Jamestown weekly alert. [volume] (Jamestown, Stutsman County, D.T. [N.D.]) 1882-1925, 1908-02-27
FARMERS INSTITUTE PROCEEDINGS
of Fertility of the Soil

d. dOio " grow dS kOOu crops uOW as
formerly. He said that it was not on
ly a decrease 10 the quality but in
the quantity and asked how it was
possible to get as good a yield from
our soil at present as it was at first.
Seasons may differ somewhat. and
there may be more moisture now
than In the earliest days but take
any season and compare it with a
similar one in early years ..and see
what will be the result. There is
better farming cone now than for
mer]y and If people are satisfied. with
the yield now as they we're in early
days, why then there was no use for
the institute corps to try and show
any means to improve or retain the
fertility OF the soil.
All the farmer should do who is
satisfied with the present yield is to
60 ahead, but it is certain that the
conditions in North Dakota are
greatly different generally from those
of Is years ago. The average yield of
wheat has gone down from Is and 30
bushels per acre to 10 and Is BUSH
els,i fact has been about cut in two
in the last rs years by the tillage of
the soil. He believed that farmers
know that the soil is not as good
for crops now as it was, and his con-
tention was thar one cannot culti-
vate soil long without impoverishing
1t. The average yiel ! of wheat for
the last 10 years in North Dakota
has been less than 13 bushels per
acre. The question arises why does
not the soil give as much yield now
as Is years ago? If the continued
cropping continues for another 25
years without restoring the fertility
Of the soil, is it not probable that
the yield will be still further cut in
two and reduced TO or bushels to
the acre?
Professor Shaw said that North
Dakota had originally the most fer
tile soil in the world. 1t has been
farmed with little attention to re-
storing what the crops have taken
away from 1T, out. he belle ved that 1t
could be restored by proper. process
so that the soil would raise crops in
definitely.
In Great Britain farmers with
poorer soil get on the average 80
bushels Of wheat to the acre. In BEL
GUM and Holland will. "a poor soil to
start on, the farmers get more of an
average crop than in Great Britain.
There must he some reason for this,
and no more important problem con-
fronts the farmers of North Dakota
than how to restore and maintain
fertility of the soil.
Tie first reason for the loss Of this
soil fertility was the continual ..sapp-
ing by..cropping, and the second --rea-
son was the taking from the soil it,
self the vegetable mould or matter
called Humus that is necessary to
grain.
What has the state been doing?
Crop after crop has been taken from
the land, sent out .of the state TO-
gether.w all that the crop carries
with it. He gave statistics for the
export of grain and fax for 1906 TAX
en- from the State Commissioner of
Agriculture. We shipped $4,000, 600
bushels of wheat and $4,000, 900 bush
els of:oats.
The speaker then showed the in
gredient necessary to produce a bush.
el OF wheat In nitrogen, PHOSPHORUS
and potash. He stated that fax re-
Quired twice as much Nitrogen as
wheat, and neatly the same of the
other ingredients. The same ele-
ments were required--for the growth
Of oa' S, and barley from the soil as
wheat and fax. The value OF COM
mercial fertilizers was shown. Nitro
gym II cents pound, potash S cents a
pound and ..other ingredients -equal-
ling 20 cents a pound. The fertility
sent away in 1905, said the speaker
according to the commercial prices
of fertilizers, would be valued at
s33, ,OOO,O 900 in the wheat crop and
$40, ,00O. .00O.. ..in..the fax crop. The val
.ue..of growing corn and certain other
crops to be followed by the grain
crops, was mainly 10 the cleaning OF
the land. There was not any great
amount Of fertility restored to the
soil by rotating grain crops. Under
our present methods of continuous
cropping no soil can stand the strain
and We must continue In the future
as In the past to lose In yield unless
methods are changed. He said that
farmers had noticed that better
crops had been had of grain after