The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1886-10-06
How the Farmers OF Western New
York Enrich their Lands-Stock
Raising the Road 10 Wealth-Ihe
Jersey the Breed for Florida.

| Jersey the Breed for Florida.
BELLoSA. n. ", Oct. Ist.
Special Cores pondence of Tie Daily News.
The farmers in this county Yates are
engaged in raising wheat, corn, hay and
cattle. The land is worth 800 per acre
and up, and the Flcridian is dumb
rich land so heavily fertilized. A large
number of persons have been engaged
this month in manuring and fertilzing
their fields. Some of them are fortu-
nate enough to have machinery for that
purpose. such as manure spreaders, a
large apparatus attached TO a farra
wagon, which spreads evenly the ma
nure over the fields. This 10 plowed un-
der, then followed with drills that SOW
wheat and phosphates-a good deal more
| phos pilates than wheat.
OF course our sides vibrate as these
| farmers declare that the soils of Florida
are 30 poor that they will not raise any
thing without fertilizers and conse-
quently Florida land is worthless. What
mortals they are! They don't think that
ten tons OF manure to the acre is fertil-
! izing their rich land.
/ The wheat crop is sold. Most of the
corn and hay are fed on the farms. 1t
I is fact, readily patent to every one,
that farmers who raise stock for meat or
milk, as well as those who feed stock
purchased from the Western raiser.
grow rich, while most of the grain far
mers have one or more "plasters," cap
sene at that, on their lands. The sue
cessful men and tie best farmers are
where every stalk and grain raised on
the fan II are fed on the premises. They
! have two advantages over the grain
| farmer. First, they are enabled TO place
back on the land part of the crop in the
| shape of manure. Second, they reduce
the bulk of their freishts by concentra-
| ing their crops into meat and milk. AS
jolly farmer said the other day: Come
over and see my hay pressers." He re-
ferred to number Of sheep that he was
! feeding. Thousands of cattle and sheep
are brought into this and adjoining
! counties and fed the crop until they are
/ fit for market.
There is another branch of the stock
! business which is profitable and that is
/ butter and cheese making. In Madison
! county there is a 'cheesery" in every
/ community. l visited number, and
/ they were models of neatness and indus
/ try. In this section all the milk worked
/ up is put into butter, and it is mostly
done on the farm. l have not made any
inquiries, but in all my drives in this
anu Ontario county, have seen neither
! creamery or cheesery.
| \ choice quality of butter is sold by
first hands for Is a 16c per pound, and
the butter makers are quite happy to get
this price. There are Il number of pied
| breeds here. but the two that are the ia
/ vorites are Holsteins and Jerseys, and l
! am inclined to think that the JERSEYS
are little ahead. The Holsteins make
large, SNOWY cattle, give considerable
milk and make splendid beef. The Jer-
! seys do not give so much milk but IL is
richer in cream, yet some of the full
! hloods have made wonderful records.
Ida" of st. Lambert, is reported to
| have given 81 pounds IN a day, aud 455
! pounds for one week; and Pawn" one
| of her heifers, gave 10, 10l4 pounds in
! twelve months. But this quality Of cat
! tie are expensive, and every orange
| grower cannot afford one the first year
after the freeze. We do not know what
Il Ia" is orth, but the owner of one of
| her sors charges 81 ,000 for a single SER
| vice. Costly. you say: Well, / should
remark. Notwithstanding this a good
heifer, full blood, can be purchased for
500, and as much higher as you wish.
Grades are plenty from $25 up. There
are several fine herds i'll this vicinity.
have always been in favor of the
OtTstN lOl DIAeits LhOit SOh-
WINGED now than ever that they are
every way suit able for our State, be-
cause they are domestic in their nature,
easily kept, being small eaters, and read
lily adapt themselves to climate and feed,
vet theI is a question about taking them
from this latitude so far south as Florida.
l have not found any one hereabouts
who will guarantee their stock to stand
the change. Perhaps, however, some
49, III Iar ha h-1
perience about which l propose to in
quirs. If the change cannot be made
from this section of the North, when
their stock is so extensively raised and
q choice so easily obtained, then Flor
ida must 60 to Tennessee or Georgia
where there are some fine herds, but /
presume the prices are much higher and
the situation not 40 good or SO large.
l have seen 3 number of Jerseys In
Putnam county, Florida, and they ap-
pear to do we'll, and think by securing
some of these better breeds, we can have
small dairies all through our section of
Florida. The objection heretofore made,
The climate is too hot" The feed too
poor, THE milk is impure" are grad
ually wesring away because II is no
hotter than in sections where butter il
made. Our feed is improving, and we
can get better mixers. / have eaten as
good butter made in Florida as ever
came from the north. All the object
ions above note d and many others were
current In Georgia years ago, but of late
the dairy farms have not increased very
rapidly, but they are turning out very
superior quality OF butter which il in
demand at the best price. About At
lanta, Ga, there are number of very
fine dairy farms, and we understand
from a merchant doing business there
that they are all making money. In
Tennessee there are large number of
creameries and they are doing remark
ably well. There are large butter fac
tories in Nashville and at Murfressboro,
and the industry Is growing rapidly
throughout the State. l am in hopes
that this industry will work South until
/, ranches Florida and L am in homes 10