Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

rAMXi SLA. OF INTEI SOIL NITROGEN Mow it is Conserved and Replenishe by Nature. Clemson College, Dec.?When w consider how very easy it is fc nitogen to escape from the soil i is hot surprising that it is the higl est priced of all fertilizing material! Even at that, however, the price higher than it need be, for natur manages to maintain the supply ii every tract of wild land without im porting fertilizers from abroad, an we would profit by adopting-more c Nature's methods. Nature uses two methods fo maintaining the supply. First, sh conserves. Whenever a leaf become of no use to a tree it is shed an falls to the ground. Similarly, othe waste "materials fall to the ^rouni b " and become part of the soil. State Briefly. Nature's method of conserv ing nitrogen is to return all wast 4' - materials to the soil very soon afte: ' they become wastes. This featur has a great deal to "#'do with he ability to increase the fertility o the soil which runs wild. But even nature is unable to <re turn all of the nitogen to the so m shape to be of use to plants. Ther is inevitably some loss even here Consequently she. must have som "means of replenishing the soil suppl or eventually the soil would be com pletely exhausted. This replenish ing is accomplished chiefly by cer tain lowly plants, which have, th unusual ability of taking nitrogei from-the inexhaustible supply in th air and using it in the same wa; that other plants use the .solubl supply in the soil* When they di most of the nitrogen thus secure from the air is added to the soi These are said to be "nitrogen-fib lug" plants; and the most importan ?nes from this standpoint are certai bacteria. There are two general types o bacteria which "fix" nitrogen. Th bacteria of one type live in ordinar soils. The other type comprises th "legume" bacteria, or "nodule" bac teria, so-called because they grow i the roots of legumes (clovers, beans peas, etc.) and cause round galls o nodules to develop. This method o growth is mutually favorable, fo the legume furnishes a good place t grow and food of one kind to th bacteria and the bacteria furnishe nitrogen to the legume. The amoun of nitrogen so furnished is often ver; great, as may be observed by notin the difference in size of legume with and without nodules on a so poor in nitrogen. And the amoun ?f nitrogen available for succeedin plants where legumes are returne +? tVio anil in nlsn vprir crrpat ne ma % be observed by planting crops afte legumes have been plowed undei This is the most^mportant sourc of nitrogen for the soil, either i nature or under cultivation. A tmall amount of combined o "fixed" 'nitrogen is added to the so in ram water and snow, but th amount is comparatively unimpoi iant. Farmers have still another metho not used by nature, by which the can increase the nitrogen supplj They can apply commercial nitroger This is expensive but has specu value under some circumstances, an should be used in most cases to sup plemeat and not to take the place the other sources mentioned. . jl iic muou ciictuvc xiicaouico ??** 1 - maintaining soil nitrogen on th ? ;arm as \Vell as in nature, are carefu conservation, utilization of the wor Br*' of soil bacteria, and utliization o ? the work of legume bacteria. An< ^ the legume bacteria are the most im r, jportant of all. Her Idea of It. t ' "Clipped. "My dear," saifl Mr. Plunger whe he wont home one evening. "IV t something important to tell you? ?/<aiv0v Viae Kpon ?T\rvn?nf^>H fn f*lr charge of my affairs." "How nice!" cooed Mrs. Plunge: "When will he hold his first recej: - tion?" mil- * .'Feed milk cows liberally now an< I they will do better on grass nea t nrnmeor. & \ ' plan for corn or sorghum enougl to fill the silo next summer. *EST TO F THE NITROGEN SUPPLY id What the Farmer Can Do to Main* tain It Cheaply. e Clemson College.?Organic matter >r is "the storehouse which holds 95 per it cent of the soil nitrogen, and there i- fore a soil low in organic matter, so 3. that nitrogen is the limiting factor is in crop production. e The use of 'beans, peas, clovers, n and vetches in the rotation and their i- incorporation with the soil "by means d of cutting up with a disk harrow ' - I and plowing under deeply, is tne cheapest and most efficient method of supplying nitrogen for succeed ing crops. These crops, at the same time, provide organic matter which helps to hold the nitrogen over a series of years and permits it to 'be come available for several following crops. ~ The value of green manure, farm manure and crop residues often de pends on how rapidly they decay in the soil and provide available nitro gen, says N. E. Winters, extension agronomists, who states that a large part of the value of drainage, lime, cultivation and fertilizers is to stim ulate the healthy decay of the or ganic matter and render available the nitrogen and other plant food materials for the use of crops. 'Fresh vegetable matter incorpor-, a ted with . the soil is many times more valuable in supplying nitrogen for a growing crop than old carbon ized organic residues that have re sisted decay for a long time. Only about 2 per cent of th6 nitrogen in the old stabilized organic mat ter of ah untreated soil becomes available in one season, while in a limed soil as much as 35 per cent of the nitrogen in a legume "green manure crop becomes available in the same time. A clean cultivated field left bare all winter in South Carolina, losesy large amounts of expensive nitrogen in ^i*oino?Mk ttrofni* A /m?rvTrr_ 4A4 VttV UiC*UM?5^ TTUVVl A 5J.VCU giVVT" ing crop of rye and vetch, oat3 and vetch, or crimson clover* will not only sav? about $10.00 worth of ni trogen from leaching from an acre of soil during the winter months, but If inoculated will add another $10 worth from the God-given air. ' Hence, the use of summer and; winter legumes for pasture and; plowing under, combined with the | regular and systematic use of lime1 and mineral fertilizers, constitutes \ the most economical means of main taining the supply of available nitrogen in the soil for field crops. MAINTENANCE COST ,OF STATE HIGHWAYS Columbia, Jan. 3.?The cost of the maintenance system on the state highways of South Carolina averaged for last year $257 per mile, with, a total cost of $271,913, for maintain ing 1,119 miles. This is shown in the annual report of the state highway department, as prepared for the legis lature by Chas. H. Moorefield, chief engineer of the department. The roads maintained under the maintenance system are mostly new. The maintenance is handled with sev r eral methods, different in various counties, the patrol system in some, 4.U/, -i-i mL ^ me system 111 utnera. ine iact that many of the highways are new accounts for' the low average main tenance cost. * I The report of Mr. Moorefield shows i that the roads of the 6tate which show the best results of the main tenance work are in Greenville coun ty. Under the system 104 miles in Greenville were maintained at an average cost of $503. This cost is d i- j large because of the very heavy traf fic over the roads. W. H. Willimon! is superintendent of maintenance for Greenville. In' Richland county 18 miles were maintained, at an average cost of $398. Robert King is superintendent of maintenance. The report shows e \ that the roads are in good condition. In Spartanburg the average cost was $385, the mileage 78. In Green wood the cost was $307, the m leage 57. In Anderson the cost was $312, the mileage 96. In York the average cast was $268, the mileage 58. In Orangeburg the cost was averaged $304, for 34 miles: The maintenance work is support ed by part of the proceeds of the au Itomobile licenses. ) ARMERS FOR BETTER PASTURES Interesting Experiments in Pasture Development. Clemson College, Jan.?We be lieve that practically all of this cut over pine land of tjie low country can be utilized profitably in the pro duction of beef cattle, says Prof. H. W. Barre, director of the South Car olina experiment station, in discuss ing the work now being carried on in ai tiic tuaai. ouawivu xv* www* tures to support more and better livestock in the Coastal Plain sec-, tion. The native grasses, however, will not stand close grazing and carry a sufficient number. of cattle tv zo enable the industry to develop as it should. We have undertaken, therefore to determine the best grass es and pasture plants to use and the H best methods of developing perma nent pastures in this section. The three hundred acres of land purchased for this^ work last year ai have been fenced and subdivided in- ^ to twenty-five acre and fifty-acre 30 pastures for these experiments. Fif ty acres were sown to carpet grass and lespedeza. Where the land was burned over before seeding and the pasture grazed closely and the seed sown broadcast, satisfactory stands seem to be developing. - Tests of methods of seeding car U1 lr pet grass ana lespeaeza were Degun on fifteen acres.! The stumps were C) removed from this.area so that parts ^ of it could be plowed and the ob jectionable weeds that develop on it could be cut with a mower. The fol lowing five methods of seeding are being used in preparation of the land for the seed; burning over, plowing, disking, cutting over, and no treat- S1 ment. Oji the areas which are jf disked and plowed, it seems that we have secured a better stand of grass and clover. It may be, however, that this is only apparent and that we are able to see the new grass better on the land on which the sedges have been partly killed out by cultivation. In other tests several seeding mix tures were tried on land that had been plowed and disked. These tests have not been completed at the pres ent time. In still other tests with carpet grass and lespedeza seeded on plowed land, lime and fertilizer were applied before planting. It appears that we have secured much better stands and certainly better growth where some fertilizer was applied before planting. The fertilizer used in this work was nitrate of soda* and acid phosphate, different rates of ap plication being made. In some of the plots of these series we have secured a very satisfactory stand of lespede za and carpet grass. a; h m v< i i JANUARY FARM CALENDAR Repair terraces when weather will permit. Plow heavy soils that have not been plowe-d already especially where cotton is to be planted. Repair machinery for spring op_ erations. Save and apply to fields as much manure as possible putting it especially on thin spots. jOlean up hedge rows, fence rows, ditch ^anks and teraces, also drag grass, weeds, and underbrush with in 200 feet of a cotton field. Plow under or cut up with a stalk cutter old cotton stalks that are still standing. Prepare tne hotbed and cold frames, for cabbage, tomato, pep_ per, and eggplant. Plant caibbage seeds in hotbeds January 1 to 10th if possible. Plant English peas if the soil is' in proper conditions. Cover ithe seed 5 to 6 inches deep. Prepare land for spring Irish P<>-|| tatoes, and purchase Irish potato seed now for delivery in February, jy Prune all fruit trees preparatory to spraying with lime sulphur solu_|S tion in early February. If soil is in condition, it is better'! I to plant fruit trees this month than!J later. Select and mate those birds near, est the requirements of th? Stan, j\ dard of Perfection for the breed, keeping in mind vigor, condition, egg laying capacity. For maximum egg.production, feed a well balanced ration both grain .and mash; suppJy green suc_ culece; give plenty of fresh water, OW HOTELS RANK IN THE PIEDMONT Following, is the ranking: of hotels t the Piedmont section as announc l by the State hotel inspector at Co mbia. Figures are on a basis of a >ssible score of 1,000 points. Landrum, Imperial 800. Abbeville, Eureka 877. Anderson, Chiquola, no .score; alia 775. Belton, Belton 800. Clinton, Clinton 870. Central, R. R. Hotel 650. Due West, Due West 700. Easley, Mountain View 877. Greenwood, Oregon 925. Gaffney, Carroll 869. Inman, Hatchett 750. Laurens, Laurens 905. Landrum. Imperial 800. McCormick, McCormick 800; Ka irah 840. Newberry, Newberry 950; Nation 850. Pickens, Pickens Inn 750; Old ickory Inn 750. , Pelzer, Pelzer 800. Piedmont, Piedmont 800. . Spartanburg, Cleveland 960; Gresh n 950;. Finch 905; Spartan 773; liochfield 852; Piedmont 600; Jack in 550. ' Seneca, Oconee Inn 800; Palmetto 13. Caesars Head 900. . * Glenn Springs, Glenn Springs 850. cyt and oyster shell. For early fall pullets f:et the in_' abator or hen in January so as to et February hatched pullets. Se? to it that all livestock has a jmfortable place ' to stay. Col# eather will bring on pneumonia to ^protected livestock. Cle?n up the pastures, remoVin^ ushes and everything that will be l the way of the mowing machine. Repair'the old fences. Put in a ew post here and there and make ire that the old fence will turn vestock during the summer. Breed dairy cows during January id they will calve' between October 0 and November 9. It pays to have lem freshen in tie fall. "Buy (that purebred d^iry bull this lonth. Good bulls may be bought jry cheaply new. 1 i Invest You With The OF Safe j ^ You cc - $100.0 Interest Be? K* Next S< | Building a i G. A. NEUFFER, 3 Presidei ON CONTROLING RATS Most InjuHoni' PiiF ft" Anificu ,1 Hon* and Farm. C Clemson College.?In the control 2 of rats, the most injurious animal of * the American farm and home, there are two conditions that most be ob- j served: First ,we mast stop feeding thefti; secondly/ whatever method of control'we undertake must be jrat in to operation over the entire premises 1 at the same time. Rats "get wise," 1 and if we begin a method at on.e 5 place with a view of continuing it 1 from place to place as time goes on, ' we will never control rats. We build seed houses, barns 'and other structures in which rats fyid accommodations, without a thought of rat-proofing. Around the home we store uprT)oxes, cans, and other' materials, furnishing excellent hiding ' places. Our feed for the livestock, ' including poultry, is kept in sacks or 1 boxes that have no rat protection. We allow the space- between the ' ground and floors of buildings to be- ' come packed with chaff, refuse feed, cotton seed and seed cotton, etc. And i yet we blame the .rat for being a 1 constant visitor. * i Whatever method of, control be adopted,^whether it be trapping or' ' poisoning, it Should be undertaken intelligently after a .careful plan has been made covering the premises, ad- i vises Prof. A. F. Conradi, entomol ogist. On the farm one or two rat terriers or several good cats are among the most effective methods of rat control. Cats are useful in rat control about city and village , premises. It is true that many cats j are ruinous to birds, ind when a cat has formed the bird killing habit it , should be destroyed and replaced by a better one. \v ' .In some sections systematic rat campaigns have produced splendid results,'and similar campaigns should be of the greatest benefit in all sec tions of our state. . Farmers' Bulletin 896, "House Rats and Mice," may be obtained by writing the Extension Service, Clem son College, S. C., or the**TJ. S. De* partment of Agriculture, Washing ton, D. C. : UHiinajanimEninininjEJEfB ' " * . ' ' " ' f ? r r Money \ ml LOIS J! ' ABBEVIL IT WILL BE and Profit. in save from $1. >0 a month wii fins With Your t sries Op ens 20th, 1922. Loan k A kkainlla Ui nu it. Seer - Smltiaf Mm! Aftar Cojriaf 1 CleuMPon o41eg?, Bk. 11.?Foij owing the instructions gJVtn la tently on curing meat fcy'tfe ferine oethod ad the 4ry method, the m%-? ^estions given belour ?a aaoldM^ neat after caring may fee of inter- . ?t end value to many JgsafKO, tft?k S. G. Godibey, assistant professor >f animai husbandry."*. , ;..... After the meat is cured, wash at ^loroughly with lukeimign water ind hang in the smoke _ honee ; smoking. Hang ithe pieces ?f meat - | to they will ,not ouch but will per outa free circulation of air. Aftejf"' s" H ;fae meat has be^n haoging for 24 J lours start the smoke aeing hieiory, naple of some hard wood. Com . 3obst will dfr-but they give the meat ,* a dirty appearance. > > '-<? - - . if Don't get the meat too hot* Lot the fire start slowly and keeip* it weH-" smothered. Thirty-six to -48 hours' V. smoking is sufficient, hat. in hoi* -,.b weather it is ibetter to start the fire . 2very other day And amobe a total f v >f 60 hours. , ~-M . Smoked meat, after it telSbtf and firm, should ho wrapped heavy paper and pat dn amii4\in sack, t is very important 'that the / top -of the sack lb* tied so st will keep insects out. Paint each sack with ydlo# waah and hang the meat,up. Never stack it in a pile. Vv' ' " The following is the recipe ftrr yellow wash: For 1%0 pound hams.o* iwedn use 3 pohnds of barium sulphate; 1 . ^ ounce of glue; 1 1-4 ounces curome yellow (lead chromate); $ ounces / of-flour. / - -*i - . Vi iBf iLi. _i mil a pan aaxrut one-aair zaii ox water and dissolve all of floor. Dissolve the chrome,, yellow in a. quart of water in a separate veeael and add the solution and the $ftie to the flour; Bring this to a <boi3 and add the barium sulphate slowly, stirring constantly. Make the waA the day before it is reqpired; Stic it frequently when usi^g and afk plywith a brush, ... The largest copper bo^il^er in the world, weighing three tons, ia, in the Smithsonian Institution , at Washings ton. n!Ji!ii!JZJEJHJi!igrziiiEre! ?ae LE. able. 00 to lh US. irsi Dollar. +< '-r: I 'i i ji January !| 1 ssociation 1 8? J. S. MORSE, etary & Treasurer. niiaramfiifiifimuiuafanyg