The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-06-14
Although the Land is Poor the
Results Are Fine.
CAMPBELL METHODS.
Farmers Around Hill City Are
a Unit in Praise.
Oats and Wheat Away Ahead of
Neighbor Fields

that the wheat had been severely in
jured in the western part Of the state,
while that grown under the Campbell
system on the Poneroy Model farm in
Graham county was looking fine, Mr.
Otis made an investigat ting trip. The
PomerOy Model farm, which is being
titled under the Campbell system, is 10
Gated about one mile and a halt north
west of Hill City, in. the center of era
ham county. Mr.. Otis was taken in
charge by DIT. I. 3. Parker, a graduate
Of the Kansas Agricultural college, and
driven fourteen miles south OF Hill city
to examine a number of wheat ueldS.
Quite a variety of conditions existed.
Where there was q good stand Of wheat
on the bottom, or first rise, the growth
was short, measuring seven to elgnI
inches, and was fairly well stoOled, but
the lower leaves We're turning yellow.
Where the stand was thin (One-third to
pne-haf of full stand) the growth was
cOnsldera bly, better, measuring twelve
to fourteen inches. On the upland the
wheat looked poorly. Samples taken
measured five to six inches in height,
but had stooled but little.
Comparing these fields with those on
the POmerOy farm the contrast was
marvellous. Farmers, merchants and
professional men all agree that the
Pomeroy Model farm is naturally the
poorest in the ne1ghbOrhOOd. that Tor
ten years before the establishment of
the Campbell system the land had been
farmed by various parties, but no one
was able to grow paying crops. The first
wheat field visited was situated on
some of the highest land in the county.
Several attempts to secure well water
on this high land We're unsuccessful.
The wheat was frOIn twenty to twenty
one inches high, of a uniform stand and
was really too thick for best results.
Actual counts showed from eighty to
100 stalks to the linear foot in the drill
row. Individual plants had stOoled out
until they contained fourteen to six
FOO CT "a q mic & In of G
the remarkable statement that the seed
had been sOWn at the rate Of only one
half bushel per acre This field of
wheat was by far the best seen on the
entire trip.
Other fields visited on the same farm
did not look quite as well, but gave
every promise of good yields. The rea-
son for this difference was that the first
field had produced no crop the previous
year, but was plowed early in thespring
and narrowed after every rain until
wheat was sOWn in the fall With
neither crop nor weeds to sap the mois-
ture and the soil mulch to prevent loss
by evap OratiOn the soil was well stored
with water, which the wheat plant
pumped up to excellent advantage. The
other fields had grown crops the prev
ious year, one Of them yielding thirty
six bushels of wheat to the acre, and
the supply of moisture was, conse-
quently, more limited and the wheat did
not grow as rank
AllHOuSA LuG 1OAuEI0X NOQEl IaEIu
has been operated under the Campbell
method only two years it has, neVerthe-
less, been great object lesson to the
surrounding community. The fact that
the poorest farm in the vicinity could
be taken and with less than half the
usual amount of seed be made to pro-
duce nearly double the amount Of
wheat produced by the average farm,
has opened the eyes of thoughtful far
mers. The leading hardware merchant
of Hill City said that after the first
years trial of the Campbell method
and as a result OF it, he sold three
times as many harrows as he had sold
any year previous Thus far only two
or three sub-surface packers have been
sold; the farmers have been waiting to
be absolutely sure they were essential
before investing. Substitutions in the
way of rollers. plankS, disks, etc, have
been used for frming the soil. Ere
quently the disks are arranged with
the cOncaVe faces together, forming a
sort of wheel While the various ar
rangements do not equal the sub-Sur-
face packer, they viii point to its value.
Wheat farmers are practically a unit
on the necessity of firming the seed bed
for wheat and in few years the sub
surface packer will undoubtedly be
more extensively used. The farmers
around Hill City are also convinced
that frequent narrowing is necessary
for best success and many of them are
even narrowing their wheat in the
high. Mr. Campbell finds that packing
the soil keeps it from drifting with the
winds.
Oats. a scarce article in the western
part of the state, were looking fine on
the Pomeroy farm The corn had just
been listed Inquiry revealed the fact
that even during last summers dry
spell the corn plants made a good
growth under the Campbell system, and
were it not for the dry hot winds that
dried up the tassel and pollen in spite
of there being plenty Of moisture in the
soil. a good yield would have been OBJ
tanned The orchard on the Pomeroy
farm would be beautiful sight in any
country Tt is situated on high land,
and has a southern slope bat in spite
of its poor location. those trees, which
have been set out two years. show
good, thrifty growth. The soil is gone
over after each rain with a harrow;
not weed is to be seen. Compared
with trees of the same age planted in the
court house yard about a mile distant
and on lower ground. they have made
q trunk Of eight inches in circumference,
while the court house trees measure only
four inches in circumference The ma
a growth of 24-26 inches in the terminal
limbs. while the court yard trees show
only SO inches. The same cOmparis0u
with the elm trees shows 25-27 inches
for the PomerOy farm and only 1912
for the court yard. The trees on the
Pomeroy farm are thrifty. while many
Of those in the court yard are dying,
and in spite Of the fact that the latter
have been irrigated extensively
1t is hard to appreciate the full value
of the Campbell method of sell culture
without visiting the POmerOy Modsl
farm, but after the visit is made there
IS no question about its value The
wheat farmers who have suffered loss
from the lack Of sufficient moisture or
who are likely to suffer from this cause
wiz do we'll to study into the system
Cd
ture losses. Disk the soil Immediately
after harvest, if possible the next day.
and pillow at the earliest convenience.
Csor0~,44aFf DC