VOL. XXX.
INDIANAPOLIS, IND., FEB. 23, 1895.
NO. 8.
Oorn Culture.
Editors Indiana Fabmkb:
As oorn culture la the toplo to write
upon thia winter, I will say to do lt jnst as
I would like, I would have the ground
thoroughly tile drained, so the water will
not stay, but soak away and leave the land
In a suitable condition for the plow. Corn
aa well aa other orops reqiires a gocd deep
mellow seed bed. This can only be done
by breaking the ground thoroughly with
a good breaking plow and using plenty of
manure to help keep the ground In a loose,
mellow condition for the plow to do Its
work properly. Then follow with a subsoil plow, leaving the subsoil loose and
mellow. Now we are ready for the pul
verlzing, which should be done thoroughly, as deep as possible, leaving no clods to
hinder ln any way. This can be done by
rolling and dragging and using any kind
of harrow that, will stir it deep i~d bring
tbe clods to the surface where they can be
pulverized before planting seed. Care
should be taken, to select good seed in order to get a good stand, so as to have the
corn oome up all the same size, which
makes lt more easy to cultivate. Now we
are ready for the planter or drill, which
. should be done in a proper manner the
first of May. As soon as planted I. would
like to plow with a double cultivator with
long-hill tongues on. Then it can be harrowed and if checked I would plow crosswise with the cultivator the same as before,
just after the oorn is up. This leaves the
ground mallow and deep, and after this is
done the waeds, etc , being killed, I would
use some small toothed implement to do
the rest of the work and not go very deep,
so as not to disturb the roots of the corn
This will leave a loose, mellow bed of dirt
on top to hold the moisture where the corn
can get the most good out of it. Corn
needs and must have an abundance of
light and heat In order to maintain a
healthy growth. Stirring the soil tends to
loosen and fertilize it, thus enabling the
roots to extend and penetrate thesoil more
readily. The ground should be stirred
after each shower so as to break the crust
and keep the moisture In the ground. If
done every, week until the corn tassels you
need fear no bad results,
Hamilton Co.
Editobs Indiana Fabmeb;
The time for breaking ground for corn
depends npon the kind of ground it is.
For timothy sod I would recommend fall
plowing or early spring plowing not later
than the middle of April. The ground
should bs broken six or eight inches deep
and the sod should be laid as flat as possible to prevent' drying out and second
growth of grass. For clover sod, if the
clover seemi to be thrifty enough to make
a good growth, it is best to break in the
early part of May not later than the 20 th.
The young clover thus turned under will
make the ground fertile. And let me say
right here that fertility of soil Is of the
highest importance In raising a crop of
corn. O.d ground should be broken just
before seed time and seed time should be
from the 10 .h to the 25th of May. I think
a mistake is made bv too little preparation
of seed-bed for corn. Old ground should
be cross harrowed with spike tooth harrow, rolled and then harrowed again with
spring tooth harrow. For sod use spring-
tooth harrow and roller. Exercise judgment lu using a roller at this time of yesr.
The spring tooth harrow shonld follow the
roller as close as practicable. It seldom
pays to work ground too wet with any kind
of tool f om breaking to laying by of corn.
The finer the soil is pulverized before
planting, the better chance corn roots have
to assimilate the substance in the sail
Generally corn should be planted so as to
be cultivated both ways. For soil of me
dlum fertility, two grains in a hill and
every hill is sufficient.  Three grains in a
hill bre sufficient for any soil. I think
oorn should never be drilled where you
have gopher vines to deal with. I believe,
however, that corn in drills 16 inohes apart
will bring a better yield, provided you can
bestow extra cultivation. In my experience furrowing ahead of the planter is that
muoh time wasted. If the ground is thoroughly pulverized before planting it will
not need any more work till the oorn Is
large enough to cultivate. Then, if the
roller has not been used before, it should
be used just ahead of first plowing. The
first plowing should be close and two or
three inches deep. The ground should be
stirred once a week aud thorough enough
to keep the weeds d >wn. Corn should be
laid by sometime in middle Jaly. If a
heavy rain should occur at that time then
the ground should be stirred again. I
have observed no difference in using
spring tooth cultivator and large shovel
cultivator for last plowir g.
Summing up then, I ■ place fertility of
soil as of first Importance; cultivation sufficient to keep weeds down as second;
number of grains in the hill as third; selection of seed as fourth. Methods of cul
tlvation, kinds of implements, eto , are of
minor importance, for without the first
three points named they are of no avail,
Tippecanoe Co.
Editobs Indiana fabkib:
In my remarks on enrn culture I believe
I will accomplish more good by calling the
attention of the farmer to his negligence
than I would by telling him how to cultivate corn. Mist of our farmers know
how to raise a good crop of corn, but don't
do it. They know that the ground should
be rich in the elements necessary to raise
corn. And if it is not it should be made
so before it is planted to corn. But do
they do it? Not many. They know also
tha*, the gronnd should be weU pulverized
before planting. But how often do we see
corn planted between clods, and in the
mud. Alas, much oftener than when in
the proper condition. And the too great
number of acres planted is one of the most
serious drawbacks to raising a good orop.
We have a desire to get out a large acreage*
We do not make enough allowance for bad
weather and other incidents that keep us
out of our corn. The result is our corn
does not have the care and attention nee
essary to make a full yield. Let us put out
less acres and cultivate better, and the re
suit will be a greater yield per acre; so
much greater as to overcome the shortage
In acres. Our seel corn is another important item; but how few seem to realize it
Corn used for seed should be gathered
early in the fall and hung where it will be
thoroughly dry before freezing weather;
but how few go to that trouble? The most
of us go to the crib in the spring, pick out
the nicest looking ears, look at a grain or
two and if that looks good lt is sufficient
The result is too often a poor stand, and
often has all to be planted over, making
our oorn late and dry weather catches it,
sometimes a frost, and the result is a poor
orop.
Another great mistake is planting corn
too thick. Three stalks to a hill Is suffi
clent for any ground; or if drilled eighteen
inches apart it will produce a greater yield
than planted closer. .
One other item I wish to speak of, that
is faim tools. They should be of the best
and in good condition. They won't be
that kind long if they stay in the field or
in some fence earner the year round. It
don't hurt to paint the tools, nor grease
the bearing parts a little. Appearances
along the roadside causes us to make mention concerning the care ot tools. Friends
while few of us have all the failings above
mentioned, but very few there are that are
entirely free. And those that are entirely
free always raise a good orop of corn- Let
us exercise our knowledge and oorn failure
will ba a dead letter.
Carroll Co.
ICditobs Indiana Fabmeb:
Many of the elementary substances that
form in part the foe d of growing plants,
are so combined with each other as to be
insoluble in water. And as all of that
food mnst be in a liquid or gaseous state,
and as air, light, heat and moisture are
indispensable agents iu the work of break,
ing up and dissolving these unions or combinations to the end that they may be dissolved in water it follows that all tillage
should be directed to the work ot bringing the air, light, heat and moisture in
contact with every partlole of the soil.
Every suDdlvision of a soil presents new
surfaces to be acted upon by these agents.
A cubic section of a furrow slice, eight
inches in diameter has 384 square inches
of surface; reduce to cabes ]4 of an inch
in diameter, and it will have 24,576 Inohes
of surface or 64 times as much surface as
the eight inoh cube had before reduction.
These figures give us a faint idea of the
almost in Unite extent to which tillage
may be carried in improving the conditions and aislstirg In the prepara'ion of
food of growing plants.
But the reduction of the elements in
the soil is not all. The ohange that takes
place in the mineral elements favors the
union of organio elements in the air and
water, thereby fixing in thesoil an Increase of the aggregate amount of plant
food. For this reason tillage Is said to be
a fertilizer; and as plant food is but the re
arrangement of elementary substances
combining around a life germ, forming a
living organio body, it cannot b3 said that
anything has beeu added, or anything new
created. The whole operation is simply a
change of dead matter to organio life. It
is the work of the husbandman to deal
with both the dead matter and the living
organism formed from that matter.
Applying some of the known and unchangeable laws governing these chances
we insist ou a deep and thirough prepara
tion of a soil before planting, that the food
maybe ready before the soil is planted;
for if the food is not ready when the teed
germinates the aftergrowth of the plant
must be dwarfed.
Where the ground is ready we mark
both ways and drop three grains in a hill,
no more, nor less, cover with a cultivator
and harrow down. As soon as the roots
can be seen we run through both ways
with a shovel plow, cutting as deep as possible, not to caver np the oorn. Follow
with a light cultivator each way, and repeat as often as required to break the
crust if suoh shall be, after rains, or to
prevent the growth of weeds. In cultlvat
ing corn the killing of weeds should only
be incidental. When the ears well developed lay by with a small harrow or rub
ber. In all the work we aim to aviod disturbing the roots, knowing that the roots
of a plant are to the vegetable kingdom
what the lacteals are to the animal,—carrying the prepared food to all parts of the
body. In the work of preparing the
gronnd and the after culture of a crop of
corn a great amount of plain food is rendered soluble in water, much of which will
be left after the oorn has matured To
avoid the loss of this some after crop
should follow.
Dearborn Co.
by oxen.   The corn was planted by cutting
in the sod with ax, aud  seed dropped in
and olosed up.   No further labor was required.   The second  season  the ground
was plowed common horse plow, marked
off both ways  with single shovel, seed
dropped by hand,  covered with hoe and
cultivated with one  horse single shovel.
But the harrow, marker, hand planter and
double shovel were soon introduced and
next came the  two horse corn planter,
cultivator and finally the riding breaking
plow, steel and disc harrows, check row
corn planters, spring tooth cultivators and
many other useful implements.   And all
along these years I have observed tbat it
is not simply  the amount of labor performed, but the  time and  manner that
brings best results    There can be no Ironclad rule observed, but we must be governed  by  circumstances.   Our acres are
too large here to bother with manures of
any kind,  but  with  proper rotation of
crops, plowing, planting and cultivating
at the right time and manner we can produce from 40 to 80 bushels per acre.   We
have found no advantage in fall or winter
plowlntr.   We must not plow too deep nor
too wet.   We must have ground level and
finely pulverized and clear of weeds before planting and keep it in that condition
until the corn begins to joint when farther
labor Is injurious.   We have had'poor success with drilled corn  and have a abandoned it altogether.   There seems to oe
but little lf  any objection  to level and
shallow cultivation.   We mnst be careful
in planting good seed; every grain should
grow.   We plant three and one half feet
apart in row and three grains to hill.   In
conclusion I wish to impress the importance of reading one or more good agricultural papers,  with  careful  reading and
olose observation and using our best judgment we will be successful in our calling.
Edgar O, Hi.
Editors Indiana Fabmeb:
I will give you a brief outline of my experience in corn culture My first expert ■
ence was among the hills of Muskingum
county, O , in the "fifties." The soil was
prepared first by clearing the ground of
timber and brush by chopping, grubbing
and burning, (there were no stamp pullers
or dynamite in those days) and plowing
the ground, planting and cultivating the
corn, mostly with the hoe. My next experience was on the raw prairies of Illinois. The ground was plowed the first
year with a "sod" plow, generally drawn
Editobs Indiana Fabmeb:
We want our supervis ->rs clothed with
more authority in regard to work on publio works, such as graveling and building
bridges and reduce the power of our county
commissioners. Supervisors know more
about the road district than the commissioners living six or eight miles away.
Home men and home work are best. We
want county superintendents abolished.
We want every man that owns Btock of
any kind to keep in on their own premises.
We want the office of county assessor
abolished. We want our rivers and streams
cleared of all drifts and mill dams and
as much as possible M. G. T.
Editobs Indiana Fabmeb:
I want a lower rate of interest, fay five
psr cent and not over six per cent; an exemption from tax on mortgage indebted-
cess even if it does raise the rate, if assessments are justly apportioned lt will be all
right; a law prohibiting voting a subsidy
to any railroad or any corporation of any
kind on tax payers. This is often done by
the contractors working hands in a township long enough to gain their residence
then vote them for the tax. If any one
wishes to donate let him do so, but let's
have no tax, j p ut
Marion.
Editobs Indiana Fabmeb:
I would like to Bee the law amended so
that county commissioners could not appropriate more than 110,000 for any one
improvement until after a vote of the people decides to make it greater. To amend
the liquor law so that when an applicant
for license is beaten be'ore the commissioners and than before thi Circuit Court
that shall be final. This law allowing an
applicant to get a change ot venue to some
adjoining oounty and that county say
whether we shall have saloons is an outrage, a. McD.
Liberty. •