Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1897-09-30
FAR3IERS SELL WATER.
When They Sell Their Farm
Products.
a Scientific Fact Which May BE of
Interest 10 Tillers of the soil
Where the Profit
Comes In.

any other substance. and il brings a
higher price in proportion to cost than
any material known. Water is sold in
so many forms, however, that its value
varies greatly. A crop Of green clover
contains 1000 pounds of water per ton.
and when a ton of dry clover hay is
hauled to market 200 pounds Of the
load consists Of " Ter Every hundred
pounds Of milk sod contains about 81
pounds of water, and the mixed stable
manure which is spread on the fields is
more than one-half water. No matter
how dry or wei cured the hay and
fodder crops may be. from the farmers
point of view, there viii be water to
haul that is contained in the plant. A
ton of cured corn fodder contains SIS
pounds Of water. and even salt hav,
which is usually apparently as dry as
if passed through kiln, contains over
100 pounds of water per ton. The farm
er sells this water, and the more water
he can sell the larger his profit, as all
heterogeneous and mineral matter taken
from the soil by the plants is direct
loss unless the price at which the crop
is sold is sufficiently large TO reimburse
the farmer for his loss of plant food as
well as afford him a profit.
The greatest profit from the use of
water as an ingredient of farm products
IS when the farmer grows such crops as
beets, carrots. potatoes and turnips, as
they can be utilized on the farm instead
of entailing the cost of transportation
to market. While these crops contain
a mn ~
portion to the yield per acre, their chief
value is In the water. as the water is
q valuable aid TO digestion and contains
the nutritious matter in solution to
large extent; hence the water is not a
useless substance which adds weight
only, but is as desirable in the form in
which 1t exists in the plant as the solid
portions; but while the solid portions
cost the farmer sometimes, the water
does not, and that is an important con-
sideration which must not be over
looked. The water in plants cannot be
supplied artifcially. Everyone knows
that there is a difference between green
apples and apples which have been
dried and cooked in water It is the
same with vegetables and roots. We
can dry them and render them Juicy
again by cooking them In water, butwe
cannot regain the condition in which
the water existed in the plant before
drying or cooperating it. It is more
valuable than that which is supplied.
Beets and carrots contain 1900
pounds of water per ton. A crop Of 30
tons of beets per acre denotes that the
"a hos +aly
crop $4,000 pounds of water, and such
yield CT beets is not large one COM
pared with results frequently obtained
Turnips, one of the staple crops of the
farm, contain but little less water than
beets or carrots, and potatoes are sold
at good prices some years. although
there is about 1900 pounds of water in
every ton. The proportion Of water in
fruits IS much greater, especially with
grapes, strawberries and cherries; in
fact, water in fruis brings a higher
price than is obtained for any material.
as box Of Strawberries selling at ten
cents would allow less than a cent for
the solid matter contained. leaving nine
cents for the water. To secure this crop
Of water. however, the farmer will be
compelled to use care and Judgment
It comes from the clouds, it is true.
but there are periods when the plants
cannot store il; hence the fruit and
vegetables do not grow to perfection
and the farmer win lose a portion Of his
crop Of water while his lard viii have
given up more than the proportionate
supply Of mineral matter The mois-
ff4rp Yll5fsf 9p trr7 al.x-ad a { . -, q l,ln