River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1877-11-01
wheat ana sheep.

Mr.. Z. o. Humphrey, President of the
Michigan State Agricultural society, was
lately interviewed by the editor of the
Michigan Farmer, with this result:
"We must" said he, escape the mis-
take made in Ohio and New York by ex-
hausting our lands of the material to grow
wheat. We must not only keep our
soil at the standard at which We 70 nd it
but we must do more than this-we must
add power and fertility toit Where we
produce 90 bushels we must produce so
bushels of wheat. We must make so
acres do the work of one hundred acres.
That is the main change to which | re-
| fer"
"He then explained the advantage
and profit that would arise from such a
change.
In the first place, if you make so
acres do the work of 100, you have so
acres left for something else, or you may
let it lay idle. Where you now sow it
all to wheat, under the change / propose
you could have so acres of wheat and
raise Just as much, and 80 acres of corn,
oats, or barley. But, if you cultivated
only so acres and got as many bushels
off from it as you previously did off from
100, there would be great saving in ex-
pense of labor, sowing and reaping the
crop
90 But can this be doner he asked.
90 1t must be done said he, or the
wheat system will fail. 1t involves bet
ter methods of cultivation, a proper rota-
ton of crops, fertilization by clover, and
other methods, as by the keeping and
feeding of cattle, swine, and sheep
"His average OF wheat had been from
90 to 25 bushels per acre for the last 20
years, though this year it was very poor,
from the ravages of the insect. Much
could be done by selection of seed.
"This brought us to his practice of feed
ing sheep. He had just bought about
300 wethers. He unusually fed about $50
head, and this practice he had followed
for at least the past twelve years. He
usually raised say from 40 10 so acres of
corn per annum, and he thought that
every bushel of it, had brought him a
doller per bushel by feeding it.
''These sheep were separate from his
flock kept for wool, which were merinos,
and now averaged seven to seven and
half pounds of fine wool per head. The
foundation of the shearing flock came
from the farm of Charles E. Stuart. and
he had kept them up and improved them |
by the use of improved bucks, and by the |
practice of sorting and selection.
'.He believed there was more profit in |
feeding sheep than in feeding cattle-at I
least; that was his experience; but he had /
had more experience with sheep. The l
reason why some lost money in feeding /
sheep, was because they had failed in the 4
practice. They did not feed right. They 4
kept too large number in a flock. He /
bought usually during the last month of
summer, and turned them into good feed,
and was careful not to let them run down
but kept them up in flesh. Commenced
early to feed them little grain, usually
corn, in order TO get them accustomed to
it. Sheep must be broke to such feed.
Fed gradually until they were put upon
full feed. We asked him what he meant
by "full iced"
"eThree bushels of corn to hundred
sheep per day, mixed with little bran,
fed dry twice a day regularly or one and
a half bushels Of corn to each feed per
hundred head
"He calculated to feed all his coarse
fodder to these sheep; did not feed much
hav. But his intention was to convert
all his fodder into manure, an market
his own corn on his farm Such sheep
should be fed not more than forty IN
pen. and he dwelt particularly on the
propriety of keeping one attendant, who
would soon be known to the sheep, and
in keeping the sheep quiet in the pens,