Daily Los Angeles herald., 1878-07-21
IN. Harvest 1. Lo. Angeles.

We make the following extract
from q correspondence in Thurs
days Bulletin, dated at this place,
July 18th. 1t Is a fair review of the
crop prospect In such portions of
the county as the writer has visited:
The farmers of this county are
two or three weeks ahead of their
brethren Of the San Joaquin VAL
ley in the matter of gathering their
crops. All the grain in this region
Is cut and nearly all Of it in stack.
Considerable progress has been
made on some of the ranc hes in
thrashing, and others are waiting
their turn, as the thrashing is gen.
orally done with steam machines,
each of which turns out from 500
to l, 900 sacks day. One machine
in this way sometimes does the
work of whole neighborhood. The
grain sown here was mostly barley,
fortunate circumstance, since
nearly all the wheat Is blasted with
rust. Two kinds of wheat, the So
nora and the Egyptian, yield
partial return, but hundreds of
acres of other kinds are left stand
ing, as it will not pay to harvest.
The straw Is large and but for the
rust would have turned off forty or
fifty bushels to the acre. The Sono-
ra and Egyptian varieties are earli-
lier, and the heads were we'll filled
before struck by the rust. The far
mers are ad monished ut the result
to sow only the earlier varieties. But
wheat is never by any means q
sure crop In this county. Complaint
is also quite general that the crop
OF barley il not so bountiful as was
expected. While the growth was
very large, the grain does not turn
out well in thrasling. 1t was so
lodged that headers had to be dis
pensed with, and the crops gather
ed by reapers and mowers. In many
cases not more than half the prom.
ised outcome will be realized.
Where in April and May, 20 to 80
sacks to the acre were confidently
expected, farmers are get
ting no more than III
, or Is, and had they relied upon
the method of heading their grain,
not half the latter amount would
have been gathered. AS it is, the
farmers generally do not expect to
get out more than even, and many
of them will not market enough to
pay expenses on this years work
but the next years crop on the
same ground will be teer, and
! while much less expensive, will
!, probably prove much better in it:
result. Owing to the drouth of las'
.. year all the present crop was sowr
and most of the ground plowed OIL
i. thoroughly cultivated. 1t is TO be
remarked that as q rule those who
took the least pains in putting IL
, their grain are best rewarded
Where the ground was only
scratched or narrowed the graft
a stood up better, and think is bet
ter filled and is brighter end more
marketable. There are places here
!. where four years of good voluntee
i grain have followed from one sow
/ ing, and if such should result from
/ the sowing of last Fall the farmer
will come out we'll enough, aftel
o all.
Corn in this region looks well
but most of the bean fields hav'
, seen have been attacked by SOM
: insect and look shriveled. Th'
lyield will be but small, and will
hardly pay to gather. Other vege
. tables look fine, and the fruit croE
will be ample. Hay, which II
made here from alfalfa and from
grain cut before ripe, is, of course
excellent and abundant, and hav'
never seen stock look better in any
country.
The soil is uuexample,l for rich
ness, and on the low lands and oil
lands upon which water can b'
, brought large growth of anything
planted is assured.