The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1901-12-05
CHATS ! I !
o o Q WITH FARMERS

farmers who comes in from Germany
quite frequently to market his produce
here, was waiting his turn to unload
potatoes the other day, and the UNION
man stopped long enough to chat with
him for few minutes. Mr.. Gerth has
been resident of Princeton township
for twenty-nine years, and in fact used
to slide down the cellar doors of the
old settlers in his younger days. He
says that the potato crop in his section
was good one, and that $50 bushels
per acre was his yield. Corn, which
grows very we'll in his section, yielded
SO bushels to the acre. He says there
is little small grain raised in his Sec
ton now. During the last seven years
the farmers have been paying consid-
cradle attention to potatoes. The soil
is sandy loan with clay bottom,
which insures such successful results
in farming. Wheat went Is bushels to
the acre and was a fair crop. Mr..
Gerth is opening up a new farm two
and a half miles from where he has
been farming. He possesses a practi-
cal knowledge of farming, and more
than this is also Interested in the ques-
ton of good roads. ''Four years of
continuous potato production will drain
the ground of its potato maturing ca
pacity," said Mr. Gerth, land farmers
should pay more attention to returning
the productive elements to the soil by
sowing clover or grass seed of some
kind and converting the field into a
pasture for two years or more. In this
way the ground will preserve it's fer
tility and wear many years." In the
matter of good roads Mr.. Gerth thinks
that "too many cooks spoil the broth"
in road improvement. ''The trouble
in building country roads is that every
time new road overseer is elected the
road is improved to suit his particu-
lar whims. If his whims are on the
practical order the road does not suffer,
but if on the other hand he knows very
little about building good roads, the
farming community suffers. The trouble
is that there is no fixed policy in the
matter of making good roads,"
xxx
N. G. Orion of Greenbush while in
town the other day took time to call at
the UNION Office and visit for a few
minutes. He is a Greenbush boy, his
folks having located in that section 81
years ago at which time the country
was what you might call ''howling
Wilderness" Mr.. Orton's folks we're
New Workers, and York state man
was never known to let tempting
opportunities get away from him.
They staid with the country and IL will
be a long time before the Orton family
dies out in Greenbush. Mr.. Orion can
remember when there was not much to
Princeton, other than Sam Ross ''ho-
tel'' and few loggers. AS the country
took on the airs of an advanced civili-
cation Mr.. Orton went to farming and
has now 1870 acres of good farming land
in section %, being located in the
northeast part of the section and on
edge of the timber. He is no one-crop
farmer and raises besides grain and
potatoes lot of good live stock, win
tering sixty head, mostly grade Dur
hams. Mr.. Orton believes in good
stock. He says that the Red Polled
with little of the Cruikshank blood
makes a good mixer but thinks that
the Polled Angus, while hardy and a
fine animal, is not the animal for dairy
purposes. He also thinks that the
Red mixed with the Cruikshank
strain makes good market color which
counts for a good deal where farmers
intend to sell their cattle. The potato
is making inroads on other crops in his
section of the country and is netting
farmers good profits. He places the yield
at about 200 bushels per acre in his Sec
ton. Wheat yielded 20 to Is bushels,
and oats 40 bushels and upward. In
corn production some great improve
ments are noted and the land proves
to be very productive in the raising of
that crop. Mr.. Orion says that his
own corn will go As to so bushels
| (shelled) to the acre. He has found
that by mixing the yellow with the
white dent that he gets corn that will
mature little earlier, though at some
sacrifice in the firmness of the kernel.
! The UNION would suggest that it be
informed of coming nuptial events by
some friends or relatives of the con-
tracing parties. Remember that any
matters of this nature confided to the
UNION will be kept inviolate, and par
ties need not be afraid of any abuse OF
confidence. But they should remem-
hor thot tho onon ronor1 If tho nj III, nj