The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1903-08-08
Crop Conditions in Mclean
Found Generally to Be
Better Than An
ticipated.
TWO WEEKS GOOD WEATHER
Farmers Over the County
Report Prospects Good
For More Than a
Half Crop.

While certain parts of the state
have continued to suffer from
drought and unfavorable weather
for growing crops: the weatherof the
past two weeks has been ideal in
Mclean county and crop prospects
have taken a complete and settled
change. If there ever had been
any doubt what the harvest would be
in Mclean county this year, that
doubt is now entirely removed. It
is true that aside from certain spots
here and there and the homestead
country in the north and localities
about Goodrich and Denhof,
drought has prevailed and small
grains have consequently suffered.
Flax and corn, though, standing up
wonderfully, and both of these &C.
reals will now produce more than
an average crop. While we do not
look for and cannot expect such a
general and even harvest as we
were favored with last year, yet
things generally speaking, in Nc
Lean county, could be a great deal
more discouraging than what they
are at this time.
Friday, the 24th Of July, the en-
tire county was blessed with a gen
eral and heavy rain-fully one and
one-half inch of water falling. This
has been followed with an occas-
onalshower and the best Of weather
for maturing crops. In the rydis-
tricts there are fields of very good
wheat and oats on summer fallow-
ing that will now yield very good.
and the quality promises to be No.
l Hard, and in these same Eocali-
ties there are also pieces Of plowed
and well-worked ground that will
return literally to its tillers as a re-
ward to good and honest labor,
while there are pieces of discing
and stubbling that will yield very
meagerly. This has been a year
whengood farming will be rewarded
and the experience Of the "haphaz-
zard tiller this year should stand
as a future warning lesson to those
who r disposed to only one-half
working the soil. It should be an
object lesson, and it should be an
appeal for better and more system
attic farming.
While in all probability we have
the richest and most productive
prairie soil on the American con-
%tinent, yet it is unreasonable to ex-
pect that it will at all times hold
out under all kinds of abuses I'M
natural and contrary to all of the
best authorities and methods Of
soil culture for successful farming.
This is the only country where the
virgin prairie can be broken and a
crop of flax raised the first year.
This can be successfully done here
but you cannot successfully the
following year turn around and
disc and stubble this new flax
ground and seed it to wheat with
the idea Of growing a good crop
should the season not be an excep-
tionally favorable one. It is ex-
pecting too much, and. there is no
country in which a good successful
farmer should think of attempting
such a thing and it should not be
practiced here. In fact, all stub
bling and discing should be entirely
abandoned and more minute atten-
ton paid to the treating Of the soil
prior to the receiving Of the seed,
and new fax ground should inva-
riably be summer fallowed the year
following the first crop. Consider
ing everything, we should all be.
truly thankful that our crop pros
poets are as good as they are this
year.