Durango semi-weekly herald., 1905-07-31

Icultivated acreage.
Colorado farms are usually small
most of tnem having less than 81
acres. although several tracts OF ,
thousand or more acres are under cul
tivation by the same farmer The av
erage per farm is 1870 acres. Farm
values also seem very high The,
range from $40 TO $1,000 an acre, hui
that includes perpetual irrigation
rights. You can buy dry farm
all the way from 81 an acre upward
and there naye recently been sales OF
irrigated orchards at 81 900 an acre
You have read In the newspapers
frequently about "the big things
that are raised in Colorado. The
prodigious size gained by some OF the
products was illustrated last fall
when i2 neighbors sat down to q
meal at which they were served with
one chicken that weighed 10 pounds
one potato that weighed six and one
half pounds. one l5-pound cabbage
one siN.pound beet, one two-pound
onion, and three pies which were
made from single apple that weigh
ed one and one-nnlf pounds. A beet
was exhibited in the Colorado build.
ing at the st. Louis exposition that
weighed AZ pounds.
| wrote you last fall about some OF
he interesting features OF agrlcultur-
al lie in Colorado and OF the cele-
brationB held in different parts OF the
state nj harvest time. described
Melon day" at Rocky Ford where
10000 melons were consumed on the
park grounds; and told you also oil
Peach day" at Grand Junction
strawberry day" at Glenwood
Springs. Apple day" at Canon City.
Potato day" at Longmont, Since
then Tomato day" has been intro
duced at Brighton. Adams county. On
each of these occasions all comers
are fed free of cost with the partlcu-
lar fruit named.
Hay Is the most valuable crop in
Colorado, then come fruits. dairy
products. sugar beets, potatoes,
wheat, garden truck and wool In or.
der
Greeley is the center of the potato
trade, which Is reaching enormous
proportions. This year the value of
the crop in that particular locality Is
expected to exceed $3.OO0,00O II the
farmers can get an average OF 30
cents busheh The average snip
ments for the past ten years have
been 1900 cars, and the acreage last
year was about $4,000 acres. This
year there are about 10000 acres In
potatoes. and at least 10000 cars will
be needed to carry the crop to east
ern markets. 1t Is too early to talk
about prices. The harvesting will
not begin until the middle of August,
and lots Of things may happen be
tween now and then, Potatoes have
sold as hig'n as 81 bushel, but last
year the average price was 30 cents
All the work in the field Is done by
machinery except the final job of
picking the potatoes OF the ground
and putting them in sacks. No ma
chine has yet been found capable OF
performing that function.
A new industry mas been introduc-
ed at Greeley--to utilize the small po-
tatoes and the culls. which may not
profitably be shipped to market. A
starch factory mas been erected and
the first shipment made the other day
OF potato starch from Colorado,
which was carload OF 10000 pounds,
marks an epoch In the agricultural
history of the state and the establish
ment of an entirely new industry.
The 100000 pounds of potatoes used
to make this 10000 pounds of starch
were almost worthless for any other
purpose. II has been demonstrated
tnat almost anything in the way OF a
potato will yield 90 per cent in
starch. This is almost an entire say.
ing.
wrote you last fall from Rocky
Ford that the farmers OF that valley
cantaloupes. The actual total was
/ ,1S0 cars, in which tnere were ALB.
600 crates, and they brought an aver
age of ~ cents per crate. There has
been an increase of nearly 900 acres
in the area planted TO melons this
year, or about Is per cent. The mar.
ket was oversupplied last year, not
only with melons, but with fruits OF
all kinds.
Twelve thousand carloads OF or
cnard fruits were shipped from this
state, including 5000 crates of cher.
ries from single orchard near Fort
Collins. The increase this year w..
be very large, The agricultural OIL
cials at the state capitol In Denver
estimate that the area In bearing or
chards this year will be 20 per cent
greater than last, and they include
y73 varieties OF fruits.
The largest orchard In the state, IN
Weld county. has between 5000 AND
900 acres.
| The Colorado fruit farmer sells hi,
crop on the trees to commission men
who send out buyers before the frul
Is picked and superiDtend the pickinl
and packing. This Is dcne becaus,
the manner In which II is packed ma
terially affects its value. It adds
| per cent to the expense 10 wraD paci