The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1910-10-27
r FARMING
IN KANSAS
Methods Used Where Rainfall
Is Light

Idaho. Oregon and Washington and
parts of Montana, districts of very
low rainfall, usually less than Is
inches annually, Is per cent of which
falls during late autumn, winter and
early spring months. and a large
per cent of which is snow, the inn
p~ortance of the summer failow is no
longer debatable. 1t is known to be
an absolute necessity to profitable
wheat farming. and undoubtedly
will continue to be as long as wheat
growing remains the basic dry farm
crop, or until drOuth-reSistant and
early-maturing strains of inter-tilled
crops, such as corn. alfalfa, Canada
peas. Mexican beans, potatoes, sor-
ghums, etc, can be discovered or
developed to take the place of the
fallow.
The great concern of every farmer
operating in the extreme western
counties Of Kansas is moisture. In
years of abundance of rainfall.
crops are usually good, no matter
what system has been followed.
Profitable crops are produced in such
years, even when wheat has been
stubbled in after wheat, but in dry
years such a practice results in fail
ure and the country is condemned be-
cause it is too dry to produce crops,
when in reality the fault is not with
the country, but with the man.
1t has been throughly demonstrate
ed through experiment that the
summer fallow, when prepared and
cared for, enables the farmer to
store in his soil a large amount of
the moisture of two years preciplta-
ton for the production of one crop;
and through its use profitable crops
can usually be grown, even in years
of the most extreme drouth. Though
the summer fallow enables the far
mer to produce bigger Yields during
favorable years than is possible by
any other system of farming It's real
merits are only brought out in dry
years.
: Summer fallow or summer tillage
consist in blowing the land thorough
ly to a good depth, seven inches or
even deeper, ether in the fall or in
the spring, as weather conditions,
soil moisture conditions and the dis
position of the farmers time will
permit, and leaving it lie yer dur
ing the summer in a cultivated con-
dition and free from vegetation OF
any kind until planting time. The
deep blowing facilitates the storing
of summer rains and the surface
cultivation checks its evaporation
from the soil until it can pe utilized
by the growing crop. Weeds,
volunteer grain or any form of vege
tatiOn must not be allowd to grow
on the faliow, because they drink
from the land as much moisture a.
a crop of wheat.
Farming in the extreme western
counties of Kansas is very exactins
if profitable crops are produced
The country is all right if the natur
al advantages are intelligentlv utiliz
ed. In very large measure the
farmer can control these by propeI
methods of farming, and the sum
mer fallow belongs in category be
cause 1t is the known way of utiliz
ing the scanty supply of precipita
ton.
There is one condition in whicl
farmers operating under a low an
nual preciDitation can produce pro
titable crops of wheat every othe
year without the use Of the fallow
and that is by the substitution
of inter-tilled crops for the fallow
By the growing of such crops a
corn, sorghums. potatoes, Canad;
peas, Mexican beans, etc, the lane
can often be made to produce pro
fitable titled crops and at the same
time put the soil in fair condition
for wheat. The drawback to such
system at this time lies in the fac
that most Of the inter-tilIed crop.
now available are not drouth-resist
ant and are late maturing too late
for the short growing season com
mon to the semi-arid lands. Usual.
ly, too, such crops cannot be remov'
ed from the land in time to plant
winter wheat at the proper time.
In order to insure profit by utili,
zation of inter-tilled crops in rota.
ton with wheat, it will be necessary