The Arizona sentinel., 1910-04-21
TIMELY HINTS
FOR FARMERS.
A Lesson in Intensive Farming by
K ii. Forbes, Director and
Chemist CT Agricultural
Experiment Station
University of Arizona,
january Is, 1897.


University of ArizOna
january IS, 1897.
Just west Of Yuma, Arizona, in the alluvial
need plain of the Colorado, lies little farm
! OF - acres which on May |, lgC5, was virgin
botto1nlaid, covered with SaItweed, arrow
brush and creOsOte bushes. Toe original
purpose of the tract vas for planting selected
varieties OF Gate palms imported by the u y.
department of Agriculture from the Old
World. The Experiment station, May 2 be-
gan preparing the ground, and ON May 20 the
WORK OF levelling, bordering and irrisatine
the Tract and tie planting Of l52 palnss was
completed.
THE PLAN OE WORK.
Recognizing, however, that 81 farmer with
bis living to make meantime. cannot afford
TO wait for an orchard to come into hearing
1t was planned to plant crops for quick re-
turns between the trce-rnws, thus peitting the
WORK on feasible basis from The small farm
er's POINT OF view. In order to ecOIfOmize
ground The lrrigating borders were so placed
as TO coincide with the rows Of palms, thus
utilizing space Otherw Use usually wasted.
The tract was divided by the borders into
lands, for the most part one-half an acre in
size. Irrlgating water from the Colorado
' alley T. q J. Canal was obtained in the Gus
t0inary manner and +. l.. Crane, Iimsefa
Yuma Valley farmer, undertook the care OF
what was nicknan!ed our play farm"
In size, as well as in the intensive character
OF the work planned, this farm" is the OPP
The prevailing crops of the region are alfalfa,
corn, barley, and fOrageS in general, compare
lively little attention being given to vege-
tables and fruits. Withal, the cost of levelling
land in this region is high, rarely falling be-
low twenty dollars an acre at current prices
for labor and teams. Moreover, the cost, ex-
elusive of maintenance, of the Govern ment
lrllgatlng system now under construction
Will be about $3.50 an acre annually for ton
years 10 meet these and other heavy items
of expense in connection with the establish
o rpOiCfl iufp eli
of more reTuneratve character than those
now III vogue, are essential 1t was partly,
therefore, an object lesson bearing upon
these financial aspects Of the general stun
ton, that this cultural work was planned.
RECLAMATION OF THE GROUND.
The soil of our tract, warm, sandy Icam
well adapted to gardening operations, was
leyeled, ditched and bOIdered at n contract
price of 81. ~ an acre, considerably less than
the cTage for the locality, reckoning the
labor of men and teams AT current rates. In
addition, barbed wire and posts for fencing
cost S60.lO; lumber fOr headgates cost $50 81:
drive well point and pipe, Il pitcher-spout
pump and u barrel, Sl345; n small lumber
two-foom house, including five and one half
days carpenter hire, Sl52.75; and a brush-foof
shelter for horses, about $500. Only skilled
labor employed in leveling, bordering and
ditching the ground, and for part cOnstruc-
ton of the house, is included in the above
estimates as the comrOn labor required or
dinarily would be, and in this case was, fur
niShed by the farmer himself.
To bring this ground under cultivation and
make it habtable for a small farmer and his
family, as stated above, therefore required a
cash outlay of about $4,000 I'm addition, in
the average instance must be included a
team, wagon. pillow, harrow, haying equip
nent shovels hoes and other small tools.
CROPS AND MARKETS.
The crops selected for the season OF 1876
were Early Rose potatoes, White Bermuda
onions. ROCKFORD cantaioupes Dwarf Cham
p;On and Burpee'S Quarter Century tomatoes,
and alfalfa, besides Il few hills of watermelonS
and suRdry vegetables.
The produce was marketed in Yuma with
the exception of tomatoes, which, for the
largest part, were expressed to Tucson and
Bisbee. The following statements for the
various crops are on the basis Of net cash le-
turns to- the small farmer, who with al aver
age family OF five and team of horses is as
sumed to do he work required. as explained
below. Items pecessitating cash outlay,
seed. ifrigatiHg water. and crates are deducted
fran gross returns. Water costs an average
of SO cents for irrigation per acre for the crops
grown. The yields in certain instances are
low. due To the unimprOYFd condition of the
soil. W hich, like desert soils in CEREAL, was
low IN nitrogen and organic matter. Some
small sally areas also affected yields locally.
White Bermuda onions; Al acres; Seed
planted Sept. 27-0ct. 8, 1905. Young onions
traEsplanted, Feb 80, 1906. Crop matured
about June J. Yield, 1916 pounds Of dry on
ions. Highest price received, PIC a pound:
lowest price received, I.Sc a pound. Entire
crop marketed in Yuma.
outlay. returns.
seed ...-.............. ........ 2.SS
| lrTigatiOns in seed bed and
Sirrigations in field, about $50
Sacks and sundry, about. zoo
1915 pounds of onions at 20
l.Sc...... ......-............. S73.24
Net cash returns, not de-
Quoting labor. $3.50
S73.24 S73.21
The amount of labor expended upon this
crop was large for the area, especially at the
transplanting time. One days team work in
preparing the land and about 50 days, mems
time, were required to bring it through, al
| though the work was not heavy and could
have been largely performed by boys. The
yield was low owing to the desert and infer
tilted character of the soil onions requiring
! large amounts of organic matter in the soil to
give good results.
| EaI.y Rose potatoes; 81 acres: Seed pOta-
toes planted Feb. 1919, 1906. Beginning to
! bloom April 10. Crop all harvested June Is.
Yield, 26l5 pounds. Highest price, May q,
SIC. Bulk of crop, 22le. All marketed in
Yuma.
Cash Cash.
outlay. returns