The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-06-08
AGRICULTURAL.
SOME FARM OBJECT LESSONS


SOME FARM OBJECT LESSONS.
This is one of the seasons which afford
to the farmer opportunities for varied ex-
perences. 1t is a season when crop pros
poets for good or bad change rapidly
Only a few weeks ago We had the pros
pect of an abundant harvest in nearly
all lines of crops. Today, however, the
indications are favoring short harvest IN
many crops, especially so of all grain and
hay crops, the alfalfa only promising a
full harvest. OF course, ii is a little
early to predict as 70 the cotton crop,
yet the wet weather in much of the cot
ton belt, together with the cold. is re-
tardng the growth of the plant. Texas
and Oklahoma are having too much rain
for cotton and wheat, while the whole
state of Missouri is dry with cold drying
winds from the north. These Of course,
are very unfavorable to plant growth.
Wheat oats, and all meadows are suf-
ferlng for rain in many sections where
the cold, dry weather prevails.
Soil Conditions.
The condition of the soils in many sec
tions was very bad to commence with this
season and here is where the farmer
should get his most practical object les
son, as the crops this season will show
thorough seed bed preparation and poor
ly prepared soil for seeding. The farmer
who commenced last fall to prepare his
soil and who has protected his soil against
stock tramping and making brick of il,
and who has fortified his soil, using the
necessary amount of organic matter will
make a crop under almost any conditions.
AT any rate, such farmers are not so
much at the mercy of all the various
changes of weather extremes Their
soils will Withstand more dry or wet
weather and produce crops where these
poorly prepared soils will entirely fail.
This is one of the greatest of all OBJ
ject lessons and one that not only every
farmer should observe. but remember as
well. Often we can the great diff
ference between two crops of the same
kind of soil exactly with only cross fence
between them. On one side of the fence
the land has been protected from the tread
of stock during wet weather has been
deeply plowed at the right time, has been
fertilized with the right kind of plant
food. has been narrowed and made fine
before the seed were planted and all brush
having been previously taken off out Of
the way. On such lands the crops are
not suffering for rain but are growing
right along and promise fair harvest.
On the other side of the fence the land
was trodden all winter by stock running
at large over It, In such cases the farmer
has to wait for rain to break the soil 1t
breaks up in great clods. the winds and
sun dry and harden these cods as fast
as they are turned up. the farmer has
to walt for rain before his harrow can
make any impression whatever on these
clods and this often delays the planting
until so late In the season that the crop
is only chance crop. On this field no
attention has been paid to the clearing
out of brush and briars. no attention has
been given to drainage or to fertilizers
No attention has been given to the i'm
portance of making a fine seed bed. The
seed planted late and they were very
poor at that. The result of such efforts
is either partial or total failure of
crops.
I have seen as high as eighty bushels
of good corn gathered per acre from a
field where the proper efforts were made
o. where intelligent farm methods were
used, while the next field with only a
cross fence between produced only ten or
twelve bushels per acre of an inferior
quality of corn. Now. | have the oppor-
tunity every day to take note of the two
systems of farming. We pass field
where the soil has had the necessary
preparation and here the corn is grow
ing finely, the farmer going right ahead
cutivating the crop the second or third
time. while his neighbor who has planted
his seed late, is sitting around complain
ing of dry weather and waiting for rain
TO soften his clods so that he can cultivate
his crops Here are object lessons that
the farmer should note and profit from.
A Peculiar Season.
This of course is rather a peculiar sea-
son and such seasons as this will come
around every few years In the regular
order of affairs, and when they do come
they almost upset any we'll defined sys-
tenn of farm operations and compel the
farmer to be governed largely by circum-
stances or general conditions In othel
words the farmer is compelled to be on
the defensive in all his operations.
Another very important matter for the