The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1910-12-28
CONSERVATION OF TIE
PURITY OF THE SOIL
One Of the Choicest Problems Of the Nation, Declares H. l.
BOlley, Of North Dakota A. c. He Is Doing
Great Work Along This Line.

demnation of the fertility or Of the
| physical qualities Of the soil and OF
the work of many farmers who, miss
ing only this matter OF seed and soil
sanitation are. doing better work In
cereal cropping than has ever been
done before.
II diphtheria patients are brought
into a school room where there are
other children the health officer i'm
mediately undertakes the work of saw
ing the lives Of the children by pre-
venting the spread of the disease. The
school room is ordered closed and dis
infected and measures are taken to
prevent the individuals exposed from
developing the disease.
May Bring Lands Back.
So with the old land areas which
have been cropped to wheat and flax
there is a possibility that we may be
able to bring these lands back to the
old time yields by proper methods of
disinfection and proper methods OF
preventing the further introduction of
the diseases. This, potato men have
by their methods OF seed disinfection
alAl fidld spraying demonstrated to
be clearly possible. For the new
land regions of the west where there
are yet thousands Of acres OF vir-
gin soil let me say that it is un-
necessary that the deterioration that
has previously been noted for the fax
crop. wheat crop, oat crop and bar
ley crop should take place SO rapidly
as in the past. 1t is unnecessary that
these new lands should be spoiled for
the culture OF fax by the sowing of
shrivelled, disease bearing seed or the
spreading OF uncomposted manures,
and likewise 1t Is unnecessary that the
lands of the west new to wheat cul-
ture should become so rapidly in
fected by such disease producing fun
gi as has been the case in the past. We
are now able to list five or six dis
tinct fungus parasites which live In
ternally in the seed Of the wheat plant,
bringing about shrivelling OF the
grains, which grains, when planted in
new lands brings about the introduc-
ton of the diseased. mouldy growths,
which rapidly spread in these soils as
in the case of the fax wilt and flax
canker. Where a diseased wheat kerr
mel falls on the new land there will
be sick straw, and the following year
healthy grain free from diseased
planted at that spot will bring forth
shrivelled seed, in which the chemist
possibly might find deterioration,
when in reality Il is only soil infec-
ton.
1t is then a matter of great import
ance to every citizen of the new lands
Of the west to talk conservation OF the
purity of the soil, and let II be the
aim Of every person to educate his
neighbor to the fact that 1t is possible
largely to prevent the introduction of
the diseases which bring about the
deterioration of the wheat crop flax
crop, oat crop or barley crop, and so
on down the list. We have In this
conception of the necessity for the re-
tention of the purity Of the soil, a
work in which business men are as
deeply interested as the farmers them
selves. The business men of a small
western city surrounded by the virgin
soils Of the prairie can i'll afford to
allow the newcomers to that region
pick UP poor diseased types Of seed and
sow upon the new lands adjacent to
their town, thus through wind blowing
and through the washing OF surface
waters to infect the soils of the adj
jacent areas, lessening the output of
all products In that vicinity and dis
crediting the quality Of the soil.
Conservation of the purity of the
soils means that the crops seeded upon
fertile lands may make use of that
fertility. 1t means more bushels Of
normal quality grain for sale by the
farmer and cheaper bread for the toll
ers in the city.
How Apply Conservation
How are we TO carry out this con-
servation of the purity of the sofl?
This question is a many sided one
Every crop and each type OF soil must
be dealt with in an individual man.
ner, but in general, proper seed Sc
lection, proper seed treatment, proper
soil cultivation and proper rotation win
maintain the purity OF virgin or west
ern soils and will tend to bring back
the crop producing capacity of those
which are already contaminated.
AS we are wont to condemn the
greed for gain in the manufacturing
and the great corporations who would
fell the last tree without a thought
for the morrow's forest, as farmers and
as advisers Of farmers, let us know
the evils of constant single cropping
OF lands and the evils of diseased and
disease bearing seed, wage such
campaign fowsxhe conservation of the
purity of th6+soil as shall make any
planter who thinks only of the num-
Der of acres he can pillow, sow and
hn ie
evil doer as those who deplete our
forests or wastefully exploit our
mines; for such methods not only tend
TO permanently lessen the chemical
fertility of the soil, but injure it's me-
chanical and physical texture and also
destroy the producing powers of the
most fertile soils by bringing them
into unsaniJary conditions and through
Infection also destroy the producing
powers of the lands of others, both
near and far.
This prominent fact that wheat and
other cereal lands can lose their pro-
ductive capacity without materially
losing either chemical fertility or the
mechanical texture, which Is essential
to crop, is one which is Of particular
| interest to citizens of the new lands
in the west.
/ We have long since reached the
point when we have arranged for such
| laws that citizen of town is not
allowed to carry Infectious diseases
from family to family.
| And I think we are beginning to
reach the point when we recognize
that the person who thinks he owns
fha land nuIv farm nora riIx, t.Asidas ,,no.,