The Minneapolis journal., 1902-07-21
FEED GRAINS GAIN
Corn Pushing for Larger Acreage in
Southern Minnesota.
WHEAT REsIsTs THE ADVANCE
Flax Acreage Gives Way, However,
Tow Mills Move to North
Dakota.

Corn, Iowa's great product, has crossed
the southern boundary line of Minnesota
and invaded the southwestern counties
in full force. If the predictions are true
that Minnesota will ultimately become
great corn state, some of the south
western counties have this year given
her a reasonably good start. These coun-
ties have been taking more kindly to
corn and hogs in the past three years,
but in some of them the change to corn
has been more remarkable this year than
ever before. Eighty-acre fields Of corn
are common, 1OO-acre fields are frequent
and now and then a farmer can be found
who has devoted a full quarter section
to corn. -.
This year will improve Minnesota's
status as a corn-shipping state. Ship
ments of corn of any consequence out Of
southern Minnesota may be said to have
begun last year. Many stations along
the southern Minnesota line Of the Mil
waukee road shipped from ten to twenty
five cars Others report shipments Of
forty and fifty cars, and there is one
station, Jackson, which made it's first
shipments of corn last year amounting
to about sixty cars. 1t is estimated that
with a reasonably good yield on the
corn acreage this year some Of these sta
tions will double and possibly treble their
shipments Of last season.
AL ecu VEAIHS "EO"As
Not only corn but all feed grains are
growing in favor with the farmer Of the
southern counties, and Minneapolis, If
ments in these grains, will feel the
effects of it this year. This is more
noticeable in some counties than in
others, depending to some extent upon the
experience Of the farmer in wheat Gull
ture in the past two or three years. In
Martin, Jackson Mobiles and Rock coun-
ties many of the farmers insist that the
soil will no longer furnish the yield nor
the grade of wheat necessary to making
wheat culture profitable. Pipestone coun-
ty farmers have had tough experience
with wheat in the past two years, and the
| stampede to corn and other feed grains
| in that county this season is large. On
the other hand, Faribault, Freeborn
Blue Earth and Waseca counties are max
is just as high priced as that in the
other counties to the west, and making
wheat farming pay presents the same
financial problem but the sentiment
among the farmers Is different. -J~
Barley is becoming the leading crop
Of some districts. Armour has been a
big buyer Of this grain along the south
ern Minnesota line of the Milwaukee
for years, and those counties will great
ly increase their offerings in that cereal
this fall, If the fine prospects now in sight
materialize. In that part of the state
barley's increase in favor appears to be
added opportunity for Milwaukee. Most
Of Armour's purchases Of barley go tc
that point.
| Wheat is stubborn1y resisting this ad.
vance Of feed grains from the south
| AS previously noted, Faribault and Blue
Earth have cut the wheat acreage this
year to some extent, but not as much
relatively as the counties to the west
Good judges say that whatever reduction
has been made in Brown county ant
others in that immediate section Is rela-
lively small William Silverson, manager
| Of the Eagle mills at New Ulm, says tha1
! the decrease in wheat acreage in Brown
county is hardly perceptible, and he hear!
| few reports indicating a decreased acre
age in wheat from Nicollet and Red
wood. s ~..s - -, ~. @... RI
Southern Flax Acreage Reduced.
Southern Minnesota is bringing It's fla
acreage and production down to a mini
mum. Up to the present year there were
some districts where considerable fla
was grown. But this remnant is being
made much smaller this year. Southern
Minnesota tow mills are moving int
North Dakota where there is plenty o
flax straw. A Heron Lake man has in
vented portable mill which partly con
verts the straw into tow and bales !
at the stack, doing away with the neces
| sity for SO many stationary mills. Wha
flax theresis in southern and southwest
| ,r,,s ~rap,icos a Fol via1d.