The Arizona sentinel., 1910-05-19
TIMELY HINTS
FOR FARMERS.
A Lesson in Intensive Farming by
x I'll. Forbes, Director and
Chemist of Agricultural
Experiment Station
University of Arizona,


January Is, 1907.
Just west of Yuma, Arizona, in the alluvial
food plain of the Colorado, lies a little farm
OF 10 acres which on May |, 1905, was virgin
bottomland, covered with saltweed, arrow
brush and creosote bushes the original
purpose of the tract was for planting selected
varieties of date palms imported by the U. =.
Department OF Agriculture from the Old
World. The Experiment station, May 2, be-
gan preparing the ground, and on Nay 20 the
work of levelling, bordering and irrisating
completed.
THE PLAN OF WORK.
Recognizing, however, that a farmer with
his living TO make meantime, cannot afford
to wait for an orchard to come into bearing,
it was planned to plant crops for quick re-
turns between the tree-rows, thus putting the
work on a feasible basis from the small farm
erS point Of view. In order TO ecOnomiZe
ground the irrgating borders were so placed
as to coincide with the rows Of palms, thus
utilizing space otherwise usually wasted.
The tract was divided by the borders into
lands, for the most part one-half an acre in
size. lrrigating water from the Colorado
Valley =. q /. Canal was obtained in the Gus
tomary manner and +. l.. Crane, himself Il
Yuma Valley farmer undertook the care of
what was nicknamed our play farm"
In size, as well rs III the intensive character
of the work planned, this farm" is the OPP
posite of the average holdings of this locality.
The prevailing crops of the region are alfalfa,
corn, barley, and fGrages III general, compare
lively little attention being given to vege-
tables and fruits. Withal, the cost of levelllng
land i'll 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 Government
irrigating system now under construction
will be about $50 an acre annually for ten
years. To meet these and other heavy items
of XpenSe in connection with the establish
meRt of II farm in this region, intensive crops
Of a more ren!unerative character than those
now i'll vogue, are essential. 1t was partly,
therefore, as an object lesson bearing upon
these financial aspects of the general situa-
tion that this cultural work was planned.
RECLAMATION OF THE GROUND.
The soil OF our tract, warm, sandy loan
well adapted to gardening operations, was
leVelled ditched and bordered at a contract
price OF 720 an acre, considerably less than
the average for the locality, reckoning the
labor of men and teams at current rates. In
addition, barbed wire and posts for fencing
cost $50 10; lumber for headgates cost S59.57;
pump and a barrel, $l3.45; Il small lumber
two-room house, including five and One-half
days carpenter hire, $i5z7 and a brush-roof
shelter for horses, about $500. Only skilled
labor employed in dwelling, bordering and
dtching the ground, and for part conStruc-
ton of the house, IS included i'll the above
estimates, as the common 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 habitable for a small farmer and his
family, as stated above, therefore required
cash outlay of about S40oJ0 In addition, in
the average instance must be included a
Jea10, wagon. pow HdTIOWs HAY 6JufD-
meAt shoVels hoes and other small! tools.
Chops AND MARKETS.
The crops selected for the season OF 1906
were Early Rose potatoes, White Bermuda
onions. Kockyford cantaioupes, Dwarf Cham
pion and BUrpee's Quarter Century tomatoes,
and Alfalfa besides few hills of watermelons
and StilSdTy vegetables.
The produce was marketed in Yuma with
the exception of tomatoes, which, for the
largest part, we're expressed to Tucson and
BisI>ee. The following statements for the
various crops are on the basis of net cash
turEls to the small farmer, who with al aver
age family Of five and Il team OF horses is
sTsmed to do the work required. as explained
below Items neeeSSitating cash outlay,
seed, irFigatinC water. and crates are deducted
froYs gross returaS. Water costs an average
of so cents for irrigation per acre for the crops
grown. The yields in certain instances are
low, cue to the uniTsl proved condition of the
soil which, hike desert soils in ger istl, was
low in nitroGen and organic matter. Some
small salty areas also affected yields locally.
White Bermuda onions; Al acres; Seed
planted Sept. 27-Oct- 3, 1868 Young onions
transplanteG, Feb. SO, 1906. Crop matuTed
about June ,. Yield, 1916 poun DIS of dry on
ions Highest price received, 2l%e n pound:
lowest price received, F.Sc pound. Entire
crop marketed in Yasna.
Cash Cash