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VOL. LXVII INDIANAPOLIS, MAY 25, 1912. NO. 21 Why We Rotate Crops Rotation of Wheat, Clover and Corn Has Many Advantages. met: HODS OF SUPPLYING NITROGEN, CONTROLLING INSECTS, DISEASES AND WEEDS. By O. M. Hayes. Every up-to-date farmer knows that the only practical system of farming is the rotation plan, and to a greater or less degree every farmer practices this .system, but to obtain the best results it is necessary to know why rotation is necessary. It is often said at farmer's Institutes that the value of rotation lies In the fact that different crops use different plant food elements, but this is entirely misleading. In the first place rotation gives good results because the different crops grown have different plant food requirements. Nearly all crops require the .same plant food elements, but in different proportions. The rotation system must consist of crops, such that if It Is a three course rotation, every three years a crop that requires a large amount of a certain element will tie grown. This allows two, years for the soil to recuperate in preparation for the next crop of the same kind. Meanwhile crops must be grown that help supply the much needed element. If nitrogen is lacking grow a legume crop once in three or four years or of- tener to supply that element. In many cases it is necessary to supply potash and phosphorus as commercial fertilizer in order to keep the supply of these elements constant In the soil. Do not think that because a legume adds nltrosen to the soil that It does not use up plant food; in fact, leguminous crops use more potash and phosphorous than most any of the grain crops. ■ A large amount of nitrogen Is also used, but it is taken from the air and ln addition an extra amount Is stored up in the soil. Getting and Using Nitrogen. Every practical rotation must contain crops that use nitrogen and crops that gather it. For example, in the common rotation of corn, wheat and clover, the first two use nitrogen and the third gathers it. In fact clover is a user and a gatherer of nitrogen. In the use of clover or any legume there is one practice which is very common, but nevertheless bad, namely, cutting the crop for hay, later cutting it for 8*ed, threshing and returning nothing to the soil, and perhaps also pasturing It during a portion of the latter part of the season. Any legume should be raised primarily as a soil improving crop and not for the money it will bring. plan the rotation so that two t'ropg out of three bring ln money, but the third year let the legume be wholly for a soil Improver. If this legume °an be so used as to bring in money, "id still act as a soli improver, this "f course is a point to be considered. This may be done to some extent by feeding the legume and returning the manure to the soil. Variety in Kinds of Roots. The type of crops included in a .riven ration must be considered from another standpoint,—the different types of root systems. Take for example the three plants, clover, corn and wheat. Of these, clover is the deepest feeding plant. Its root system consists principally of one long tap root extending six or eight feet be- of the soil is not used up in one year. The wheat plant has no deep roots, consequently all its food must be obtained from the upper eight inches of soil. Combining these three crops in a three year rotation gives about the best possible diversification in the root system. Every three years plant food is taken from a different place, allowing the remainder of the soil to rest. Disease and W<?eds Remedied. Another of the fundamental reasons for changing the crops grown each year is that to some extent this method aids in the control of plant diseases and insects. If a certain crop is Vetch, an Annual Legume, may be Sown to Secure Nitrogen and Humus if Clover Fails. low the surface. These roots bring phosphorus and potash from the subsoil to the upper soil at the same time the leaves are taking in nitrogen from the air. Corn has many roots in the surface six or eight inches of soil and likewise many roots that extend three or four feet into the soil. The roots are scattered and for this reason all the plant food in one particular area grown year after year on the same piece of ground the diseases and insects common to that crop will continually increase, until after a few years it becomes unprofitable to grow- that crop. The wheat smut is an example of a disease that remains in the soil from year to year. The Hessian fly and chinch bug are Insects that remain In the same locality year after year and migrate only to a slight extent. An insect usually has a particular crop that it feeds upon and unless starved, will not eat any other plant. If there is an intermission of three or four years between crops these insect enemies have probably disappeared. The potato scab is a disease that remains in the soil from one year to the next as a fungus and If potatoes are grown consecutive years on the same soil the disease must necessarily increase. As a means of controlling weeds, rotation of crops is about the only practical method known. If wheat is grown continuously on the same soil, weed seed introduced into that soil will grow and multiply greatly, if of the hardy nature, until the weed is as common as the wheat itself. In the northwestern wheat fields mustard has become a great pest, simply because rotation has not been practiced. This shows the necessity of having a cleaning crop. Any cultivated crop is to a greater or less degree a cleansing crop, but by far the most common one is corn. Rotate Many Crops. The selecting of the crops to be used .in the rotation rests with the individual farmer. Everyone should select the crops for a rotation according as they are adapted to the climate, market, soil, cheapness of production and the use to be made of them. Everyone has individual desires and problems that no one except himself can work out, and certainly the matter of rotation is one of them. llrietly stated we practice rotation in order to grow crops that have different plant food requirements; to supply nitrogen to the soil for plant use; to get the maximum efficiency from the soil due to different types of plant root systems, and to control insects, diseases and weeds. Cowpeas ln Corn adds Nitrogen to the Soil and Forage to the Crop. THE FARMERS AND OTHER PEOPLE. The total population of Indiana according to our last census report is 2,700,876, of which number 1,557,041 are farmers. That is a little over 57 per cent of our population belongs on the farm, and the farmer holds the balance of power politically. If he cares to use this power he can have such legislation as he wishes. It is for the farmer to say, for instance, what kind of roads he will have, and how they shall be built, i. e. whether by Government, thru a commissioner of roads, or as at present thru County supervisors. And so of other matters In which the rural population is interested. A. M. Ten Eyck, of the Kansas Station points out the fact that the farmers can well afford to give more attention to the matter of quality in hay and to this end it is important to know not only what hay plants are best adapted to a given locality and the best method of seeding them, but it Is equally important to harvest and save the hay in such a manner as to secure the largest amount and best quality of product. "Good quality, as Indicated by the bright green color of well-preserved hay," he says, "will readily add a dollar or two per ton to the selling price."
Object Description
Title | Indiana farmer, 1912, v. 67, no. 21 (May 25) |
Purdue Identification Number | INFA6721 |
Date of Original | 1912 |
Subjects (LCSH) |
Agriculture Farm management Horticulture Agricultural machinery |
Subjects (NALT) |
agriculture farm management horticulture agricultural machinery and equipment |
Genre | Periodical |
Call Number of Original | 630.5 In2 |
Location of Original | Hicks Repository |
Coverage | United States - Indiana |
Type | text |
Format | JP2 |
Language | eng |
Collection Title | Indiana Farmer |
Rights Statement | Content in the Indiana Farmer Collection is in the public domain (published before 1923) or lacks a known copyright holder. Digital images in the collection may be used for educational, non-commercial, or not-for-profit purposes. |
Repository | Purdue University Libraries |
Date Digitized | 2011-04-14 |
Digitization Information | Original scanned at 300 ppi on a Bookeye 3 scanner using internal software. Display images generated in CONTENTdm as JP2000s; file format for archival copy is uncompressed TIF format. |
Description
Title | Page 1 |
Subjects (LCSH) |
Agriculture Farm management Horticulture Agricultural machinery |
Subjects (NALT) |
agriculture farm management horticulture agricultural machinery and equipment |
Genre | Periodical |
Call Number of Original | 630.5 In2 |
Location of Original | Hicks Repository |
Coverage | Indiana |
Type | text |
Format | JP2 |
Language | eng |
Collection Title | Indiana Farmer |
Rights Statement | Content in the Indiana Farmer Collection is in the public domain (published before 1923) or lacks a known copyright holder. Digital images in the collection may be used for educational, non-commercial, or non-for-profit purposes. |
Repository | Purdue University Libraries |
Digitization Information | Orignal scanned at 300 ppi on a Bookeye 3 scanner using internal software. Display images generated in CONTENTdm as JP2000s; file format for archival copy is uncompressed TIF format. |
Transcript | VOL. LXVII INDIANAPOLIS, MAY 25, 1912. NO. 21 Why We Rotate Crops Rotation of Wheat, Clover and Corn Has Many Advantages. met: HODS OF SUPPLYING NITROGEN, CONTROLLING INSECTS, DISEASES AND WEEDS. By O. M. Hayes. Every up-to-date farmer knows that the only practical system of farming is the rotation plan, and to a greater or less degree every farmer practices this .system, but to obtain the best results it is necessary to know why rotation is necessary. It is often said at farmer's Institutes that the value of rotation lies In the fact that different crops use different plant food elements, but this is entirely misleading. In the first place rotation gives good results because the different crops grown have different plant food requirements. Nearly all crops require the .same plant food elements, but in different proportions. The rotation system must consist of crops, such that if It Is a three course rotation, every three years a crop that requires a large amount of a certain element will tie grown. This allows two, years for the soil to recuperate in preparation for the next crop of the same kind. Meanwhile crops must be grown that help supply the much needed element. If nitrogen is lacking grow a legume crop once in three or four years or of- tener to supply that element. In many cases it is necessary to supply potash and phosphorus as commercial fertilizer in order to keep the supply of these elements constant In the soil. Do not think that because a legume adds nltrosen to the soil that It does not use up plant food; in fact, leguminous crops use more potash and phosphorous than most any of the grain crops. ■ A large amount of nitrogen Is also used, but it is taken from the air and ln addition an extra amount Is stored up in the soil. Getting and Using Nitrogen. Every practical rotation must contain crops that use nitrogen and crops that gather it. For example, in the common rotation of corn, wheat and clover, the first two use nitrogen and the third gathers it. In fact clover is a user and a gatherer of nitrogen. In the use of clover or any legume there is one practice which is very common, but nevertheless bad, namely, cutting the crop for hay, later cutting it for 8*ed, threshing and returning nothing to the soil, and perhaps also pasturing It during a portion of the latter part of the season. Any legume should be raised primarily as a soil improving crop and not for the money it will bring. plan the rotation so that two t'ropg out of three bring ln money, but the third year let the legume be wholly for a soil Improver. If this legume °an be so used as to bring in money, "id still act as a soli improver, this "f course is a point to be considered. This may be done to some extent by feeding the legume and returning the manure to the soil. Variety in Kinds of Roots. The type of crops included in a .riven ration must be considered from another standpoint,—the different types of root systems. Take for example the three plants, clover, corn and wheat. Of these, clover is the deepest feeding plant. Its root system consists principally of one long tap root extending six or eight feet be- of the soil is not used up in one year. The wheat plant has no deep roots, consequently all its food must be obtained from the upper eight inches of soil. Combining these three crops in a three year rotation gives about the best possible diversification in the root system. Every three years plant food is taken from a different place, allowing the remainder of the soil to rest. Disease and W |
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