The Arizona sentinel., 1907-02-27

TIMELY HINTS
 FOR FARMERS.
A Lesson in Intensive Farming by R. Ii. Forbes, Director and Chemist of Agricultural
 Experiment Station.
University of Arizona,
 January l5, l9U7.

January l5, l9U7. Just west of Yuma, Arizona In the alluvial flood plain of the Colorado lies a little farm Of 72 acres which on May l, 1905, was virgin bottomland, covered with saltweed, arrow brush and creOsute bushes. The original purpose of the tract was for planting selected varieti"s of date palms imported by the U. S. Department Of Agriculture from the Old World. The Experiment station, May 2 be- gan preparing the ground, and on May 20 the work of leveling, bordering and irrigating the tract and the planting of 152 palms, was completed.
 THE PLAN OF WORK.
 Recognizing, however, that a farmer with his living to make meantime, cannot afford to wait for an orchard to come into bearing, it was planned to plant crops for quick re- turns between the tree-rows, thus putting the worK on a feasible basis from the small farm er's point of view. In order to economZe ground the irTigating borders were so placed as to coincide with the rows of palms, thus utilizing space otherwise usually wasted. The tract was divided by the borders into lands, for the most part onc-half an acre in size. lrrigating water from the Colorado Valley F. & l. Canal was obtained in the GUS tOmary manner, and k. l.. Crane, himself Yuma Valley farmer, undertook the care of what was nicknamed our play farm"
 In size, as well as in the intensive character of the work planned, this farm" is the op- poSite of the average holdings of this locality. The prevailing crops of the region are alfalfa, corn, barley, and forages in general, compara- lively little attention being given to vege- tables and fruits. Withal, the cost of levelling land in this region is high, rarely falling be- low twenty dollars an acre at current prices for labor and teams. Moreover, the cost, ex- elusive of maintenance, of the Government irrigating system now under construction will be about S3.50 an acre annually for ten years. To meet these and other heavy items of expense in connection with the establish ment of farm in this region, intensive crops of a more remunerative character than those now In vogue, are essential. It was partly, therefore, as an object lesson bearing upon these financial aspects of the general stua- tion, that this cultural work was planned.
 RECLAMATION OF THE GROUND.
 The soil of our tract, a warm, sandy loam well adapted to gardening operations, was levelled, ditched and berdered at q contract price Of Sl7 2U an acre, considerably less than the aNerage for the locality reckoning the labor of men and teams at current rates. In barbed wire and posts for fencing cost $G0 10; lumber for headgateS cost S3y.57; a drive well point and pipe, d pitcher-spout pump and barrel, SIS .45; q small lumber Lwo-room house, including five and one half days carpenter hire, $l52.75; and brush-roof shelter for horses, about $500. Only skilled | labOr employed in levelling, bordering and l ditching the ground, and for part construc- | ton of the house, is included in the above | estimates, as the common labor required or | dinarily would be, and in this case was, fur | niShed by the farmer himself. To bring this ground under cultivation and | make it habitable for small farmer and his | family, as stated above, therefore required | cash outlay of about Si00JO. In addition, in l the average instance must be included a | team, wagon. blow, harrow, having equip | ment, shOvels, hoes, and other small tools.
 CROPS AND MARKETS. The crops selected for the season of 1906 | were Early Rose potatoes, White Bermuda 1 onions. iiockyford cantaioupcs, Dwarf Cham piOn and Burpee's Quarter Century tomatoes | and alfalfa, besides a few hills of waterineons ! and Sundry vegetables. The produce was marketed in Yuma with | the exception of tomatoes, which, for the l largest part, were expressed to Tucson and | BSbee. The following statements for the | various crops are on the basis of net cash le- turns to the small farmer, who with all aver age family of five and d team of horses is aS- stunned to do the work required. as explained | below. Items necesSitating cash outlay, as seed, irrigating water, and crates are deducted 1 from gross returns. Water costs an average | of 50 cents for irrigation per acre for the crops grown. The yields in certain instances are 1 low, due to the unimproved condition of the sOil which, like desert soils in general, was low in nitrogen and organic matter. Some small salty areas also affected yields locally.
 White Bermuda onions; .47 acres; Seed | planted Sept. 27-Oct. 8, 1905. Young onions Feb. 5-9, l9W. Crop matured about June l. Eield 39lG pounds of dry on- Ons Highest price received, 2Hc a pound; lowest price received, 1.Sc Q pound. Entire crop marketed in Yuma.
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