The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1898-06-28
AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION
WORK.

AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION
WORK.
The New York legislature seems to
be much more liberal than that of any
other State in it's provisions for spread
ing q knowledge of the agricultural
sciences among the masses of it's peo
pie. Not satisfied with one experiment
station, they provided for another, and
each OF these stations is supplied with
O most liberal number of trained
specialists. While Pennsylvania sta
tion has but twelve staff specialists,
Minnesota station twelve and Texas
station but eleven, the station at Ithaca,
N. Y, has thirty and that Geneva, N.
Y, nineteen, total of forty nine for
the State.
But the New York legislature went
even beyone this. Some four years
ago, in what was known as the Nixon
bill, it made an appropriation OF 60. 600
to extend the teaching of the State
Agricultural College to the masses by
short schools of one week, 60 be held in
thickly populated communities. This
appropriation has been increased from
year TO year till it liz now more than
four times as large as at first, and the
scope or the extension work has been
expanded TO include instrue.inR the
public school teachers how TO teach the
elements OF agricultural science i'm the
free schools, the carrying ON OF q cor
respondence school Of agriculture for
adult farmers at their homeg, the or
ganization and direction OF agricul-
tural leading circles among farmers,
the courses to be mapped out by the
station professore and much of the
matter 30 be furnished by them, and
CO. operative experiments TO be carried
ON by farmers throughout the State
under the direction of the Station staff.
Bulletin LAG Of Ithaca Station reports
what has been accomplished during
the past year under this Nixon bill,
and the results are certainly most
gratifying and encouraging.
With the view of carrying the uni
versity extension work i'm agriculture
to the farmers, early lin the spring a
circular was prepared describing some
simple tillage experiments with pota
toes, corn or sugar beets. Such de.
cided results have been secured at the
station grounds by frequent and long
continued tillage Of the potato, that it
was desired to learn if similar results
might be secured by the farmers of the
State, and with other crops as we'll as
with potatoes. Correspondence was
solicited with farmers who were willing
TO undertake experiments in CO opera,
tion with the station. The department
of agriculture at Washington supplied
us with a quantity of sugar beet seed
which was sent to farmers asking for
il 80 long as the supply lasted.
The interest of the farmer seems to
center i'm the sugar beets, very few un.
dertaking tillage experiments with any
other crop. Nor were many Of them
so much interested in the effect of diff
ferent methods Of cultivation upon the
crop as they were to discover if, under
the system of cultivation most common
in the vicinity or most convenient to
them during the season, their soils
would produce large yield Of beets Of
sufficient richness to be profitably
manufactured into sugar. There was,
therefore, very little uniformity of
methods in preparing the soil or cult.
waiting the crop, and few attempted the
comparison of different methods ON the
same field.
During August, members of the sta
tion staff visited a large number of
these experimental plats TO note the
conditions existing and advise the
farmers in regard to their care. Again,
in October, representatives OF the sta
ton helped to harvest parts Of many
of them.
It was decided at the first meeting
of the faculty of agriculture to en-
phasiEe the educational work, since
the Federal Experiment Station. de-
pa.tment Of the college of agriculture,