The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1870-01-20
.Asgz8ssE's .g0rxaATs
!, Farm. Crops, to Sell and When to Sell.

szF ara. Crops, to Sell and When to Sell.
Is ION all yellrcutivatsd sanei conduct edafarms
There is usually ,algsurplus efprodnce, raised
with yiewof being SOLD IN market others
| arc designed more especially for consumption
oputIe1 farm, orfinsthc family, etc A1''1
aSoinctimes it happens, andset ifedAcl t'y
| for the benefit Of the producer, that special
crops arc grown out Of, ,proportion,to demand !;
! this may not Be generally, but in, particular
sections, as has been the case ia some parts Of
the West with the potato crop this past sea-
Esop, where's some propose to plough them un-
del. rather than dis aud market shena, at pre-
vailing prices. IS
sTlfis bad economy, in farming, 70, run with
| the crowd ln'ang speculation or speculative
crop, as generally there. comesa time of re-
verse, and then comes the question how to
| dispose Of the (" Elephant" A farmer has a
farm we'll adapted borrowing a general sarie-
ply of crops wheat, rye, oats, barley, corn,
potatoes, getcl, and he understands rllanaeiug
all these crops, when grown in moderate o uan-
titles each Of them brings in agspeqiiel rev.
.ehue, and all together make up a fair profit
I from the farm. 1t would be poor economy
flor such afariner to concentrate a large ma
jority Or the whole Of his forces on any one
Of, these crops or an entirely new one; but
how frequent in these days is it the case.l But
[ need not present Illustrations here, as al
most any one can find them in plenty in any
section. But having. an " elephant" orfhand,
how shall We dispose Of him to the best ad-
vantage? ..f,,s,.s ~ ii-goa 30
If corn wheat or potatoes are grown, for
sale, it is always safest to sell as soon as ready
for market, provided they will bring the cost,
or oyer, Of production, rather than hold them
six months or a year for better market; for
the loss from ahrinkage, vermin, decay stor-
age, extra handling and interest will greatly
over-balance a greater relative price; and
then there is the risk that prices will recede
instead Of advance, as well as other cas1ai-
ties. But here comes another .objection,-a
rush Of any one product on the market tends
to lower prices, SO that great Judgment is re-
quired ia judiciously mari letting crops. IF
there area variety of products, there is a bet
ter chance that some OF them will bring u
good price when ready for market; while
others can be held or otherwise disposed Of
Some products, such as are least liable to
waste Or shrinkage, are frequently better held
for paying price, as eften this is the only
way it can be obtained. But again there be-
ing no understanding or concert, of action
among farmers, often there is little gain in
this. yi!a tG- z.Hoo3lA1 e-' 's'aA
There are some products, such as roots, po-
tatoes, etc, that can be turned to better profit
than to be sold or held when remunerative
price is offered in market A much better
and more economical way of disposing of
them is in feeding them to stock With but
ter at 20, 40, toto cents per pound-pork 10
to 4 nts,-beef 10 to Is, and mutton to
Z cents per pound potatoes are worth not less
than so GENTS per bushel, fed to either kind Of
stock, especially if cooked, and justa sprink-
ling of bran or meal be added IF potatoes
will not bring over, 30 cents, it is always bet
ter when corn is 81, or over, per ,bushel, to
cook and feed them, and sell some, other pro-
duet, than to sell at reduced price. A po-
.tato cooked and fed hasa greater value for
fatening, o., milk producing, thanais generally
conceded to it a bushei of. potatoes with four
to six quarts of corn meal, well cooked and
fed warm, is Of as great IL not greater value.
fed Tor thesabove purposes, than bushel of
| raw corn, according to observation and expe-
rlence OF the writer. - s,e.,s-55 -jsaea
The converting such heavy perishabe crops
into more concentrated form, provides for
| more convenient marketing and there is
| much less waste from the farm, as the manure,
oifal, etc. is retained to enable us to produce
more and better crops In preparing any and
all products of the farm dairy, etc, for mar
ket, great care and good calculation is needed
in order 10 have them in good condition for
market, and ready when they can be sold to
the best advantage; yet all this will avail but
little unless we have full and correct informa-
ton, united with good Judgment. to decide
when that time comes. Ia order for farmers
| to be able to determine arhen to sell, they must
| hnol0 the cost Of production, and TO this end
| an exact account must be kept with each pro
| duct, and whenit will be as easy for them as
| it is ffrsthe merchant to fix a price, With a
! fair profit for his wares-Practlcaz Farmer.