The Aberdeen Democrat. (Aberdeen, South Dakota) 1???-1909, 1905-02-24
FARM NEWS and FARM LOBE
BY GEO. B. DAILY

During the present week there have
been some object lessons along our
highways showing the serious incon-
venience resulting from a little neg
lect in the fall. We pass along some
half mile of dry dusty road as fine as a
road could be, and then suddenly the
horses are with the utmost difficulty
trying to keep on their feet and pull
the vehicle owe icy snowdrifts, or else
we have to make a circuit around
through a rough piece of blowing,
all because a strip of grass or weeds
have been permitted to stand, through
the winter along the edge of the high
way. Perhaps the only way to prevent
this condition is for the town board
of each township is to hire a man for a
week or SC just before the, winter
opens to go around and clean up these
places by burning the rubbish where
it can be so disposed of, or in some
other manner. 1t wonld be money
we'll spent and farmers would come to
be more careful about leaving sloven-
ly roadsides along their farms.
Evergreens are not so difficult to
raise, the writer has found from his
own experience. Two things are nee
essary to insure uccess In the first
place the roots should not be exposed
to the dry air for an instant. When
they come they should be unpacked
in the shade, in cellar if convenient,
and roots instantly thrust into a pail
OF very thin mud. Then after being
planted in ground which is in the very
finest condition of cultivation, plant
ing in sod being a mere waste of trees,
the trees should be shaded so that
only half of the sunshine falls on them
during the first season after trans
planting. The surface of the ground
about them should always be kept
clean of weeds and stirred up. These
things being done, evergreens are as
easy to raise as deciduous trees. Buy
direct from reliable nursery so that
trees will reach you in good condition.
Avoid the travelling tree man.
For yer twenty years Minnesota
has offered a bounty of $3.50 per acre
annually to the growers of trees on
the prairies. This included a bounty
for trees along the highway which was
some years ago repealed because they
shaded the roads and kept the mud
from drying up. We have learned
something in this county as to the in
convenience trees along the roadside
may canse the travelling public. A
narrow strip of trees on the north and
west sides of the road may make the
roads impossible when snow drifts pile
up.
A phenomenal crop of oats was
raised in South Dakota the last sea
son, and it is claimed that the record
for big yield is held by o. D. Bucheck-
er, Of Walworth county, who raised a
piece of about 20 acres which averaged
1913 bushels per acre. There we're
skeptics, of course, so a careful
measurement was made and the yield
verified. Another piece of six acres in
the same neighborhood went 12O bush
els, and many fields around Selby
are said to have yielded 10 to 80 bush
els.
The mild spring-like weather of the
present week has made the potato
business very active. All the surplus
stock in the city is being hustled into
cars for the southern market, where
South Dakota potatoes are in good de-
mand for seed. Seven carloads have
been shipped from Aberdeen this
week at al average price of "a cents
to the dealer. The farmers are bring
ing in considerable quantities for
which 20 cents is being paid. w. H.
Kearney, who is the heaviest dealer in
the city in this line expresses the
opinion that the price to the farmer is
likely to go lower even than 20 cents.
C. w. Swengel, a farmer living just
east of town, had a large crop the
last year, and just loaded and shipped
1000 bushels. AS a rule, potatoes are
a paying crop, although the low prices
realized for the last crop have not
been encouraging. There happened
to be an exceptionally big crop of the
tubers generally throughout the
Northwest.
Chicago, Milwaukee & st. Paul