Daily Los Angeles herald., 1882-01-08
where We May Fsii mad where We
Are eOtt0.

where We May Fell nad where We |
Are SOLID.
Local agricultural notes reach
us from every hand which show
that our farmers and irrigators are
beginning to realize the necessity
of utilizing every drop Of running
water In Los Angeles county this
year. With an Indifference which
positively seems criminal, for
weeks and even months the waters
of our streams have been suffered
to run to waste. Now, both in the
pueblo of Los Angeles and in the
San Gabriel, Santa Ana and other
valleys, winter irrigation is being
resorted to on every hand. While
1t is not yet certain that We are to
have q dry year, every reasonable
effort is being made to reduce the
effects of the possible calamity to
. minimum. The grape crop OF
tho year 1881 was a notably prolific
one and 1t is already in merchant
able shape, either In the forms of
wine and brandy or raisins. The
grape crop of 1882 is also assured.
The orange crop of the year 1882
is already beginning to come into
the market, and its demand is no
longer restricted to San Francisco
and the Pacific Coast. It is a
splendid crop and will be marketed
profitably. The Mississippi valley
and the whole East will be our
customers this year. DismissiDg
these two principal staples of our
soil products, we come to wheat
which, as 1t is not irrigated, if we
have q dry year, will be an almost
total failure. We have before said
that there has been an immense
amount Of dry sowing, which
would assure US fair wheat crop
even with comparatively insig-
nificent rainfall. The Messrs.
Lankershim & Van Nuys, Maclay
& Moff1tt, and others, In the San
Fernando valley, have put large
areas in wheat, which will profit
by very small rainfall. Outside
OF the mammoth farmers, Mr.. A.
Workman, alone, has dry sowed
four thousand acres in the San
Fernando valley. On the Cent?
nela and Sausal Redondo ranches
Mr.. d. Freeman and his tenants
have dry sowed immense quanti-
ties OF wheat. While we hope the
best from the outlays of these gen.
tlemen, it is useless to Disguise the
fact that the continued capriees Of
the weather. clerk may make their
outlay useless, or may insnre them
returns which will amount to
email fortune to each, as the case
may be.
Barley, In the current ear, is iD
the same uncertain category as
wheat. II is a mistake, however,
to suppose that barley depends
upon natural moisture In the shape
of rains. There are very extensive
sections OF Los Angeles county in
which large areas Of irrigated land
are devoted to this cereal. For two
years past the HERALD has ad-
vised our farmers to give more at
tention to barley, and the wisdom
-four counsel has been approved by |
the fact that barley Is now selling,
In carload lots, for 81 rs per GEN.
cal. Should the rains be unreason.
ably delayed or withheld alto
gsther, barley is quite likely to
strike, successfully, So, So 25 and
$3.50 per GENITAL. Four or five
years ago every body was raising |
barley, to the exclusion of the other
email grains. The success of our
leading wheat growers led to
movement teo radically in the
other direction. Whether We shall
suffer from drouth or no, there will
nevertheless be considerable crops |
Of barley raised in Los Angeles
county this year.
1t IL. pleasant to learn that ex-
tensive fields of alfalfa, q. grass
which yields from eight to fifteen
tons of nutritious green feed to the
acre, are being added to the already
considerable areas which have
been devoted to that purpose. Bot
tom lands could not be put to a
more eremuHsrative purpose. What
between cheese, milk and butter
the farmer who cultivates alfalfa is
certain of rich return.
The next great staple of Los An.
geles county, to which our atten.
tion 10 called, is corn. 1t is fact,
esta bllshed by statistics, that this
county raises as much maize as all
the rest OF the almost illimitable
State of California put together.
This year the crop will be simply
In quantity. The
,orn fields are being treated to q
Of winter irrigation
never before known in the history
,f Les Angeles county. All the
liOna uoint tn the fact that corn