The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-09-15
GARDENS OF COLO.
The Irrigated Country About Gree
ley Can't Be Beaten in
the Country.
How the Various Communities Spec
ialize in Farm Produots-Co-
Us operation the Rule.

- SsSA~S~ -
" operation the Rule.
From STAFF Correspondent.
Greeley, Col, Sept. ia ride over the
Colorado & Southern railway, from Dem
yer to Greeley, carries one thru the hness
agricultural region Of Colorado, stretch
of country as fertile and productive as
any in the humid states of the east or the
middle west. The farm lands are worth
from SIS to 500 per acre. ON the average.
The farms which are highly developed by
irrigation are worth from $3.50 to $500 per
acre. The only arid places to be seen
from the train are occasional small knobs,
which are too high to be watered by any
Of the reservoirs The crops are certain,
the yield, whether of wheat, potatoes, al
falfa, melons, corn or any Of the other
cereals and staples, Is very large. and the
people are prosperous and happy. 1t is
a veritable garden, and yet but for 1rri-
cation every rod OF 1t would be absolutely
sterile.
The leading agricultural county Is
Weld, of which Greeley is the county seat.
This county contains about 5000 square
miles, and Is as large as Delaware and
Rhode Island combined. Every foot OF 1t
Is under high state Of cultivation. It Is
literally dotted with reservoirs, and lined
which flows thru 1t. Year by year the
lines Of irrigated land are extended and
the reservoirs and bitches Increased In
number and capacity. If irrigation Will
do for other sections Of the arid regions
what it has done for the country between
Denver and Greeley, especially Weid
county, 1t is small wonder that there was
some opposition in Iowa, Wisconsin, and
in the states further east, to the passage
of the federal irrigation bill. This bill
will eventually add enormously to the ir-
rigated area, and to that extent result In
increased competition between the farm
ers Of the east and the middle west and
those of the arid belt, for the control Of
the markets in the great cities Last
year 1853 carloads of Rocky Ford canta-
loups were shipped from Colorado to
eastern cities, all the way between Bos-
ton and Minneapolis and st. Louis. Weld
county each year ships east hundreds OF
carloads of potatoes, to compete In Chi
cago and other middle west cities with the
products Of middle west states. The coun-
try adjacent to Collins, Col, sends thou
sands of spring lambs each season to
Chicago, to say nothing Of thousands Of
others sent to New York and st. Louis,
and they bring fancy prices. for being fed
in the open air, they have a flavor which
cannot be given to lambs raised farther
east, where the weather calls for frequent
shelter.
Government Help Opportune.
Government help has come at an OPP
perfume moment for the arid sections.
They had been developed almost as far as
was possible by private or cooperative eff
fort, and It was necessary that millions
be expended in the working out Of great
problems Of reservoirs, dams, etc., SO that
the spring freshets in the great western
rivers might be stored safely away. for
Jlco lat md dom c
will be supplemented by tunnels. one to
be eleven miles long, the longest in the
world est. Gotherd, Switzerland, is nine
miles long), which will carry water thru
the base of mountain peak from a river
that drains into the Pacific, and distribute
1t over plains that drain into the Gulf of
Mexico This will give some idea Of the
magnitude Of the government work laid
out, and why 1t Is that projects, like that
on the Salt river in Arizona, will require
four or five years for completion.
The finest truck farms in the United
States, giving the heaviest yield per acre,
are in the vicinity Of Denver and Pueblo.
Crop failure is unknown. The reddest,
rosiest, waxiest apples and the most lus-
cious peaches Of the country, with flavor
to match, are grown In Colorado irrigated
SOIL There is an average of $40 days of
sunshine In the year here, and the sun
makes the glow on apple and peach and
.
Half an hours ride out of Greeley, to-
wards the northern boundary of Colorado,
brought the special train carrying the
Washington correspondents to the most
arid region thru which, up to this time,
1t had passed. The soil was the same
as that in Weld county. The difference
arose from the fact that one section was
watered, while the other was not After
the completion Of the government
projects. or of the leading ones, which
ought not to be farther distant than ten
years. Colorado believes she Is to be the
chief supply of the market for many of
the farm and garden products which Is
now monopolized by the middle west.
Variety Of Crops.
The agricultural wealth Of the western
country under irrigation makes a deep
impression upon one who sees it for the
first time, but no deeper than the impress
sion made by the bewildering variety
Under the influence of some predominant
ing character In each community, variety
of production Is the order Of the day. The
lands around Denver and Pueblo run to
market gardening; another large section
near Pueblo Is the home Of the Rocky
Ford cantaloupe; In the Arkansas valley
beets are the principal product: at Long
mont 1t Is peas and currants; at Love
land. raspberries: at La Porte, onions; al
SOi1uS, sprung 1aIuDSS at greeley, pOLa-
toes; at Fort Simpson. tomatoes; at Grand
Junction, peaches; at Canon City, apples
at Glenwood, strawberries Of these
in addition TO the general farm crops, II
the raspberry, currant, tomato and pea
territories there are large canning fac.
tories and the genius Of the men who
own them first encouraged the farmers tt
take up the particular crop for which eacf
is celebrated. In the raspberry territory
for instance. certain man bred a black
variety Of berry which would not shrinA
and become soft when shipped long dis.
tances. He built a canning factory, an6
naturally the farmers began to raise these
berries. There is an interesting story
how Collins discovered that it could de.
.velop very superior variety Of spring
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