Farm and Garden

Alexandra Herald and Central Otago Gazette, Issue 365, 7 May 1903, Page 2

Farm and Garden

081 of IN AL ARTICLES .. ■ CATCH CROPS. ! '.''..)'l' r , ' r". MfIKEARLY every season there is"~a period when supplementary feed 2&JJJK for live stock is necessary. To provide for that is not always easy when the amount of land available is limited. Where small grain is raised it is easily possible to secure a lot of forage by sowing seeds cf various crops on land which has been in rye, barley, wheat, or even oats The early grain crops being taken off the ground, the land can be ploughed at once and seeded to some forage crop. Possibly nothing is better or surer than to plant sweet corn, or any ordinary field corn, for supplementary feed. It frequently happens that corn will mature when planted late in the season., However, if it does not mature it will furnish a large amount of feed before frOßt. Sweet corn will;develop more rapidly than field corn, and can be depended upon for young'stock and for dairy cows. Plant this corn with a drill in the ordinary way, giving it one or two cultivations, and if the season is favorable from six to ten tons of green forage per acre can be secured.

The ordinary sweet sorghum planted in this way as a catch crop is frequently very satisfactory. Out and use as desired, eare being taken not to allow animals to graze on second growth sorghum as it is liable to loss. So likewise rape can be seeded on land well prepared for the purpose. As our readers well know, rape belongs to the cabbage family, and the seed resemble cabbage seed to a certain extent. The D wait Essex variety is the best to sow. If it is broadcasted, use four to five pounds per acre; but if seeded in drills two pounds is sufficient. If broadcasted, the seed can be covered with a harrow. Where the ground is moist Bowing in drills is advisable. Bape is espeeiallj valuable for sheep and hogs; although cattle and horses learn to eat it. It can be used as pasture or as a soiling crop. Eape has been grown in connection with sorghum as a catch crop, and the combination is very satisfactory. Bye has been frequently described in these columns. A variety known in some parts as winter '.rye can, be sown for a, pasture crop at almost any season of the year. If seeded directly after the summer harvest, provided there is moisture enough to germinate and start 'the seed, it can be grazed, and furnishes a great deal of green food. In some very favorable seasons it grows high enough, during the autumn to be made is a soiling crop, although that must not be depended upon. It is chiefly valuable for pasture. Sow witl a drill at the rate of four or five pecks per acre; if the seed is broadcasted, use six pecks; if desired for pasture alone, keep - enqngh stock on to prevent jointing. -^ Millets are very satisfactory as catch crops, and in many places are used quite extensively. If the weather is quite dry when they are sown growth is slow, but if at all seasonable they will develop and furnish much feed. They grow well on loose soiis, and can be pastured at almost any stage of growth. Prepare the soil as for wheat and sow preferably broadcast, although m some cases drills have. been used with good results. For. soiling two to four pecks of seed per acre is sufficient, but when wanted for pasture little more is required-—say four to five. When desired for pasture see that it is kept sufficiently short to prevent jointing., When it is allow d to grow coarse and rank it is not a satisfactory feed; occasionally the crop may be harvested Mhay. For feeding sheep turnips are exceedingly satisfactory as a catch crop. The autumn variety can be seeded any time after the summer wheat harvest and thrives best on a very, rich soil.; If wheat has been grown on sod, that-is almost an ideal soil for turnips. Prepare the soil thoroughly, and make every possible attempt to retain moisture, as considerable quantities are desirable early in the history of the. stand. Sow one to two pounds of seed per acre and try mixiHg a little raps s<-ed. Toe two crops grow readily together, and can be pastured at the same time. Pasturing can.continue until the ground is really cold. The turnips can be harvested and used' for sheep feed during the. winter, period. j In many cases sheep will learn to eat the turnips from the ground. Also soy beans and cowpeas makej excellent pasture and forage sown after wheat. Many farmers have had exc llent results frcm these crops. Plough the ground as soon as the wheat is off, and sow broadcast; at the rate of ono bushel per acre; or—what is still better—drill in rowß twenty to twenty eight inches apart, at tbe rate of about two to three pecks per acre" The plants will make good growth if the season is at all favorable, sometimes attaining a height of three to ihree and a half feet. The crop is not (nly. excellent for forage, but it also puts the ground in first-class condit on for succeeding crops. Sometimes in cultivated fields sheep sorr 1 is a troublesome plant, often grow r ing to the exclusion of much bettor plats. The suggested remedy for that is to thoroughly cultivate the fields and cover with manure to. enrich the soil; a £0 it would be good to get such soil i' arted growißg clover. .It would help to enrich the soil, and thus lessen the abundance 6J the weed known osßheep edrrel. . - ' ?•'•