The Velvetbean. Page: 15
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THE VELVTBElAN 1 5
VELVETBEANS AS PASTURE
The most important use of the velvetbean is as a grazing crop for
cattle and hogs in the autumn and winter. It is never grazed readily
by stock until well-matured or frosted. On sandy soils, the leaves,
vines, and pods do not decay readily and often furnish feed until
early spring. It is usually better to delay grazing until the crop is
well-matured or killed by frost, as the leaves will be off the plants at
that time and the corn may be gathered with less difficulty. The
amount of grazing afforded will, of course, vary with the growth of the
crop and the quantity of corn that is not gathered. Many cattlemen
allow one-third to one-half acre per month for each steer or cow, the
usual grazing period being about 3 months, but this may be shortened
or lengthened as deemed advisable. When the acreage of beans is
large and there are not sufficient cattle to stock the pasture at this
rate, grazing is often continued for 4 or 5 months. When this is done,
however, there is necessarily some loss through decay. Hogs should
be allowed to follow the cattle to consume the beans which they have
wasted. A common practice is to allow one or two hogs in addition
to the cattle for each acre of beans. On the heavier soil types of the
South there is some danger of packing the soil to the detriment of the
succeeding crop if grazing is continued in rainy weather, and on such
soils pasturing should be done with more care than on sandy soils.
A good stand of velvetbeans should produce about 200 pounds of beef
and 100 pounds of pork per acre.
VELVETBEANS USED FOR SOIL IMPROVEMENT
The velvetbean is one of the best soil-improving crops both for
naturally poor soils and for those on which yields have decreased
markedly. The ability of this plant to make a profitable growth on
land so poor that most legumes do not thrive on it, places the velvetbean
among the most important crops for the South. In addition to
adding at a minimum cost large quantities of vegetable matter to the
soil, thus making it more retentive of moisture, the nodules on the
roots collect a large amount of nitrogen from the air. The nitrogen
is left in the soil when the crop is turned under and the plants decay.
Even though the crop is grazed, much of the nitrogen in the plants
consumed by the stock will be returned to the soil in the manure.
In some sections velvetbeans have proved to be the most profitable
crop to plant for 1 or 2 years on newly cleared land, as they not only
supply considerable grazing or feed but also improve the soil for the
crops that follow. The yield of seed from such ground is usually
heavier than from fields which have been long in cultivation.
Investigations by the Alabama, Louisiana, and Florida Agricultural
Experiment Stations give definite data as to the quantities of material
added to the soil by velvetbeans. The results are shown in table 3.
In interpreting this table it is well to remember that a ton of cottonseed
meal contains about 130 pounds of nitrogen.
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Piper, Charles V. (Charles Vancouver), 1867-1926 & Morse, W. J. (William Joseph), b. 1884. The Velvetbean., book, May 1938; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc5937/m1/17/: accessed April 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.