El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-12-24

FL the 1lrSC regular meeting Oh the
Dona Ana County Farmers institute
held recently at Las Cruces. DR.. J. H.
Squires, of the Agricultural College
was the first speaker, on the subject Of
Wheat Raising in New Mexico" He
said that the differences in hard and
soft wheat go further than is at times
considered The hard wheats will yield
more pounds of flour to the bushel than
do the soft ones, and in addition are
higher in gluten, the substance present
10 a greater or less degree in all
wheats, which renders 1t possible TO
make a. porous, light loaf from wheat
flour, which is not possible with the
floUrs of the other cereals. Some hard
wheatsphave too much gluten and 1t is
necessary to mix them with soft wheat
In order to get the best grades of flour.
The soft wheat must be mixed with
hard wheat to get the same results.
fQuestion) How do the spring wheats
OF this valley mill2' 'I do not know.
as the station has so far been unable to
get milling tests made, but the wheat
seems to be as good as or better thar
the same type raised elsewhere"
Seasons Easily Overlap.
There is no strong>line of difference
IN the winter and spring varieties of
wheats, as they may be seeded out of
season and complete change from
Spl4AE " W1nlc4 OI h4l1lcI To SpIlIS
made in a very few years. Here the
change is easily brought about as
spring wheat has yielded well when
planted in the fall and fall wheat does
well on early spring seeding.
With quality established, the farmer
has to do with the production of as
many pounds of good wheat per acre as
possible. This may be brought about
In a number of ways. BY better land.
49, -
fertilizers when the soil demands them.
by better care in seeding and maturing
the crop, and by the use of high yield
ing strains Of wheat. All of these ex-.
cept the last, cause an additional out
lay of funds, but with the use of better
seed the yield is increased without ex-
ira cost of preparation. seeding and
caring for the crop, interest on invest
ment, tax, and water right, and with
but slight increase in the cost of
harvesting and threshing.
Selecting Varieties.
The matter of selection of variety is
not as simple as it may at once seem.
Comparing three varieties that have
been grown side by side in this valley
for a period of seven years we find that
the highest yielding one gave an
average Of 51.2 bushels per acre. The
first year it yielded 81 bushels while
Had we taken the results for this year
as a final answer to the question a
very grave error would have been ac-
copied, for at the end of the seven year
period the first variety had outyielded
the one with the high yield of the first
year by q total Of % bushels. It rs
necessary then that such tests be car
ried on for a sufficient length of time
TO overcome seasonal differences. Z very
hcf &cr, fr,o
brought out in the study are that this
Is profitable crop to grow in this
region as all the selected strains gave
a yearly average Of over 40 bushels per
acre for the entire time, several IS
bushels, and the two best averaged 81
and 81 respectively.
Highly Profitable Crop.
This work is being continued on the
station farm and in 1910 the maximum
yield for the season was 81 bushels to
the acre. while the wheat that haS
averaged 50 bushels in the seven year
test gave 81 bushels and the one that
had given 81 bushels in the long tese
went to SIS bushels. This is the whear
that we are distributing to the farmers
and are using as a standard at the
station.
With regard to the cost of raising the.
crop we estimate that charging the
acre with SIG Tor interest on invest
msnt, SO for tax, 81 for water, labor at
10 cents an hour, and fair deprecia-
ton on the value of machinery the cost
VIII be very close to SIS per acre. Nov
with wheat at s1.O0 per bushel this will
give q net income Of SIS per acre over
and above the 10 percent interest on
the investment, on the wheat that is
yielding 40 bushels per acre. The straw
10 not considered in this estimate.
Time of Seeding.
The time of seeding is not restricted
In this valley. We are getting good re-
suits with seeding spring wheat at any
time from Oct. Is 70 March 1st, but
would advise avoiding the two ex-
tremes. The seeding should be done
with a drill If possible, for in this way
We can avoid all Irregularities in the
rate OF seeding and also get a uniform
covering of all seed, and in addition,
get a satisfactory stand with less seed.
A very good rate Of seeding is 80
pounds TO the acre, but q much l-ss
amount should be used when the crop
is grown as a nurse for alfalfa. The
soil should be well leveled and well
irrigated. The contention that thor
ough irrigation tends to cause the crop
to run to straw did not hold good in