Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1893-05-25
FARMERANDP PLANTER
SPECIAL FARMING.
Tie Farmer with an Object versus the Ann


Ahe d-sslcF N4th an object versus tile 4 IN
less Plodder.
] am cn advocate Of special farm
ing" both because my own greatest
profit and pleasantcst experience has
been along that line, and because the
most prosperous farmers meet at the
institutes cro usually specialists. J
would not advise anyone, however, TO
coniine himself TO u single speciality,
although undoubtedly many have made
q success in this way, but there are
uglally other things which can be made
profitable with almost any speciality,
cnl often one helps the other. have
met many farmers who are discoura ged
and unsuccessful because they firm
without any special object in view. ]
will describe one OF them who is
type OF many aad see If wecan not DIR W
n valuable lesson from his experience.
have been familiar with his farm for
fcrty-flve years AMI know its c1pabili-
ties and possibilities. 1t contains six
ty acres and is natural grass land, and
about oneth,rd OF it lies level ana is
well suited 20 cultivation. The present
owner has been on this farm something
over ten years and when he got posses
sion of it it was in excellent condition,
for the former owner had kept most of
tho land In Grass and had manurod
well and cultivated thoroughly what
was plowcd. lie grew good crops and
made living and Ibid up money, while
the farm improved continually under
bis infringement. The present owner
came on the farm impressed with
the Flea that it was too small
for him. and although he has
had two-thirls Of it under the
pillow he has every year rented land of
his neighbors, often two miles or so
from home. His farm has always been
over-stocked so that in years of drought
his cattle get poor and he must buy
grain Ter his hogs and horses. He very
rarely has any grass or clover to cut
but depends on cutting hay on shares
on the firms of some of his neighbors
and he often goes three or four miles to
set it. lis only money crops are wheat
cattle and hogs. and his stock is always
poor ana his yield Of corn always small
from his lanl being unsuited to the
crop ana poorly cultivated. his income
Is far less than it would be if he worked
with his team four days in a week at
$500 Per dar.
Now, this man IS honest and indus
tr.ous, kind AMI neighbcrly, hut his
whole business plan Of life is wrong
end he Isl r wing poorer and more dis
eouraged each Year, Everything about
the farm, fences buildings, stock, and
soil is running down and an cXpendi,
ture OF one thousand dollars now would
hardly restore it to the condition it
was in when he took possession of it,
| What has been the trouble with this
man? Not idleness, for he has worked
more in day and mere days il year
than he ought to have done. The trou-
BILE is he has worked without any
definite end in view CT any Intelligent
purpose. 1t has taken the results OF
his years toll to fee his poor, scrlwny
stock, AMI at tic end Of the year part
at least of his stock was worth no more
than at tho beginning, His COWS on
Short pasture in summer and with poor
shelters in winter have made about one
hundred pounds of butter each per
year, ana the larger part of that at the
season OF the year when it brought the
lowest price, fer with four or five cow
he can scarcely ret enough milk and
butter in the winter for his family
Most OF tho money he gets in a ycnl
comes from wheat and hogs, lut J
know That his wheat has not averaged
ten bushels to tAc acr, and his hogs
are few, for he can not grow corn Oh
such lana to keep many, unless he buys
grain for them. His garden is small
and terrible wecdy ana does not fur
nish the family onc-fourth what il
might and ought. and It little wonder
bthat he is discouraged.
a,Nows what might be Gonc on that
farm? II is within an easy twenty min
utes' drive of town OF $500 inhab
4 itants, with 400 students, AMI conse
quently there is a good market for eggs
butter, fruit and vegetables. The firat
thing would DO would be to sell Of
oil Of my cattle but the best cows anC
If had no COOL ones ! woull sell all
Instead of keeping four horses woult
keep but two. would seed tw thirds
of my lanl to grass and clover, ant
4 would start dairy OF four or six COCO
cows AMI then would raise my heifel
calves AMI increase my her | as f st as
could UP to the capacity Of tho farm
would keep two or three good brood
sows and sell the pigs young. My
cows and hogs should be managed Sc
as to make and save as much manure
as possible, and would only pillow wha
could be kept fertile and be thorough
I ly worked. would in C pnccti wit
gilt-edged butter and pig pork as spe
cialties begin the growing # some crol
That could depend upon to produces
from $50 to above SOD per acre. w
have many such crops such as swee
potatoes, very carly Irish potatoes, to
matocs. Strawberries. sweet corn, cab
bage and melons and | would keep q
least one hundred hens With manage
ment the farm would produce almos
everything the family would cat, for
would SOW few acres Of wheat eaci
year to furnish bedding for the stool
and to enable me to seed to clover for
succession. There would he n cash in
come each week for most of this year
and there would need to be little, if any
help hired for the work would be con
fined TO a small piece Of land, so IL
time would be lost in running back an,
forth. 1t would probably be neccssar,
to buy little grain food, but tina
should be OF bran and oil meal, for tn
manure from them is valuable. If