The Ordway new era., 1908-10-16
ARx NOTES


for fall plowing? Well, that shows
we are not doing systematic farming.
The architect or builder who puts up
a quadrangular house before he draws
his plans, expects to put In partitions
afterward and add room here and
there, as needed. would certainly
merit our disapproval, and only a few
homes for shiftless people would lie
build. So the farmer should spend IA
sufficient amount OF time before COM
mencing his years work, in laying his
plans. How Is this arrangement going
u employ my time-how that? If IL
is essential to good crop OF beets or
melons or oats To have the ground
turned over before December. it can
be done by proper rotations: and II one
crop exhausts certain elements in soil
that another supplies, rotation is
necessary anyway. A yield oy 10 tons
OF beets per acre takes away tons Of
sugar from each acre, How long can
our soil stand that: But il takes
nature but short time In her WON
derful chemical laboratory TO replace
it II given chance. Plenty OF hydro
gen and oxygen in water and any OF
the legumes will supply the nitrogen,
and OF these alfalfa Is among the best
and has the additional advantage Of
each year covering the grouud with u
rich coating Of humIs in the form OF
decaying leaves and >tuoblc. Walk |
through an nld alfalfa field and with |
the toe OF your boot Kick away from |
one to three inches OF black mould and |
you readily see why our native CROP |
enriches soil. So the farmer who has
from to Of his land in this mort.
gage raiser" has no trouble to tiud a
patch OF hand to pillow up before Dec
cmhcr My rule in former years WI.
To- put in beet> or uat, only on grnuno
pluwed and wet before January and
lay failures OF recent years to de
parture from this Arrangement. It.
COLORADO, frost seldom penetrates over
six inches and the only method OF
freeing from the soil the food for q
coming crop is by freezing. hence the
Importance of fall blowing and winter
wetting.
Why are our beets not swecter:
Hard to answer, unless we lay IL to
this anomalous year Of 1905. And
what year it has been! We could
have done little better had our bitches
been full OF water. Atmospheric con.
ditions have been against us
things would not grow. Our good
housewives have sent in the same
complaint. Here are my roses that
/ have sn faithfully watetcd from the
hosea few sickly blussoms-n q
growth OF stem-lcayeS eaten up or
whipped of by our bea>tly winds. "
Well, we forget that our vegetation
gets its food mostly from the ar-unly
Il little mineral from the SOr and a
place TO keep its feet warm: and if the
air is parched and In constant motion
the little mouths on the under side Of
the leaves are dried up-the nostrils
OF the whole organization are com
paratiyely closed. Not too hot for
growth. Hotter the better. But "a
plant must have little rest, breath.
ing room, like ourselves, or be sickly
So | must answer your question. beets
are not sweeter lust cause" Certain
1t is they are growing and grecning
up since the cool days. Supt. Edwards
tells US the cold is bringing up little
moisture for them. ! wonder il that
is so. One Of thuse common ideas
among our stock men-that the ponds
I'LL up In the fall, whether it rains or
not-but 1 have always thought it
does snow and rain up in the regions
OF our water supply, however dry we
may have it. The only method known
for water to rise in soil is by capillary
attraction. Does cold increase the
little tubes? Possibly slight shower
such as we had, fills up the cracks
with mud and pulverizes the surface
little which certainly would increase
this force.
D. c. ROBERTS.