The Democratic advocate., 1907-06-14
Doing Things on Time.

In preparing the seed bed, planting,
cultivating and harvesting the different
crops, the farmer is, of course, to great
extent, governed by weather conditions over
which he has no control, says Apollos Long,
in Michigan Farmer. He may be willing
and anxious to start the springs work on
time and push instead of being pushed,
but if the frost obstinately clings to the
soil, and cold rains are followed by cold
days, as has been the rule this spring, he
must wait for nature to do her part first,
no matter how she delays. On light,
well drained soils the plow might have
been started before the middle Of April,
but on clay and clay loan it would have
worked more harm than good. In spite
of wish to do things on time l would
prefer to have clay soil worked week
late than day too soon. In the former
case good deal Of deirable moisture,
which the crop would need later on, might
be lost, but in the average year we usually
have enough rain in May to supply all the
moisture the soil can hold if it is in condi-
tion to take it up as it comes, while under
the latter conditions the soil will receive
mechanical injury that it will take long
time to overcome. 1t is useless to SOW
seed until the soil is warm enough to start
the growth. If oats had been sown March
20 they would have come up all right
within week, but if they had been sown
April l they would not have sprouted up
to April 20, for the soil has been frozen to
depth of an inch or more again and
again, with cold rains, several snowstorms
and persistent cold north winds which have
kept the temperature too low to sprout
even weed.
With favorable weather and soil condi-
tions, however, it becomes important to do
things on time In fact the doing things
when they should be done, and thus hav-
ing them out of the way of the next things
so that they, too, can be attended to counts
great deal toward success The crops
that are planted when conditions are right,
and thoroughly cultivated at the proper
time, are almost sure to give good returns
for the labor bestowed On the other
hand, if the planting is done late, and then
the weeds allowed to get good start be-
fore cultivation is begun, the chances are
greatly in favor of an Improbable crop.
1t would be better, more satisfactory and
more profitable to farm 20 acres as it ought
to be farmed, doing everything on time
and in the best possible manner, than to
try to farm 80 or more acres. 1t is a
physical impossibility for one man to do
the work that ought to be done on an go
acre farm and do it in season, even with
the help of all the modern tools and ma
chinery. OF course, man can make a
pretense of farming 80 or more acres
many do it, but crops are not in on time
and are not cultivated on time. Every
thing is done late from planting to harvest
ing, and nothing is satisfactory from the
standpoint of good crops and clean farming.
The man may toll like slave, as he often
does, early and late and make living,
perhaps more; but what good does it do
him? He is too tired to enjoy it, and
when he ought to be in his prime he is
broken down old man. That sort of life
does not pay in any sense.
The first requisite, then, for doing
things on time is to make no attempt to do
more than can be attended to in proper
season. The second is to use the head as
we'll as the hands, to plan the work in ad-
vance so that if one thing is interrupted by
weather conditions or some other unavoid
able cause, another job may be taken up.
To do the small jobs that have to be done,
at odd hours, so that full days may be
given to other work-many hours and
days may be saved if one knows just what
To do neYt