The Greeley tribune., 1908-10-07
SEED GROWING MAY BE MADE A
GREAT SUCCESS.
50 SAYS II. L. DOWELL
Botanist of Some Note Takes Up De-
fense of Greeley District as
Seed Producer and Gives
Reasons Why 1t Can
Pay Here.

grown here? Can beet. onion, car
bage and other garden seends, as weI
as flower seeds and bulbs, be grow
in the Greeley district with any de
gree of profit? Certainly. Why not
There is little doubt that Greele
will within few years be the cente
of a thriving seed growing industry
Garden seeds of all kinds. includln!
garden seeds and bulbs, may o'
grown here in quantity. While WI
NAV not equal certain districts o
Europe in achievements along tni'
line. we believe the industry VII
soon become established here, ane
that the growing of seeds VIII, WIN
in few years, be one OF our many re-
sources.
There is big money in growing
seeds and bulbs, and for some time
the Greeley district has been known
to be specially adapted to such
things.
Buying garden seeds and bulbs is
somewhat like buying drugs. Ihey
are dished out at about lOc spoon
full. When the farmers and gardeners
OF this district grow to do more III
tensive cultivation and settle down to
till small tracts, many of them VIII
raise seeds for market. Ana why
not? The work is easy ana peasant
and the profits almost marvellous. A
few pounds of seeds may be packaged
and retailed for many dollars. Iheh'
too, there are few places where Nese-
tables and plants in general Will 40
better than here at Greeley. WIN
care they grow here TO wonderful
perfection and yield most hand
somely.
Every Tribune reader has seen
row of sweet peas growing IN Gree,
lev garG-. What a beautiful and
luxurious growth, How the indi-
yidual plants bloom and bloom in
their endeavor to produce seed! II a
row OF sweet peas were allowed to
fruit. what a crop of pea seed one
would reap. Think of it, Then If
one could sell these seeds as the gar
deners and florists do. at 10c the
spoonful. what a wonderful return
he would receive from the small
strip Of land given over to them.
A little over year ago the good
people of Greeley were made anxious
ly expectant by a report that many
OF the vacant lots scattered through
out the town had been planted to
sweet peas by an experienced Cali
fornia seed grower for seed purposes,
and great results were anticipated.
On investigation it developed that
several lots were planted to these
flowers. but it seems that no attempt
was made to cultivate the growing
plants or to give them water, and,
once abandoned. of course the plants
did not thrive, and the results were
nil. No, not even in the Greeley dis
trict, where things like to grow so
we'll will it do to plant crop and
abandon X. What would one of our
successful farmers think of such
system of cultivation? Yes, it is more
work here to tend and care for
growing crop than in an unirrigated
section, because. in addition to the
cultivation. the growing plants
must be watered, and while it is
more work, the increased yield more
than compensates for the additional
trouble So the idea of growing gar
den and flower seds on vacant lots
was a seeming failure. Who was to
blame? The water? The sunshine,
the climate? Was it the soil? Did
this Californian deserve success?
We don't think so. Now doesn't 1t
look like poor management. to say
the least to go to the expense Of pre-
pairing the ground. planting it with
expensive seed. and then abandon the
tract?
A short time ago the Tribune pub
lished an article along this line, the
general tendency of which was dis.
couraging. 1t would seem from this
article that seeds could not be grown
here with any degree of certainty OF
profit; that aside from, possibly
onion sets, it was sure to prove los
ing venture; that it had been tried b!
one worthy to Judge and he had pro
nounced it a failure. Further. II
seems that he lost several Thousand
dollars in his experiments along thu
seed growing line at this place
Strong argument? Well, we'll, MAYBE
80. If the growing of mustard, onion
beet and other seeds was conducted
in the manner of growing sweet pea
on the vacant lots above mentioned
Ia it any wonder the venture was
failure? 1t may be that he deserved
to fail. and we believe that he did
However. had these same seed tract
been properly titled and watered,
thousand-fold increase and prof
would have been the harvest.
Are we yet justified in saying tina
seeds cannot be grown here with an.
degree Of success or profit? w
hardly think so. In few years VI
believe that many of the farmers an
gardeners of this section will Civ
considerable attention to this invit
ing industry, and that one OF ou
sources of revenue will be the grow
ing of garden, field and flower seeds
Mr.. John Leavy, Of 1891 Eight
street, has for many years, on
small fraction OF city block, grow
cabbage and other seeds to wonder
full perfection, improving and de
veloping distinct and superior VAR
eties of his own. He secures n bcnn
tiful yield, and the revenue he dc
rives from this feature of his buslnes
alone is considerable, and, in ou
Judgment sufficient argument in II
self that the seed industry can b
made to flourish here.
HARRY L. DOWELL.