Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1910-07-19
Cultivate, Cultivate. and Then Some.

| We took glance over the "Fathel
Taylor" farm in Quaker Town, North
Fairfield, the other day, where Messrs
Chapman and Gee, two bright, hard
working young Aroostook farmers are
putting into practice some very inter
esting theories concerning agriculture
on large scale.
We were speaking to them in regard
to troublesome and obnoxious weeds,
when Mr.. Chapman spoke up and with
the wisdom of sage said, "Did it ever
occur to you that cultivation is sure
cure for most of the evils that farmers
have to contend with? Show me field
dotted all over with white weed or sor.
rel and / will show you field that has
not been half cultivated, and when you
show me field of corn or potatoes
where the witch grass is more prOmi-
nent than the crop l will show you a
field where the ground was not half
prepared for the seed, for had it been
properly and thoroughly cultivated the
witch grass would have been 80 thor
oughly discouraged that the crop would
have got a start of the witch grass
rather than the reverse. In dry sea-
son when you find the crops drying up
and whitening you will surely find that
the thorough cultivation OF that field
before the crop was planted and since,
has been neglected, and it is equally true
that lack of cultivation often causes a
charge of lack of fertility every time,
and many a good crop has been raised
on field that wasn't much more than
half fertilized If the cultivator was only
kept busy"
We were more than pleased to hear
Mr.. Chapman so pronounced on the
question of the value of fertility, for to
us il is a subject that is given altogether
too little attention. A few years ago a
man would break up piece of rough sod
land, 60 over it few times with spike
toothed harrow and it was all ready for
crop. To-day that sod land will first be
rolled down hard, then disc is put on
and run the same way as the furrow many
times, and then oftentimes smoothing
narrow is put on even if the field is to be
planted to potatoes, so as to secure not
only splendid seed bed but just as near
rs possible perfectly level surface. l, is
true that whole lot of people have but
little idea of the value of level surface,
in planting or sowing. Now that ma
chimes are in use for planting a uni
formity of surface is almost an absolute
necessity, if the best results are to be
expected. Of course every one under
stands that If you are to dig the potatoes
by machinery they must be planted by
machinery to bring about uniformity in
the depth that the seed is dropped, and
this uniformity even with planter, can
not be obtained unless there is a uni
iormity of surface to work on.
So here again comes in the need OF
Mr.. Chapman says that he
believes that there is not one
half of the good farmers that cultivate
their fields one half as much as they
should to get the best results. If this
is true it is well worth the attention of
hose who are striving to get the best
results for their efforts.
Some of our readers will probably re-
since where the Hon. John l.. Stevens
took a committeeman away up in the
top of high building and closing the
door he whispered in his ear, not once
but twice and thrice the one word, "or-
gsnize, organize, organize" All this
was to give the committee man an ade-
quate idea of what Mr.. Stevens consider
ed the great essential thing in order to
succeed in the pending campaign.
In precisely the same spirit We would
admonish the wouldbe successful far
mers young and old, throughout this
good land of ours to cultivate, cultivate,
cultivate, and then cultivate some moro
and they won't half do what it would
pay them to do had they the time
Turf. Farm and Home.