SEGMENT: FARMING METHODS

George Marr>UIS Collection K-M>UIS Collection K-M, Segment 9

SEGMENT: FARMING METHODS,

duration 14:47
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FARMING METHODS
Describes shucking corn, the equipment and livestock used, and the purposes of the knock board, hook, and peg. Yield was about 60-75 bushels per acre when he started farming, then plowed clover under and began testing limestone as a fertilizer. Yield increased with new fertilizers to 150 bushels per acre, and average yield across Illinois was 120-125 bushels per acre. Began using a hybrid corn that could be planted closer together. Describes "checking" corn with a horse-drawn planter and a trip wire. Use herbicides these days. Describes using the hook and peg when shucking corn. Began growing soybeans in the area in 1924-1925. Seed was brought from Arkansas and used to feed to cattle after being threshed. Is fascinated by the things made from soybeans. First farmer with soybeans tested it one year and planted 30 acres of it the next. Became a major crop along with corn, wheat, and oats.