Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1882-02-11
AGRICULTURAL.
MATTER PREPARED SPECIALLY PoR
TIE "REcoRD UNION"
Considerations In Anticipation Of Dry
season-Low Lands-Graft-
ing the Grape

Considerations In Anticipation Of Dry
Season-Low Lands Graft
ing the Grape
Though we still hope and beiieve we Snail
yet have rain sufficient to insure good crops
generally throughout the State. 1t Is IN order
to contemplate dry season, and De prepared
70 mako the most of it. In 1868 4 we had
b,,. 7 "a inches of rain at Sacramento, and
all kinds of agricultural industries suffered
decided setback. In 1901 we had hut 9.43
inches, but the injury to agriculture was but
little, when compared to tbs disastrous re-
suits of the former dry season. Then. again.
in 1867 we had but 10 inches Of rain at
this point, but the suffering of the farmers
and the general business of the State was
light, as compared to either of the preceding
dry seasons named. Among the chief reasons
for less damage from the droughts of the lat
ter years ia to be found in the improved sys-
tenn of cultivation that had been introduced
during the seven years from 1858 to 1870.
and the still greater and more general i'm
provements that had been introduced during
the six years from 1870 to 1876. The three
seasons named are the only drought seasons
we have experienced over the State since
1861, and this was before any considerable
cultivation had been begun in the State. In
1863 and before that time. nearly all the
land sowR in grain had been put in on the
plan Of one blowing and sowing after the
rains had fallen sufficiently to prepare the
soil for cultivation.
sUMMER-FALLowING
Had not then been praeticed in the State to
any extent A few farmers bad, however,
that year summer-fallowed few acres as
matter OF experiment, and while winter
| plowed and sown grain. lands generally failed
to produce the seed sown, these summer fall
| lowed lands made full average crops. The
satisfactory results of these experiments
stimulated the introduction of a changed sys-
tenn Of grain culture, and hence the less dam
aga in this particular department Of culture
| when the next dry year of 1870 was expe.
rienced. The experience with summer-fal-
| lowed lands in the latter year was more gen.
| etal and equally favorable, and hence sum-
mer.fallowing was still more generally re-
sorted to ard practieed, SO that in 1876 the
| failure of rain had much less deletsrious ef-
| feet on grain culture than in either of the
preceding dry years. The present year more
than half of the grain in the ground has been
| put in on summer-fallowed lands, and, from
the experiences Of the past, if the season
should prove as dry season as any of the sea-
| sons named, or il we should have but one or
two inches more OF rain. we may still expect
pretty fair crop Of wheat. But there are
other considerations under drought less
threatening to the grain crops than they
proved in the former years named. We have
extended our cultivation of grain very mate
rally since 1876 into sections and on soils
that are affected much less bysevere drouqhts.
The lower foothills. both of the Sierra and
coast ranges of mountains. have been brought
under cultivation Of late years quite rapidly,
and these hills have Unexpectedly proved to
| be less affected by dry seasons than the val
| leys adjoining. The foot-hill lands ia wheat
10 1870, and also in 1876, yielded cool ave.
| rage crops, while the valley lands in the same
| fields were pretty much failures. We have also
extended the cultivation of wheat in the direc.
ton of reclaimed swamp lands considerably
within few years past. and here too we
| have an assurance OF good crops, even in q
season of greater drought than the present
can prove. Then. again. we are now raising
wheat considerably in number of the
northern counties of the State, in which we
have already had an abundance of rain,
where six years ago wheat culture was
hardly begun. We have also extended wheat
| culture very largely in the coast counties since
the last dry year, and here, too, we have al
ready had plenty of rain to insure good
crops. Then, again, within the last ten
| hoe baau introduced
sections, so that large areas of land are now
comparatively independent of natural rainfall,
| and will produce good crops where in former
| dry seasons nothing at all was produced.
| With all these facts before us, we have but
little reason to fear any general Inconvenience
! from dry season, so far as the grain crop is
concerned. We would, however, have all
who can do SO make preparations to food
their wheat fields, aud thus secure good crops
| beyond peradventure. AS to the
DAIRY INTEREST
It has less danger from dry season than the
wheat interest. The dairy sections of the
State are already beyond any serious menace
from drought. The diaries of the State
are generally located in sections compare.
tivsly but little affected by dry seasons All
the COST counties from Humboldt to San
Bernardino in which the largest dairy inter
ests are to be found, have already received
sufficient rains to render them beyond danger
from drought the present season. The rains
nf last season were exceptionally heavy
| in this portion Of the State, and greater dam
age was done to this interest in that section
last year from too much rain than is likely to
he this season from q scarcity of moistur
| Up to this date tine diaries in the coast coun.
ties have done much better this year than they
| did to the ccrrsspondng date year ago. The
same is true of the deiries located on the
| river bottoms and lowlands of the interior.
Last year these lands were flooded, and many
| Of the cattle had to he removed to the high
lands ard much suffering and damage was
the consequence. The alfalfa fields upon which
owners depended for summer food for cattle
were destroyed by last winters floods, and
had to be resown, thus causing great lose.
This season SO far these fields are in COED con-
ditiou, and in the event of dry season will
produce much more pasture and hay than
| they did last season. 1t is a fact that in the
| day season OF 1876 there was more afal
hay produced in the interior valleys Of the
| State than there has been any season since,
and the prospect is that with dry season
| this year the product will be greater in the
same section than ever before. Large dairy
! ing interests have of late years grown up in
| the foothills and the high mountain meadows
and ranges, the cattle being wintered in the
| lower foothills. and being driven high no on
the mountains for summer pssturage. In all
this section of country plenty of moisture
IS already assured, there having been an
abundance of rain in the foothills and q
plenty Of snow on the high mountains. TIE
dairy interests are beyond danger in any Sec
ton, and are promised more prosperous
season than they have enjoyed for years past.
Again, dairy stock will come out of the pres.
ent winter in better than ordinary condition,
and this alone puts the product of the coming
spring and summer on good start towards a
profitable season.
THE VINE INDUSTRIES.
| A dry season has no threats for the vine
and its products. There is but one discourage
ing feature in connection with the vine inter
ests likely TO grow out of dry sesson-all
others will rather be helped than injured by
| the drought. We refer to the new vineyards
set out this spring. A dry season will be un-
favorable to securing coed stands from the
cuttings. Wsen possible, irrigation, in con-
! junction with thorough cultivation, should be
resortsd TO and practiced. II impossible to
irr gate, then greater attention should be
| gwen to the cultivation of TIE newly planted
| vineyards Wine ia always better made in a
| dry teason than in wet one. The VINES are
healthier, aad the grapes, though perhaps not
so large, are sweeter, and the wine ripens up
| quicker and richer in dry seasons than in wet
/ MilJau opd ofbar mi, disaarec