The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1909-11-19
INVESTIGATION OF CROPS.
BY G. II. AFFORD

80 ~ y. LIoh
The boil weevil will soon cover
Mississippi. 1t is said to be in
thiriy-five counties now. Many ag-
rtcultural writer's and speakers are
taking advantage of this fact tourge
frrmers to grow truck, molasses,
sweet potatoes and so on for the
Northern market. They tell US
about farmers in Texas and else
where who are making $500 per
acre growing truck. They see no
reason why Mississippi farmers can
not get rich growing truck.
AS an agricultural writer and
speaker, | have preached diversif-
cation for twelve years, but l have
just this to say concerning the
growing of truck for Northern mar
kets by the average Mississippi
farmer: 1t is a gamble, and you
will win just enough to make you
put up all you have and lose. Of
course, in some neighborhoods, ON
great truck line railroads, truck may
be grown and disposed of to good
advantage. However, not n per
cent. of the farmers of this State can
hope to find a market for truck.
The sensible course for average
Mississippi farmers to pursue is to
grow every farm product necessary
for nan and beast and some to spare
for those who live in the nearby
towns, raise all the pork and lard
needed on the farm keep plenty of
brood mares to raise all the mule
and horse colts needed on the farm,
keep plenty of good milk cows to
supply the family with milk and
butter, raise plenty of yellow-legged
chickens for home use and to sell,
raise all the sheep and goats that
a be used to good advantage, and
to have good gardens. When we
have made arrangements for our
home supplies, we are ready TO plant
cotton, the surest, best paying, and
the greatest money crop in the world.
Many farmers can make money
raising good beef cattle as there is
always a market for good fat beef
cattle at reasonable prices. Many
farmers can raise good horses and
mules and make money by so do
ing. Many farmers can make sure,
big and quick money raising hogs
for the market. Others can make
money selling dairy products, how
ever, the rule to live at home anG
grow cotton as a money crop still
holds good.
l know whereof I speak when /
tell you that a bale of cotton can be
grown on every acre of we'll drained,
quick-maturing land in Mississippi
in average seasons among the boil
weevil. Fill the quick maturing
land full of vegetable matter by
practicing rotation of crops; apply
fill it full of nitrogen by growing
leguminousous crops; apply two or
three hundred pounds of ground
phosphate rock per acre and carry
out the governments instructions
and profitable crops of cotton will
be grown
Let us have good pastures, large
pea meadows, cut plenty of lespe
dexa, peavine, and other hays. Let
US fill the corn fields full of peas
and plant fields of peanuts, sweet
potatoes and when the corn is gath
erod in the fall, turn the hogs,
cattle, sheep, goats, horses and
mules into the fields and all will be
rolling fat by winter.
The farmers who grow their home
supplies and carry out the govern
ment's instructions will be more
prosperous in spite of the boil
weevil than they have ever been.
The farmers who go to town in
empty wagons and refuse to carry
out the governments instruction
will go broke.