The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1882-05-20
Ghe &armer.
To Make Farming Pay.

gave the IOllOWllS as the Two SIetl Iui0S
for successful business: First, to cut
short your losses; secondly, let your profits
run on These rules are to be applied to
farming as well as to other business, and to
carry them out efficiently, well conducted
system of weighing and measuring must be
adopted. The tape line and the weighing
scale become important agents The farm
must be well laid out, with all its fields
measured and recorded, as basis for salts
factory operations. The crop in each field
should be easily measured, TO give the pro-
duct per acre. Each load Of hay is weighed
on the scale A graduated com-crib and
granary will give at a glance an accurate
report of contents The farm scale, which
manufacturers now furnish at moderate
price, will tell the number of bushels in
every load of grain, and it may be employ
ed with great advantage to give the rate of
growth and the increase in tattening all
domestic animals andwhat kind of feeding
is most profitable This branch of the
subject is of great Importance, and Is wor-
thy of treatise itself.
A leading aim with the farmer should
be to raise the largest amount Of farm pro-
ducts with the least expense. We do not
mean that he should half till his fields to
save the cost of cultivation, which would
be the most prOftaless course he could pur-
sue. For if by so doing he would get but
300 bushels of corn from 10 acre lot, the
whole of which must be plowed and cult
waited. the grain would cost him much more
than to raise the 800 bushels ON FIVE acres
with half the blowing and diminished
amount of eultivating. Besides the rich
and mellow soil of the five acres would be
more easily plowed and worked than the
hard, poor ground of the ten acres, to say
nothing of the struggle with weeds in the
neglected field The great principle. there
fore. should be well understood Rerer n
caltirate more land than Gun be done u
the best manner and no more than can be
gradually improved and enriched in success
sive years. Rather than pursue a superb
cial course. sell the rest of the farm, seed
down to grass, or do as a successful man
ager did few years ago, who let out the
farm which he owned in poor region Of
county, and rented another where land was
rich, and received more after paying his
rent than he had obtained entire from the
farm he owned, with harder labor.
Crops are reduced and labor greatly in
creased BY profuse growth Of weeds An
important point Is Rerer 10 attempt their
destruction IL cultirated felis By hard Ia
Dor 1t is too expensive 1t would be
cheaper to fallow one entire season. by
sweeping broadcast with pillow and harrow,
as the weeds are successfully about to appear.
than to pull them ont by millions with
thumb and finger, or 20 cut them up Ia
boriously with an hand hoe. But it IS not
necessary to loose an entire season with the
fallow A repetition Of the blowing or
narrowing as often As the green points OF
the weeds are seen peeping at the surface.
from MAY till September. will do much to-
wards giving a perfectly clean field, and
viii bring the soil into admirable condition
for sowing winter wheat. For some other
crop, shorter following viii answer. Ii
may be continued through May and June
for turnips or corn fodder; and through
MAY alone for corn, if the earlier sorts are
planted. The slip-shod practice Of allowing
weeds to have their own way during all
these vacant intervals, is a costly one.
This subject is worthy of some further
detail For the longer fallew to preeede .
winter wheat, one blowing and subsequent
harrowings may be sufficient; but more
thorough work would be made by blowing
two or three times at long intervals, and
narrowing often between. The plow would
throw up the seeds of weeds which viii not
terminate when buried deep, and as they
sprout and grow the harrow would destroy
them
Much win depend on using the most et-
fcient tools Any good pillow will answer
but the common square-tooth harrow Is
greatly inferior for this purpose to either
of the slicers, such as Shares the Disc, or
the Acme harrow. The last named viii
90 over ten acres in a day, and make I
thorough work. 1t Is worth while TO give /
an estimate of the cost Of this clearing out .
the weeds in one season, and giving an ex-
cellent preparation for winter grain, with .
the most thorough treatment, or with piow- .
ING once month and narrowing once a .
week:
Say 3 plowings, 81 30 per aere.....s4.50 /
y borrowings, 3Octs. per acre. 800 I
Cost per acre.. --...-....-.-.-.-So.l ~ .
Ii viii be observed that the ground viii .
soon become so mellow that the labor Of .
each stirring viii be greatly decreased, and .
It's fine condition for the succeeding crop
will be better than any field ever receives
by ordinary treatment We have seen
Canada thistles, quaek and other perennial
rooted weeds totally destroyed in single .
season with an equal or less amount Of labor
and less narrowing; but to clear the soil
thoroughly of the seeds Of annual weeds.
an occasional deep stirring and more fire.
quent surface stirring are required
1t is a common practice in planting corn
on inverted sod, to pillow late or just before
planting. We find it better to turn the
sod early, and then give successive harrow
ings with the Acme, which leaves two or
three inches of the top soil in a mellow and
very clean condition This implement
serves to intermix well with the soil any
top-dressing of manure spread over the in
verted sod
We have given these details, as we re
gard an easy and cheap method OF eXtlrpa-
ting weeds, and securing well-pulverized
surface soil for all cultivated crops, as one
of the most important means for making
farming pay. There are many other es
sentials which we can only allude To- and
which are perhaps better understood gen
orally, such as thorough understanding, the
use Of super phosphates, the selection Of
the best seeds, and, not the least in impor-
lance. obtaining the most profitable breeds
of animals. The subject Is almost endless
in the suggestions it affords; and to show
that the present eagerness for large do
mains and wholesale farming by machinery,
in the insane eagerness which pervades
nearly all kinds of business to heap together
large fortunes, is not necessarily attended
with satisfaction or success, we give the
substance of an account furnished by a cor
respondent of the Country Gentleman, of
the 50-acre farm of man who does ererg-
thing ,ceH He has snug cottage Of eight
rooms large barn with the really useful
improvements, fences all post and rail,
J.. 10 ,..1 h.