Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1876-02-11
Westminster Farmers, Club.

met Win w III. henTg floyu, Ttu.
LIST, and discussed the question of Mix
ed Farming"
Mr.. FLoYED. Am in favor of mixed
farming that is, for farmer to raise
all kinds of produce and keep variety
of stock, 1t is the good, old-fashioned
way. 1t was a disgrace'for men to fail
then, and they were not obliged to, for
they raised all they needed and did not
have to depend ON others for a supply.
1t is the book-farmers who are to-day
running into specialities, and generally
they are the ones who fail. Would al
wise all farmers to keep sheep, if but
few. Should also have all kinds of
stock, so as to be independent.
Mr.. PALMER. Wish the question
had been little more definite. | un-
derstand it to be raising variety, max:
ingno one thing prominent. Shall differ
little from Mr.. Floyd. Different men
have different qualifications, and all can
not do we'll at the same kind of business.
Some like cattle, others horses, while
another may prefer to keep sheep. BY
giving attention to one branch of farm
ing, one soon becomes expert in it, and
will do better than if his energies were
divided among many things. The wis
est course for farmer is to have one
special object in view, but at the same
time to raise enough of each crop to
support the family. He will then get
a living without depending on others,
and also have something to sell.
G. NJ. CHAsE-Much depends upon
the location. Where there is market
for products, think the best course is to
engage in some special branch. My Oh
servation has been that men who do so
have most to sell and most money in
their pockets, know of place where
butter making is the main pursuit, and
those so engaged are very successful.
They say they can buy corn and many
other farm products cheaper than they
can raise them. A man should raise
what is best adapted to his taste, farm
and situation
NATHAN PIERCE. 1T is too much of
a Yankee notion to be lack fall trades
and good at none" A man should have
a taste for it. He should select farm
suited to what he wants to raise If on
farm already, he should study to find
out what it will produce to best advan.
tage. Special farmers should be care
full not to exhaust their land, as their is
a temptation to do sometimes. Proba-
bly, Vermont is best adapted to dairying.
Farmers are doing as wellas they used to,
some better. They used to call twenty
five bushels Of corn to the acre good
crop, but it would not satisfy us now.
Large farms have been divided, and
each part made to produce as much as
the whole used to.
B. f. SLEEPER.-As far as my OBJ
servation has extended man who tried
to raise everything generally made
failure. They used to raise all kinds of
produce and had nothing to SELL We
could not live SO now Times have
changed. Men will make money, if
they understand and like their business.
Don't think the Connecticut Valley
farms are best adapted to grass, corn
does well, and so do the men that raise
it.
G. NJ CHAsE.-If man will raise
suitable proportion of each crop to keep
men and teams during all seasons, and
make grass the main thing, he will do
well, but it is worse than useless to raise
grass, unless you have good stock to
feed it to. My own experience has prov
ed to me that mixed farming doesn't
pay. Tried to raise corn and everything
also on the same piece, and had great
variety of nothing.
Mr.. FLoYD.--4ou did not mix
enough. You should have mixed in
more labor.
Mr.. CHAsE.-I noticed that some of
my neighbors failed for the same reason.
P. d. KEYEs.-A man knowing his
special adaptation, should procure a
farm suited to the business in which he
wishes to engage. One farm may be
good for sheep, and another for dairying
therefore select accordingly. Grass
should be the main object in all kinds of
stock farming, but think it good plan
to raise most of the articles needed on
the farm, except wheat Make hay
king, and let corn and oats be next in
} importance Perhaps it would not be
: best to raise SO much grain on the hill
farms as on the meadows.
: LEONARD PIERCE.-We have heard
much this evening of farming in differ
ent parts of the state, but we should
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