The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1909-11-05
INTENSIVE FARMING.

An inconspicuous citizen Of foreign
birth living near Pawnee City, Neb.,
is demonstrating to the department at
Washington how to practice what is
known as intensive farming success
fully. His name is Arnold Martin and
he went to Pawnee City ten years ago
from Switzerland without cent. All
he knew was farming. He went to
work as farm hand and in three
years managed to save up $275. Then
he started out for himself. Now he
supports his family and saves
$1,000 each year An expert sent
out from Washington to investigate
Mr.. Martins system, in bulle-
tin issued by the agricultural depart.
ment, tells farmers all ove- tee coun
/ try how the Nebraska man manages
| things so successfully on the plct Oh
/ ground which he calls his farm"
| The general impression is that a man
must farm at least 100 acres in order
| to make money. Mr.. Martins farm con-
tains twenty acres, which he considers
enough land, If farmed rightly, for one
man. He looks upon 800 acres as a
misfortune and regards GAO acres as a
downright calamity.
Mr.. Martin found his twenty acres
4 1t was rocky and not worth farming
SO the owners of the surrounding
farms declared. AS proof Of the poor
quality of the land, Martin paid only
$3.50 an acre for it, while surround
ing land was worth from $50 to $40
4 an acre. The new purchaser paid
/ just 800 down and gave a mortgage
i for the balance The remainder Of
his money he used to buy farm i'm
plements and live stock. His neigh
bors used to laugh at the young farm
er and nicknamed him "Hazelbrush,"
but they now admit that he is making
than they are on their $50 acres. He
does not want any more land, but
/ wants to farm what he has better than
i he does now. While Martin raises a
certain amount of fruit, his principal
crops are the usual farm crops of
Nebraska potatoes, wheat al
7 falfa, etc. Not foot of the twenty
: acres is permitted to remain idle and
? two and three crops of something or
1 other are raised on every acre every
: year.
: So successful has the young farmer
: been that today, seven years after
r he purchased his little farm, he is en-
/ tirely out Of debt, has a good house
fine barns, cash in the bank, and {
standing offer of $4,000 for his twent,
acres of ground. Last winter he spen
three months in Switzerland, and fol
). the last three years he has been tx
h the Colorado mountains every sum
mer on pleasure bent. Says the gov
!, eminent bulletin:
!, THE intensive methods pursued
{ by Mr.. Martin are of particular inter
IS spring until fall. At the last culsiva
w tween the rows A full crop of pota
lie toes and fair crop of corn Is pre-
,s duced from the same ground. A
- many as 700 bushels of potatoes an
- seventy-five bushels of corn are pre-
- duced from each acre planted thi
~ way.
OF After the potatoes ripen the cor
keeps the weeds down. BY the tim
the corn needs the ground the pot;
~ toes are ripe and the corn is in tn
10 shock before it is time to dig tn
- potatoes. Some parts of the potat
~ patch are SOY with millet and so
ca ghum just beio.e the last cultivatio.
nd This makes good crop of feed an
of does not hurt the potatoes. Squasht
in. are sometimes planted in the san
N way. The onion patches grow col
:. and melons, which are planted
~ rows between the onions. Part
an the orchard is set with small fru
in and part is planted with potatoes al
ar truck.
red In dry SMELLS all the water tn
,m. the windmill will pump is used +
III, irrigation and it is here that intensi
- farming reaches its height. II
- water from the well flows directly
zen the bitches as pumped A little n