplanting, 444.
transplanting, 442.
transplanting machines, 443.
value as food, 428.
varieties, 431.
vine cuttings of, 445.
yields, 449.

Tennessee Experiment Station, 39,
67, 121, 270.

Tennessee, productive varieties of

eorm in, 121.

Teosinte, 78.

Texas Experiment Station,
246, 295, 314.

Texas, productive varieties of corn

in, 122.
2P

122,

 

577

Throw-board, 190, 191.
Tillage of wheat, 57.

Tilletia horrida, 229.

Tobacco, 523.

breeding, 527.
composition, 524.
cultivation, 533.
cultural methods, 529.
curing, 540, 542.

air, 541.

fire, 540.

flue, 541.

cigar, 641.
cut-worms, 544,
description, 523.
diseases, 544,
distance for, 532.
distribution, 523.
fertilizer formulas, 526.
fertilizers, 525.
harvesting, 538.
indications of maturity, 538.
insects, 544.
laboratory exercises, 545.
literature, 546.
nematodes, 544.
nitrogen for, 525.
preparation for, 532.
rotations for, 537.
seed-bed, 529.
seed-blower, 529.
seed, saving, 527.
setting, 532.
shade, 530, 536.
soils, 524.
sowing, 531.
stripping, 543.
suckering, 535.
topping, 533.
transplanting machine, 534.
two methods of harvesting, 539.
types and varieties, 526.
wire-worm, 545.
worm, Southern, 544, 545,
yields and prices, 543.

 

Tompkins, A. D., 376.
578

Toxoptera graminum, 25.

Tracy, S. M., 462.

Tubercles, distinguished from root-
knot, 415.

Turn-plow, in cultivating corn, 174.

Tyler, F. K., 299.

Umberger, H. J. C., 246.

Upland rice, 226.

U. S. Department of Agriculture,
130, 149, 205, 216, 221, 228,
230, 246, 247, 281, 314, 462,
482, 522, 546, 547.

Ustilago maydis, 214.

Vanatter, P. O., 67, 149, 188.
Varieties of corn, yields of, 118.
Vegetable Physiology and Pathol-
ogy, U.S. Division of, 67.
Vetch, hairy, 12.
Vincenheller, W. G., 230.
Virginia Experiment Station,
130, 149, 188, 548.
Virginia, productive varieties
corn in, 122.

422

22,

of

Waite, M. B., 456.
Warburton, C. W., 240, 247.
Watt, G., 266, 281.
Webber, H. J., 149, 266, 314.
Weeder, 171, 172.
use in cultivating cotton, 350.
Weeds in oats, 23.
in rice, 228.
in wheat, 59.
Weevils in corn, 211.
Wheat, Blue Stem, 41, 42.
change of seed, 57.
climate for, 53.
composition, 39.
cultural methods, 51.
diseases, 60.
drilling versus broadcast sowing,
54, :
enemies, 59.
fertilization of, 47.

 

INDEX

Wheat (continued)
Fuleaster, 42, 43.
grain, 37.
hay, when to cut, 59.
Hessian fly, 62.
improvement of varieties, 44.
insect pests of, 62.
laboratory exercises, 64.
large versus medium and small

grains, 56.
leaves, 34.
lime for, 45.
literature, 67.
means of distinguishing varieties,
43.

most productive varieties, 43.
pasturing, 57.
plant food removed by, 47.
plant-louse, 63.
pollination, 34.
preparation of land, 51.
prices, 59.
Purple Straw, 41, 42.
qualities desired in, 44.
quantity of seed, 55.
Red May, 43.
roots, 32.
rotation for, 45, 46.
rust, 60.
score-card for, 66.
size of grain, 38.
smut, 61.
soils for, 45.
species and subspecies, 40.
spikelets, 35.
standards for, 66.
stems, 33.
stinking smut, 61.
structure and composition, 33.
tillage, 57.
time to harvest, 58.
time to sow, 52.
varieties, 40.
with crimson clover, 27,
yields, 59.

White, H. C., 340.
INDEX 579

Whitney, Milton, 157, 547, 548. Williamson method of corn culture,

Wight, J. B., 522. 18.
Wild onion, 60. Winter-killing, prevention of, 19.

Wiley, H. W., 462, 522. Wisconsin Station, 77.
Williams, C. B., 126, 188, 266, 338,

340. Zea mays, 78.
Williams, C. G., 149. Zintheo, C. J., 205.

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