Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1879-10-03
An Augusta Farmer on Farming.

~-NO~oS'c
Having had some experience as practi-
cal farmer in your county, and believing
that | have learned something by close OBJ
seryation in connection with twenty years
practice that may be useful to my brother
farmers, 1 propose in this to make few
suggestions.
And first. There are a few general rules
that apply to all farmers in every condi-
ton and locality. Whatever is worth do
ing should be we'll done and with due
economy-the system and mode Of cultiva-
ton, whether il be farming, Or grazing, or
both combined, should he such as will en-
| sure the gradual improvement of the soil.
and increase the value OF the real estate
| and heavy debt must be avoided-no man
| who is in debt to the amount of one-half
OF the value OF the property he holds can
| be thrifty, successful farmer, and i'm
proven of that portion of the earth in his
care.
| There are other matters, which must be
referred to The good SENSE and Judgment
of each Individual farmer, such as taking
into view the distance to market, the
adaptation of The farm to this or that Kind
Of production, whether it is comparative
iy smooth and ricia soil that will pay best
to raise grim and roots, and at the same
time give living employment to the indus
triOuS labC fer. Or whether 1t Is rough au0
steep and tnerefor better adapted to graz
ing and fruIt culture. But whatever has
| been the former practice OF our Augusta
county farmers, would not advise d sud
den change, either in the crops heretofore
depended on Or in the modes of culture. ]
| will say, however, that many acres OF land
| in this county have been, year after year
plOWed, planted and seeded in grain, and
| the crops have not paid the cost OF Guilt
walton. Ii pillow had never been put into
these rough and comparatively thin helds
| on your farms, and sheep and other small
cattle had been grazed thereon, d fair prof
| it might have been realized. Wheat has
been our main dependence as the money
| crop, and will no doubt continue to be fol
some time; here would suggest that the
| income of the farmer would be more uni.
form and certain, if the apparently small
Ter matters were attended to, and less acre
| age of wheat sOwn. Prepare more thor
oughlv the ground and use the man Ore and
| other fertilizer on thirty acres that hereto.
fore was given to forty acres; attend well
| to YOUR stock and sell them when ready
for market. See what can be made out OF
fruit and root crops, let nothing be lost
through want Of care at the right time
A realizes fifty dollars by marketing apples
that B would let lie and rot in his orchard
on the plea Of not having time, or that il
is too small business to gather up anC
sell this fruit, and yet, thrifty Mr.. A. at
tends quite as well to the main crop as b
and generally gets a larger yield per acre
Keep no useless horse on your FARM an
fully satisfied that the majority of thu
farmers of Augusta county Keep too many
horses to eat up the income of the farm
some, that know, have six horses TO dt
the work that could easily be better dom
with four by proper management. by CIV
ing attention to the apparently small item
OF income on the farm, and improving Ou
capacity to utilize these little sources O.
home comfort and money profit, we may
be less dependant on this one great crop O.
wheat, in which we are now facing, an(
must continue to meet such widespread
and powerful competition. And at thu
same time the number of bushels and quail
ity of wheat raised by us need not be less
ened at all. 1 would not have our farm
ers to abandon the culture of wheat as one
of the principal crops, but would say, taxi
more pains in preparing and improving thu
acres you SOW in wheat, depend less on it
l tuO uuOlO Cuc1A Ou AOW W., OA OVAO1 SAoPo
stock and fruit. No country that depends
on one crop, no matter how valuable thai
crop NAV be to the world, can ever be g
really prosperous, independent country.
filled with well provided homes and con
tented, happy people because an over sup
ply Of that one crop may so depress thu
market as to leave the producer little O.
no profit, or a great failure may come ant
none Of that crop to sell, the farmer, ant
all others looking to him are left without
resource. See for instance, a tobacco re
gion or an exclusive cotton country
W. T. R.