Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1908-02-28
ABOUT DRY FARMING
Crops Can be Successfully Grown
Without Irrigation.
SCME SATISFACTORY RESULTS
In Many Localities Idle Land is Being
Converted into Profitable Farms
without Irrigation.

between the foothills of the Rocky
mountains and the Kansas n e braska
line is l4.39 inches. In this arid
region, in which long experience
has proved ordinary agricultural
methods TO he Improbable, there is
a margin of almost three inches
oyer the requirements for the sue
ce 'sful following Of dry farming
methods. While an annual rainfall
of ~ inches is sufficient to bring to
maturity any ordinary farm crop,
there are many special crops that
can be grown with good margin
of profit with an average fall of less
than 10 inches.
1t has been demonstrated on model
farms maintained by western rail-
roads, and on hundreds of private
farms, that all that is necessary on
the plains and in the intermountain
parks and valleys is intelligently to
make the most of the rains and
SHOWS that fall In order to grow as
good crops as can be raised any
where. In other words, farming
methods must be adapted to natural
conditions. This seems so simple
and self.evident that the only woH-
der is that men have been so slow
in finding IT ont. 1t ought not to
be hard to believe that the lands
that are producing the rich buffalo
and gama grasses of the plains with
out cultivation, can be made to pro,
duce crops still more valuable with
cultivation adapted to the soil and
climate. Carrying the same argu.
ment little further, there are many
who bel1eye that wherever sagebrnsh,
cactus plants, yucca, Spanish bayo
net and grease wood will grow,
plants of economic value may be
made to grow, also.
However, what the national de
partment of agriculture, the various
state governments and the grea
railroad corporations have at las
been made to see has been demon
strated every season for 20 consecu
tive years by Ii. w. Campbell, o
Lincoln, Neb., the pioneer ''drl
farmer" of arid America. In score
of places, from the James river t.
the Arkansas, he has been uniform
ly successful in producing wlthou
irrigation, with comparatively littl
additional expense, but not withoL
a great deal more watehfulness ali,
labor, the same results that are ex
pected with irrigation. What wes
ern people haye been accustomed /
calling The Campbell system c
dry farming" consists simply in tn
exercise of intelligence, care, p'
tience and tireless industry.
Among the crops proved to
particularly adapted to cultivatio
on the nigh, dry plains are diva
Milo maize, Turkestan alfalfa, Kafi
corn, prose-, emmer. Swedish oat
beardless barley, native white-ste
grass, and several other nati'
grasses. More important than al
of these, however, is durum,
macaronl wheat. The first crop
this of commercial importan
grown in the United States "
harvested in 1901 and amounted
100, 900 bushels. Last year the cr'
exceeded 15,Oo0,O 900 bushels.
will not thrive in humid reglor
requiring for it's most perfect dev
opment dry climate and semi-al
land. The variety best adapted
cultivation on the American plal
is sKubanka durum, native to
great plains Of Russia, north Of I
sea Of AzoY, where the climatic O.
ditions exist g.I1 eas.erp' Col s.
and western Nebraska are almost
actly reproduced. Experiments q
Quoted by the Colorado State AZ