Evening Republican, Volume 18, Number 230, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 September 1914 — SEED BED PREPARATION AND FERTILIZATION FOR WHEAT [ARTICLE]

SEED BED PREPARATION AND FERTILIZATION FOR WHEAT

By J. C. Beavers, Soils and Crape Department, Purdue University Experiment Station. (Purdue University Agricultural Ex- » . tension.)

The present low price of wheat should not discourage anyone from seeding the usual acreage thlsfalL The man who is “in and out” never makes much money growing any crop. He usually gets “in” when the market is lowest and “out” just a little too soon to ge| the benefit of the high prices that follow every depression. Wheat Is not going to ba low-priced very long and the men who keep growing wheat year after year and do all they can to improve the yield will be the ones that get the most profit out of the crop. The wheat crop Is seldom highly profitable, but its use In the rotation gives a better distribution of farm labor, provides a nurse crop with which clover may be seeded, and regulates the farm income. With these points of advantage and with a good opportunity to Increase the yield of wheat by better preparation and fertilization of the soil, the crop should continue to be popular. . Good soil or seed bed preparation is one of the essential factors In wheat , production. Much of the wheat crop is seeded in standing corn where weeds and grass have been allowed to grow up. Wheat seeded on such land has little opportunity to make an early start. Whsn wheat is to be seeded in the standing corn, the corn field should be kept clean by late cultivating if necessary so that the land will be in good condition at wheat seeding time. It is also advisable to cultivate shallow and level, as this kind of cultivation provides a better seed bed. Stubble land that is seeded to wheat needs to be well prepared. For best results the seed bed-should be thoroughly fined and well firmed. Not long since I inspected a field of corn that showed the results of poor soil preparation by Its feeble growth. A piece of Sod land had been plowed for the crop in spring but it had not been well fined or firmed. On- the last day of June there was enough room under the furrow-slice immediately beneath the com row to easily admit my hand. Here was a dead-air space of two to four inches that had been preventing the rise of capillary moisture for more than a month during dry weather. Land prepared In a similar way is often responsible for the failure of a wheat field.

When the soil is dry it is advisable to disk the land thoroughly before plowing, then the soil will be well fined at the bottom of the furrowslice. After plowing, it should be disked or harrowed and rolled or dragged down immediately so there will be little opportunity for moisture to escape. If the process of harrowing and rolling is repeated two or three times before seeding, the seed bed will be thoroughly fined and compacted so that the young plants can root in firm soil where the conditions are suitable for maximum growth. The preparation for wheat should begin as easly as possible. In case of a dry fall, late plowed soil will require considerable more tillage to get a good seed bed than will early plowed soiL Moreover, early plowing gives more time tor any plant refuse that is turned under to decay. This Is very important where the sod or stubble is reasonably heavy. In addition to good seed bed preparation, fertilization is an important Item that should be given careful consideration. This should depend to some extent on the way the soil has been handled and also on the character of the soil. Where clover has been grown regularly once every three or four years and considerable manure applied to the soil, no nitrogen should be used in the fertilizer. On soils in a fair state of fertility a fertilizer containing two per cent nitrogen, eight to twelve per cent phosphoric acid and four to six per cent patash will produce profitable results. Unless the soil is especially well supplied with organic matter, a small per cent of nitrogen will usually give a satisfactory Increase in wheat yield. On much of soil of northern Indiana the per cent of. patash recommended above may be increased two per cent to good advantage. An application of 250 lbs. of this fertilizer to wheat will not only give a good Increase in the yield of wheat but there will be sufficient residual effect to produce a marked improvement in the growth of clover or any other crop that follows. * By giving careful attention to seed beed preparation and fertilization, the yield of wheat may be greatly increased on most farms.