Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1909-01-05

they Worn out? Right down to the
present day, they are getting as good
as ever, as taken from some statistics
noticed a short time ago, given by
the Metric System and regarding
wheat productions by the different
countries. to the acre and quoted about
IN the following: England II, France
l6. Denmark II. Germany 16 and some
other countries quoted at IA and 15.
Down the list was the United States
at s. Worn out land. / suppose, straw
burning in the northwest England
reaps more than double the amount
to the acre, than we do Shall the
Johnny Bulls be able to continue to
beat us two to one. here in the state
OF Iowa and we stand looking on?
Speaking for myself and M boys. will
say that We shall make q strong effort
to keep abreast with the English farm
er on wheat and to out do them on
some other things, and we are already
on the way with strong hopes of sue
cess. We have already reached the 40
bushel to the acre mark on some of
Our wheat land, and l desire to give
everybody the plans we are working.
Means of Improvement
re use three different means to inn
prove our land The first is to
thoroughly under drain the land. This
important matter l have not time TO
discuss but will say we have 1880
rods of tile drain laid. in sizes from
four to ten. inch tile and will continue
on until we have the land all drained.
The second is rotation of crops and
the third means is a liberal application
of manure.
The plan OF rotation we have adopt
ed is six year plan with wheat as
one crop in the rotation. 1t fits We'll
IN rotation because it is a good nurse
crop for the clover and timothy and
We find it reasonably sure crop.
Wallace's Farmer says that the corn
and wheat crops are our surest crops.
We find it a money making crop and
also desirable on account of the work
on the land, being done in the fall of
the year. AS soon as the oats crop
is cleared from the field, we pillow it
up wet or dry, in July il possible, else
in August. We are then ready to APP
pr, the manure. which we have pro-
vided in large quantities. Having
compost heaps convenient to the field.
we put it on with two spreaders, and
use snatch team in the field with a
| small boy to drive, them. A snatch
team is only needed on fresh plowed
land and in order to keep UP a fairly
| good walk. so the cylinder has good
chance to beat UP and unload the ma
nure, We keep man at the manure
| pile to help load, so when one is load
| ing, the other spreader is unloading.
| by liiiS pau, we Apply ~ lOduS per
| da-- at loads to the acre or strong z
acres day. We follow this with har-
row or disk. using disk if the ground
| is chunky and il mellow use harrow.
We harrow once a week until the mid
| die of September when we drill in tho
Wheat, using ] u bushels clean plump
wheat to the acre.
Reap as we Sow.
The object of early blowing and
! weekly narrowing is to secure a firm
| seed bed in connection with the mois-
ture below the plowed ground or start
Jig the capillary action, SO there shall
be moisture ready to receive the
wheat. We should bear in mind ''such
as We SOW, such shall we reap
When winter comes on and the
| ground is frozen hard, we apply an
other 6 loads of manue per acre and
when the field is dry, in the spring,
we harrow the wheat and SOW grass
seed ahead of the harrow. which ends
our labor until harvest. We keep this
field in meadow two years after the
wheat, and generally get two crops of
HAY to the acre per year, Before plow-
ing 1t UP for corn, we apply another
6 loads of manure to the acre and then
we plant 1T in corn two years and you
may depend on us getting the corn.
| WeAfollow the two crops of corn with
! oats. which completes the rotation.
!
| practical to all, and why should we
not rotate?
! Our wheat this past season, yielded
1900 bushels on "a acres. We had So
heavy loads of sheaf wheat on the
field and it must have weighed more
than 81 tons to the acre. The yield
was about 81 bushels per acre and
| the young clover made a tall growth
after the wheat was cut, so we had a
good pasture.
Universal Law.
/ The laws or rules which govern the
| universe are many They would fill
volumns. Among those laws, we OBJ
serve one which concerns us as till
ers of the soil by a firm degree of
the Creator, and a law less changeable
| than the law of the Modes and Per.
SLAMS. which changeth not. All organic
matter has Il vegetable or animal
! life. After having limited existence
which terminates and dissolution takes
I place, or in other words, the organic
state is ended, decomposition transfers
the matter back to the soil This de-
cree is sweeping over and including
everything that has life. Man not
excepted Somebody eating apples
thousands of years ago has nothing to
do with this law, and no more is it in
| hicted upon man as punishment,
than upon the grass or on the smallest
| insect. One design of the Creator is
that of economy. Nothing is to be
lost. The big tree draws it's vitality
from the soil. 1t is indebted to the
Humus in the soil for its stately APP
pearance, it's large branches, but it
drops it's crop Of leaves once a year,
in this way making deposits. Decom-
position returns these leaves to the
soil and when the tree dies and falls
to the ground, decomposition returns
it to the soil and the debt is paid in
full. We observe something like a
banking business going on. The
| Humus of the soil is the working cap
ital. The crops harvested are checks
cashed and loads of manure spread
upon the field are deposits made. What
/ becomes of our credit if we keep send
| ing in checks. but make no deposits?
In one particular, it differs from bank
fiDg. We are not allowed to draw out
! ali the fund of this bank. Surely. we
see wisdom in that law, for otherwise,
| the soil robber would draw the last
! bit of plant food from, the soil, and the
result would be, no vegetation and be-
cause. animal life depends upon vege-
table life for it's existence the result
| would be desolation. 8
! Act in Harmony.
1 Brother farmers, if we are agreed