The Dickinson press., 1909-11-06
DRY LAND FARMING.
CONGRESS AT BILLINGS
Fine Address By shepperd of Fargo Big Crop At Dickinson
Experiment Farm Subject Of Special Mention Plans
lined For Gfeat Progress and Improvements In Dry
Farming In the Ard-Land Districts in the Future

The following is an extract from the
paper read by Dean j. H. Shepperd. ot
the Fargo Agricultural college at the
Dry Farming congress held in Billings
the past week:
The facts that the Dickinson sub
station reports yield of AZ bushels Of
wheat per acre. 30 bushels Of oats and
$50 bushels Of potatoes; that the Beach
demonstration farm hasstiven yield Of
better than 80 bushels fos more than enc
season; and that; a. steam threshins
rig was unloaded at Medora. in the
heart of our Bad Lands and dry lands
country, recently, should be evidence
enough that dry land farming is making
encouraging progress in North Dakota
The Edeeley and Williston sub-stations
have also made consistent yields,
Our twenty one demonstration farms,
great majority of which are in the dry
land district, indicate that good dry
land farming methods ore increasing
the per acre yield from so to 100 per
cent.
Land values are aways features which
give indication of progress in district
of country. In large section of North
Dakota where homesteads were plentiful
in 1904 and 1905, many Of which have
not been proved up and the patents
secured, are selling from $25 to $35 per
acre. 1t seems to me that there could
be no stronger evidence, Of the most
marked progress on the part Of dry land
development in; our state, ~. Another
evidence is the extension of railroad
lines. branch or feeding lines. and
numerous spur lines over the western
map of North Dakota. Railroad officials
look over a country very carefully M
diagnose its possibilities for product ion
and the support of civilization. in dense
form, very thoroughly before they put
in the heavy expense which the build
ing Of a rairoad represents. That the
Great Northern, Northern Pacific, 500
Line and Milwaukee systems are able
to render good business judgment in
all such cases, the history of the past is
sufficient evidence.
Not only does the construction of rail-
way lines, the building up Of townsites,
the erection of elevators. stores, ETC.,
indicate that dry land farming has
made progress in our state, but 1t is
the strongest possible forecast of even
greater progress and more rapid develop
ment for the years to come.
Dry land farming has another ad-
vantage that is commonly overlooked,
and that is the effect which it has upon
the half dry lands east of it, and the
super-dry land west of it.
The spreading into the super-dry dis
tricts will mean more form homes and
one of our prominent statesmen recently
said: The farm home is the hope of
the nation. The history Of our great
men has been the farm, the academy,
and fame.
Dry land farming methods have made
our North Dakota farmers more conserva-
tive. They do not 60 in debt so much
as our humid land farmers, and in
consequence do not have the burden ol
heavy interest to pay in the adverse
season which come in all farming
enterprises wherever they are located.
Dry land farming produces extreme
quality in most farm products. The
hay from dry land district is usually
cured so its green color is an evidence
of its quality and value. Barley from
q dry land district is seldom discol-
ored and the wheat from these sections
is not bleached or sprouted as so fire..
quently happens in the more humid Sec
tions. The rainfall distribution is such
that they have an excellent curing sea.
son for the small grains. Last year in
looking for sources of pediereed seed
corn. was astonished to have one Of
our dry land farmers inform me that
he would have two hundred bushels OF
more of it if he could get time to husl
it from the shock. His letter wa.
/ writ en- late in December. and though
there was no possibility of his grair
having reasonable strength after having
stood in the shock until that date. Up
on making trial of it. however,
found that it had good growing strength
and it evidently dried out so thorOuehl!
in the shock as to be able to withstand
our winter weather without injury Il
| the germ.
i Our dry land farmers are not in
ciined to neglect their live stock in