Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1882-08-09
Leaks OF the Farm
"A paper read at the wAst Concord meeting Of the
Board OF Agriculture by Frank Q. 0rAntl

feared tney could never do on the iarm.
Many have tried the farm and made a
grand failure; others have by hard labor
and great economy been able to make the
debt and credit sides of the yearly account
balance, or perhaps have done little
better than that, and so have been content
to thus toll on through life, and have in a
measure been satisfied, while others with
no better soil have made a handsome
fortune-in short, have made farming pay.
These men have seemed to DO men of
intellect and possessed good judgment,
and yet how different the result of their
efforts In life. One has made farming a
failure. the other a success; each one on
the start having farm in every way as
good as the other. Every careful observer
| will admit that there are more or less
leaks or waste ways on every farm that
has come under his observation; he has
also noticed that the farmer who discovers
and stops these leaks or turns them to
some account is the man that makes
farming pay; whereas he that does not
see to them. or seeing them does not stop
OF utilize them, makes failure of farming
have not time or ability to point out
all the leaky places on the farm, the man
agement of which brings success or fail
ure. but will mention some of them which
seem to me to be among the largest of
them. And first will consider the great
waste of fertilizing material on a large
portion of the farms in this part of the
state and how it comes about. Fully of
all the manural elements made on the
farms of majority of the averave farmers
anEo RI and HOW ,
Many of our farm buildings are situated
on our sloping hillsides, and in such Il
way that the water from copious shower
or from melting SHOWS find their way from
the hillside above into the bsrnyard. The
water from the roof of the barns and
sheds also running into the yard, together
with what falls therein, and putting them
all together they make flood that will
carry out of the yard, through teaching
and washing, (the same thing being re-
peated from month to month) at least 4 of
lie manural element contained therein,
which is truly great loss to the farm.
Then there is the liquid portion of the
manure of our stables, what is done with
that? In very many stables the floors all
~ loose that the liquids find a ready
passage through them and disappears,
and in others you may find holes bored
through them so as to let it lun through
Now this is a great waste and should
never be allowed, as 1-2 of the manural
dement's dropped in the stable is thus
flowed to leak out and be lost. Then the
more solid portion of the droppings are
I'll own out of the barn where 1t is leached
b, the storms until it loses large amount
OF its virtue before it is hauled to and
spread on the field where 1t is needed. So
ii may be seen that the loss is even greater
than | set the figures at first. The loss at
the pig pen is even greater The average
amount of manure from each swine kept
by the average farmer does not exceed one
cord, whereas each swine ought to, and
would, if given tho material, work over
and enrich six times that amount.
Then comes the leakage of feed on
account of cold stables, Fully Is of our
hay and grain leaks out through the cracks
and crevices of our stables. You have all
noticed that it takes more hay for your
stock in cold weather than it does in
warm. Then if our stables are warm and
we'll ventilated much less feed will be
required to keep the stock in good condi- |
ton. The farmer who cuts fifty tons of
hay and feeds 1t out in cold barn has to
pay penalty of ten tons of hay per
annum for cruelty TO animals.
Again, much is often lost by putting in
the crops too late in the spring. All of
cur grain crops except corn, barley and
buckwheat, and root crops if possible,
should be sown or planted before the
18th of May; and If the season will admit
even weeks before that date. We would
thereby have our crops ripened before the
rusts and mildews of the latter part OF
August and early September were upon
us to blight and destroy.
1t is admitted by all that the hay crop is
our most important crop. Horace Greeley
once said, Tell me the number of tons of
hay any town in northern New England
cuts and feeds out, and / will tell you
what the grand list of that town is nearly
As the hay or grass crop is such an inn
oortant one, it is very important that it
DC harvested at the right stage of its
growth. and that is at the time or JUS |
before it comes into bloom, for it contains
more nutriment then than at any other
line, and the amount of nutriment it
contains determines its real value. One
ON of hay cut at the time specified is
worth as much TO feed to milch cows
growing stock, or sheep, as one and one
ourth tons cut after the seeds are grown.
The late cutting of the grass, MS practiced
" many farmers, is Il leak which Guy
% be stopped.
Another great loss to the state has
crown out of the mistaken idea that we
armers can buy our flour and corn cheap
sr than we can raise it. A greater error
Exists not among the people of our state
Why, there are comparatively but few
'armers In Vermont who cannot raise
corn for fifty cents per bushe and flour
for five dollars per barrel Brother farm
ais, let US raise more wheat and corn aud
,uy less and thereby save many thousands |
Of dollars.
have pointed out SO ne OF the many
- leaks of the farm" and will now in ii
few words tell how to stop them. And
first. 10 keep the water from the hillside
from running through your barnynrd,
dig a trench above and around your yard
AMI thereby prevent lis coursing through
also put up elvcsp,uts 80 the water
bo rnnf, Of hn ht,il l>,,