Jamestown weekly alert. [volume] (Jamestown, Stutsman County, D.T. [N.D.]) 1882-1925, 1905-02-02

western NQrCn DaKOCa. 1rSC On ac-
count of its hardihood, and second
because Of the large yields obtained.
The management of Dakota past
ures is a problem worthy of careful
study. The natural grasses are
proverbdl fol- their fattening quail
ties. and therefore, where the ground
is not to be titled, as where the SUBJ
soil is sandy or gravely, they should
not be disturbed, that is to say, 1t
would be of at least questionable
advantage to try to transform them
into pastures made np Of other
grasses. The ain should rather be
to rest them by fencing and not
grazing them so clsely that they can
not recede. Winter grazing could
thus be reserved also, where the range
was sufficiently extensive, plan that
would also be labor saving.
With the intoduction of irrigation
production would be immensely in
creased. The notifications that it
would render necessary in farming
would depend largely upon the extent
to which it was introduced, that is
to say, upon the proportion which
the irrigated land in any locality bore
to ths unirrigated. Land irrigated in
limited areas and distributed through
the country vsriously, would tend
more to the highest utilization of
lands that could not be irrigated,
than if the former were all grouped
in one center.
This would follow because of the
winter forage that could be grown
not distant from adjacent pastures
on which live ock were grazed. As
those native pastures are not grown,
it is at least questionable If they will
sustain one cattle beast for nine
months, the season of the pasturage,
on a less area than ten acres. The
alfalfa grown on one acre under irri-
cation should easily sustain cattle
beast for a year. The influence
which such farming would, exercise
upon increased live stock production
can thus be conjectured. HcAce the
wisdom OF saving the water that
collects 10. the draws, the streams
and the rivers, and In all of these for
use upon the land. But gain would
come from another source. 1t would
make possible the finishing Of cattle
and sheep at home, which are now
senc away to be finished in other
states. This would be possible
through the heavy grain yields that
would follow on irrigated lands, ex-
periments have shown that five
pounds of grain per day along with
good alfalfa hay will fatten steers as
we'll as ten to fifteen pounds Of the
same when fed on such rouehage as
corn, stover, timothy or wild hay.
The size of an irrigated farm would
depend largely upon the facilities for
marketing the crops grown. Near
mining centers ranchmen should
make a good living on forty acres
and if skillful on considerably less
area. In some instances this could
be done on ten acres, as when vege-
tables and some lines of small fruits
were grown, hardy in charcter. An
irrigated farm in western North
Dakota of eighty acres properly titled,
should soon put it's owner on the
way to competency. See what such
a farm could produce. 1t could be
made to grow no less than 320 tons of
alfalfa year putting the yield at
four tons per acie. If sown to maca-
roni wheat 1000 bushels could be
looked for. II sown to speltz or oats
Ihe average yield should not be less
than 5000 to 1900 bushels. If devot
ed to the growth of timothv and
bronze grass the crop should give not
less than 16O to 200 tons. If sown
with rape the product should fatten
SOU " 1sLVV lduOS III OuO oC0oOI.
These crops on a we'll managed irri-
gated farm would be sure, and they
would be sure because of the irripa-
tion. The immensity Of the produc-
tion possible becomes readily appar-
ent where any considerable area can
be irrigated. it is. therefore, mat
ter of supreme Importance that the
waters which flow through this re-
gion in volumes so immnse shall be
lifted from their channels and made
to bring moisture to the land
The amount of water for lrrlgating
lands in western North Dakota is
happily much less than the amount
r. qnired in many other localities,
areas further west. and
This is owing to the
moisture brought to the land in
quantities more or less every season.
Some seasons the moisture is about
enough TO suffice. Many crops would
produce a maximum yield almost any