The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1883-08-30
Special Crops.

As man advances in civilization he
changes his methods of supplying his
wants The savage relies on the in
mates of his own wigwam to supply
his food, clothing, and implements of
industry and war. The half civilized
man often combines with his neghbors
to accomplish something that is to be
mutual advantage, and begins to ex-
change with other tribes for such pro-
| auctions as they can produce better
than he can; but it is left for higher
civilization to establish comm ercial in
tercourse with nations in distant parts
of the earth, to buy the products they
have to sell, and to sell them such pro-
ducts as are difficult for them to pro-
duce.
Our grandfathers repaired their carts,
plOws and other farm Implements, also
mended their shoes, harnesses, etc, and
the wife made most of the clothing; but
we have gradually advanced to that
point where there is a division of labor
in almost every department of industry.
A few years ago it required but one man
to cut out and make a pair of boots or
shoes, but now the division of labor is
such that to make either it requires
| nearly score of men. While these
! changes have been going on in the me-
chanical world, the farmer has not been
idle; but with higher intelligence he
has been able to understand that each
crop to grow to perfection requires a
| peculiarly which does not apply to 9th
er crops; the moment he becomes salts
fed that he possesses the knowledge of
those conditions necessary to produce
any particular crop, with the least
amount of labor, that moment he real
ICES that he has it in his power to pro-
duce such crops to as good or better adj
vantage than his neighbOrs.
To succeed in special crops requires a
| higher intelligence than it does to sue
ceed in mixed crops, and because of
this he who possesses that higher intelli-
| gence will make money easier by special
than mixed crops. 1t is important that
/ he who thinks of growing special crops
| should fully realize the fact, that be-
cause his neighbor can make money
| growing any particular crop, it is but
! little evidence that he can. Before a
! farmer decides to rely on any special
| crop he should first consider his loca-
/ ton, the condition of his farm, the
/ character of the soil and most impor-
| tant of all, he should critically examine
! himself, that he may decide whay crops
are adapted to his farm, and are not be-
! yOnd his capacity. After considering
| every pc Mt bearing upon the subject,
and deciding what crops are best adapt
| ed to the various conditions, small fields
should be planted at first, and every eff
! fort made to learn everything possible
relating to the particular crop that is to
/ be grown.
He who rushes into growing any
! special crop because he sees others
make large profits, viii be very likely
to make a failure. and be very glad to
| go back to mixed crops as the most
! profitable, but he who goes in cautious
! ly and makes himself familiar with all
/ the conditions necessary for success,
will be very likely to realize more profit
| shan by mixed husbandry. There are
several reasons why he viii do so.
! Prominent among them may be men
| toned the fact that if he has selected
/ the right crop, one that he takes an in
terest in, he will make himself so thor
oughly familiar with all of the details
| that he will make no false steps.
The farmer who follows mixed farm
ing, and sells a dozen different crops,
can not 90 into the market with them
| in as good condition as those who make
q speciality OfsOme one of them; therefore
can not realize so high prices; and in
growing them he will not be likely to
have all the tools that are well adapted
| TO the work, as he would be very likely
to if he DEVOTED his time principally to
one crop. But there is another side to
this question that should not be over
! looked. The farmer who confines him
self principally to one crop runs the
risk Of losing his whole labor in an un-
| favorable season, while the farmer who
has a great variety of crops will be very
likely to have some good ones.
A careful examination of the whole
subject seems to lead to the conclusion
that the growing of special crops, to be
successful, requires a higher intelligence
than mixed crops, and that while in a
good season the profits will be likely to
be much larger, in an unfavOrable sea-
son they viii be smaller. Thus the risk
with special crops is more than with
mixed, but the average will be higher,
provided ,the conditions are all favor
able; if they arenot favorable no one
should thinkOf continuing their labors
to one crop; too many have already made
| expensive mistakes by trying to grow
extensively some particular crop on land
not adapted to it, or crop they did not
understand the best methods of cult
waiting and of harvesting. No doubt
that the more thoroughly we under
stand the wants of growing crops, the
better shall we be able to make special
crops more profitable than mixed
Massachusetts, Pl0ugbman.