Hot Springs weekly star. (Hot Springs, S.D.) 1892-1917, 1909-09-10

from representative OF the Business
Mems Association Of Rapid City, asking
II the State College could not furnish
some one to help them start few OK.
periments in dry farming. Ukon re-
ceipt of this letter President Slagle ask
ing me II would take hold of the prop
osition and help the Association out.
l replied that as had to begin work at
the new substation at Eureka that it
would be impossible for me to take on
this extra work. So the business men
decided to make start any way.
They selected an area of about five
acres, two miles north of Rapid City. .
small area about the same distance
south of Rapid City, and q small area
east of Rapid City. These three areas
selected have different soil types. Tho
work Of the year was as follows:
In each area they plowed up strip
Of sod four inches deep and let lie dur
ing the season. BY the side OF this
strip they took strip and treated as
follows: Turned over the prairie sod
to a depth of four inches, and then SUBJ
soiled to depth of twelve inches, then
after each rain during the summer they
narrowed this strip.
The latter part Of August the writer
visited these stations, and with his soil
anger made tests for moisture to q
depth of forty inches In the strips in
each station that we're plowed four in
ches deep and left lying, moisture was
found down to depth of twelve to
fourteen inches, and it was possible to
force the auger in this soil to depth
Of forty inches. On each field which
had been subsoiled and kept narrowed
during the seoson, the writer was able
to force the soil auger down to depth
Of forty inches, finding moisture the
entire depth.
At that time the writer WAS asked if
he could give any assistance during the
coming year. Arrangements were
made this last spring by means OF
which the writer acted In an advisory
way with the Business Mems Associa-
tion. The details of the work were car
ried out by Mr.. I. H. Chase.
The seeds planted on the North Farm
we're grown at the Highmore substation
and represented our best varieties.
The results of the work this year we're
comparative, as there was not enough
funds and equipment to thresh these
crops in satisfactory manner. In
every instance. although this has been
very wet year, the new way of hand
ling the soil showed much better crop
than the old way. On the South Farm
the soil is good typical gumbo.
The flax and durum wheat on all
these plots were very poor. In the case
of the common wheat the old way was
about one-third of crop as compared
with the plots under the new way. The
same is true Of the barley. In the oat
series it was question of crop or no
crop, and even in this wet year the
South Farm showed very plainly that
the old way would produce only frac-
tional part of crop, while under the
new way the oats were as flne crop as
one could expect.
The experiments are of such q nature
that they should be carried on next sea-
son so that yields of different crops
can be taken In much Of our expert
mental work we find that the scales
show much greater difference than
the eye can detect In the growing grain.
!, The writer has known fields Of grain
that looked just the same, as far as eye
could discern. but upon being placed
on the scales there was difference Of
five bushels per acre.
/ The two years work done on these
experimental plats should be carried
on for q series Of years. The longer
work of this nature is carried on the
more good is derived from It. Tho
writer is willing to do all in his power
to help out on this work for the next
year, and l trust that the people in
Rapid City will think about this work
which the Business Mems Association
has started. Let each one Of Us, busi-
ness men and residents of Rapid City.
and the writer put his shoulder to the
wheel and carry on this work.
Very truly,
Clifford Willis.
Agronomist and Superintendent of ali
Substations.
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