The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1899-10-10
RALEIGH, N. G., OCTOBER 10, 1899.

These are the families which give the
familiar 1Avors Of butter milk, butter
| and cheese.
In case Of cheese many more kinds
OF plants are concerned than in butter
making and these need much longer
period Of low temperature which can
be controlled than is needed for butter
making. Without means for this con-
troll or a natural climate suited to
nearly maintain the low temperatures,
cheese cannot be successfully con.
Quoted without the establishment of
rooms and apparatus to secure steady
temperatures at the desired degrees
for such time as may be needed. All
the necessary conditions can now bs
produced and mainta ntained continuously
at the present time if business enough
can be done to warrant the outlay.
Obviously this cannot be afforded on
any ordinary dairy farm. It must be
done on comparatively large scale in
order to be successful. A farm to use
a cooling plant must be large enough
to feed and milk 100 to 200 COWS or it
would cost too great to compete with
those in the North which have more
suitable climatic conditions in summer
but who are under a severe winter
climate.
The high temperatures of the North
Carolina summer climate can be over,
come successfully by combining the
products Of a number Of farms, thus
reducing the cost per unit and enabling
producers to compete uc3essfully with
the products brought from less favored
territory for this kind of farming.
Formerly it was thought only Ger.
tain sections could produce the best
dairy articles as these could produce
certain grasses which could not be pro
duced elsewhere, and these gave aavors,
etc. All this has been overcome.
DAirying has spread to all kind Of
climates as men have advanced in
means of controlling the climate of the
dairy and curing rooms until the most
favored place for dairying may be said
to bs now where animal comfort can
be maintained the year round at least
cost combined with the greatest pro-
duction or cheapest production of food
for COWS. The cost Of cooling in North
Carolina combined with cheapness of
forage or low cost OF producing it with
two crops per year from cheap land
may we'll be set against the same c)n
| ditions In the North but reversed cost
of warming combined with cost Of food
with only one crop of forage per year
on high-priced land.
A few farmers near our email cities
are apprecia ting this business. IL more
were to do so and prepare to CO operate
they would soon cease to discuss four
or five cent, cotton at the village store
and to find profitable employment for
much time which counts for little on
cotton farm. This is not against cot
| tOE-2ne Of the richest and belt crops
produced-b1t may be construed as an
unfavorable contrast with the system
of depending on one crop alone for
farm income,
II twenty farmers near almost any
cotton CT tobacco growing town OF
North Carolina were to CO operate in
doing a dairy business with from ten
to twenty cows each, they might at
e S be short of cotton and feel awk,
ward about feeding 80 much stock, but
within five years it is safe to say they
would be able to produce their average
number of bales per acre on half to
two thirds of the land now used and at
no cost for chemical manure or only a
small application of potash and phos
phoric acid. This may be demonstrated
and no doubt can be proven by some
other practical farmers who have been
trying dairy on cotton or tobacco
farm.
The Western North Carolina farmers
have in some places ideal conditions
for dairying, and can store ice, or make
it as they choose, thus having the dairy
climate at control for almost the abso
Lutte minimum cost while they have the
Northern climate for grasses in perfec,
tion.
The advantages of North Carolina
farmers for the development Of this
branch of farming are numerous and
important. 1t is also in harmony with
the apparent natural development OF
| the Southwest and still lower reduC
ton of the price of cotton unless there
is q more general move toward diver
sity of crops by the farmers of the
South. Those who are fortunate enough
to see and change especially on the
farms where cotton raising is uphill
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