The Raymer enterprise., 1911-02-02
SUMMER FALL0W PAYS
Known to Be Absolute Necessity
to Profitable Wheat Farming.
When Properly Prepared and Cared
for Enables Farmer to Store In
Soil Large Amount Of Mols
ture for Ono Crop.

ture for Ono Crop.
(By PROF. W. M. JARDINE. Agrono-
mist Kansas State Agricultural Col
lege.)
In Utah. Idaho. Oregon and Wash.
ington and parts Of Montana, districts
Of very low rainfall. usually less than
Is inches annually. rs per cent. Of
which falls during late autumn, winter
and early spring months. and large
per cent. Of which Is snow, the impor-
tance Of the summer fallow 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 grow.
Ing remains the basic dry farm crop, or
until drought-resistant and early.matur.
ing strains Of inter-tilled crops, such
as corn, alfalfa, Canada peas, Mexican
beans, potatoes. sorghums, etc.. can be
discovered or developed to take the
place Of the fallow.
The great concern of every farmer
operating in the extreme western coun.
ties 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 failure, and the country is
condemned because It is too dry to
produce crops. when In reality the
fault Is not with the country, but with
the man.
it has been thoroughly demonstrated
through experiment that the summer
fallow. when properly prepared and
cared for. enables the farmer to store
In his soil large amount Of the mois.
ture Of two years precipitation for the
production Of one crop; land through
Its use profitable crops can usually be
grown. even In years Of the most ex.
treme drought. Though the summer fal.
low enables the farmer to produce big.
ger yields during favorable years than
is possible by any other system of
farming Its real merits are only
brought out In dry years.
Summer fallow or summer tillage
consist In plowing the lands thorough.
ly to good depth. seven inches or
even deeper. either In the fall or In the
spring. as weather conditions, soil
moisture conditions and the disposition
Of the farmers time will permit, and
leaving It lie over during the summer
In cultivated condition and free from
vegetation Of any kind until planting
time. The deep blowing facilitates the
storing OF summer rains and the sur.
face cultivation checks It's evaporation
from the soil until 1t can be utilized by
the growing crop. Weeds. volunteer
grain or any form Of vegetation must
not be allowed to grow on the fallow,
because they drink from the land as
much moisture as. a crop OF wheat.
Farming In the extreme western
counties Of Kansas is very exacting II
profitable crops are produced. The
country Is all right II the natural ad.
vantages are intelligently utilized. In
a very large measure the farmer can
control these by proper methods Of
farming. and the summer fallow be.
longs In this category because 1t Is the
best known way Of utilizing the scanty
supply Of precipitation.
There Is one possible way In which
farmers operating under a low annual
precipitation can produce profitable
crops of wheat every other year with.
out the use of the fallow, and that is
by the substitution OF inter-tllled crops
for the fallow. BY the growing Of such
crops as corn. sorghums, potatoes, Can.
ada peas, Mexican beans, ETC., the land
can often be made to produce proflta.
bio titled crops and at the same time
put the soil in fair condition for wheat.
The main drawback to such system
at this time lies in the fact that most
Of the inter-tilled crops now available
are not very drought-resistan and are
late maturing-too late for the short
growing season common to the semi.
arid lands. Usually, too, such crops
cannot be removed from the land in
time to plant winter wheat at the
proper time.
In order to insure profit by utiliza.
ton Of inter-tilled crops in rotation
with wheat. 1t will be necessary to dis.
cover or develop more hardy, drought,
resistant. early-maturing varieties. Spe.
cial efforts are being directed along
these lines by practically every scicn.
tific investigator dealing with plants
and operating within the semi.arid dis,
tricts Of the west. Until such discov.
cries are made and their practicablity
demonstrated farmers would do well in
western Kansas to summer fallow or
summer till their land at least once In
three years. There would be abso.
lutely no doubt. II such system were
practiced, that more farmers would be
producing larger quantities OF grain
from onehalf their land each year than
they are now producing from their
whole farm.