Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1907-02-01
ABOUT DRY FARMING
A Utah Man Relates His Methods
ef Farming Without Water.
HAS BEEN AT IT FOR 40 YEARS
Raises 80 to As Bushels Of Wheat to
the Acre--Is One Of the Prosper
ouS Farmers Of Cache County.

The Dry Farming Congress, which
was held in Denver last week, was
attended by number of prominent
agriculturalists from the western
states who have given the subject of
dry farming much careful study for
years. The methods for obtaining
the best results from dry farming
were discussed at length, and many
valuable ideas were brought out.
As this is a question which interests
many OF the Examiner read ders we
herewith give the methods employed
by George l.. Farrell of Smithfeld,
Utah, who has been ''dry farmer"
for the past 40 years. Mr.. Farrell
was delegate to the Denver Con-
gress, and TO representative of the
Denver Post he described his meth
DDS as follows:
81 plow ten inches deep after
breaking the land, and then usual
ly have six inches of sub-soil. /
use horses and disc plows altogether.
With four-gang disc and eight
horses | can plow from eight to ten
acres per day, in strip half mile
long. The fall plo wing is done on
the stubble land, after the stubble is
allowed to grow about two feet
high. In the fall that is turned
under, and in THIS way gets all of
the winters precipitation, the snow,
rain and frost.
81 leave the rough blowing until
spring, and just as soon as it is dry
enough to work | put on my disc.
I use different sort of disc than
many of the Western farmers. It
is manufactured in Logan city
Utah, aud is known as the six gang
ID isc. IL throws the dirt all one
way. leaving no space, for weeds to
grow.
"The boy with SIX horses puts the
harrow on and continues to harrow
lengthwise and crosswise through
the season for the purpose Of killing
weeds and pu.verlzlng the soil, al
well as conserving all of the mois.
ture possible.
"About the lst of September each
year | put on the leveler and level
the earth, the drill IN the meantime
being run i'm front and the seed
drilled into the ground. We SOW
wheat at the rate of thirty-five OF
forty pounds to the acre, and let il
get the next winters precipitation,
and in the spring, when it is two
inches high, take the harrows ant
tip the teeth back ward at an angl
of about 80 degrees, SO as not t.
tear up the soil.
..This method breaks the crus
and pulverizes the soil, and il ther
are weeds it will kill them. w
generally harrow it both ways, as j
gives fresh life and vigor to tb
grain. We then leave it to haryes
time.
'.By the methods l have describe
l average thirty to forty.five bushel
of wheat to the acre, fifty to nlnet
bushels Of barley, three to three an
one-half tons of millet, and hay
plenty of good pasture for my cattl
| have between 1900 and lao
acres under cultivation, and rel
them every other year.
: 81 put in wheat last year and Gu
2i0 acres on ground that starte
to farm forty one years ago an
have been farming 1t every 9TH
year since that time. The crop
raised last year was far bettet this
any year that | remember. 1 brol
up piece of alfalfa ground, sow
two bushels of spring wheat {
about two acres, and harvested sxt
nine bushels of the finest quality.
81 kept all of that seed and d
millers offered me 10 cent a bush
more for 1t than the price of al