The Dickinson press., 1911-09-16
FOR DRY FARM
Afford Excellent Protection for
. Farm Yard and Buildings.
Do Much to Beauty Landscape and
Relieve Monotony Of Pralrles-
VIII Furnish Ample Supply Of
= Fence Posts and Fuel.

By W. r. POSTEN, Superintendent Of
Demonstration Farms.)
In the dry-farming sections of the
Dakotas and Montana some crops are
peculiarly adapted to dry-farming
methods. Trees belong to this class
as truly as wheat and corn though
most farmers do not regard them as
SUCH. Trees require as much water
II not more than most cereal crops
but they can be cultivated every year
and a mulch a be kept continu.
ously on the land, thus assuring the
trees practically all the rain that
falls. They stop the drifting snow and
retain all the snow that falls on the
land actually occupied by the trees
themselves. In this way a tree
plantation if rightly cared for will
grow in any part of the western
;part of the Dakotas or Montana
where the land is reasonably free
from alkali, hard pan and gravel.
- Why should every farmer of this
region set out a liberal plantation of
trees, say from five to twenty acres?
1. The farm-yard and buildings
should be protected from the sweep
ing winds of autumn, winter and
spring. In order to do this a dense
grove should be set out on the north
and west sides of the building and q
heavy shelter belt on the south will
do much to break the strong south
winds that are often disagreeable, par
ticularly in spring and fall.
2. Groves of trees do much to beau
tfy the landscape and to relieve the
monotony of the prairies. Many peo-
pie. particularly in a new country do
not consider beautiful farm surround
tngs an asset, yet it may be the very.
thing that may chance the children to
remain on the farm rather than rush
to the overcrowded city where they
are not needed half so badly as. on
the farm where they were reared. If
the farm should yer be for sale a
good grove will do much to bring a
handsome price.
8. Groves Of trees do much to stop
the devastating hot winds such as
proved 50: disastrous to the western
Dakotas the past season. If there had
been from ten to twenty acres of
trees on every quarter section of land
over this area. the winds would have
been checked to a considerable degree
and the moisture which the leaves
would have given to the air by evapor.
ton from their. surface would have
probably cooled the atmosphere from
two TO. ten degrees Fahrenheit, Over
large sections this alone would have
saved the grain crops and In many
places where there was no crop the
past season a half crop might have
been produced.
4. Groves of trees will in time pro-
duce q large revenue or at least save
q large outlay for fuel and fence
posts. While much of this area is un-
derlaid with Ignite coal which: will be
the principal fuel for all time, yet
large quantities of wood will be used
Tor, kindling and for a quick summer
fuel IL 1t can; be obtained cheaply.
As the dry-farming country becomes
older the humus will be depleted and
means will have to be employed to
keep up the humus supply in the soil.
This can probably only be done
Through the agency Of large herds Of
live stock being kept on the farms.
In order that this may be done the
farms must be fenced. This will cause
= big outlay Of cash for fence posts
IL they are not produced on the farm.
Fence posts are o almost prohibi-
tive in price and they will probably
be very much higher ten years from
now than in the present time. An
mere Of white willow in the course Of
ten to twelve years will produce over
1900 fence posts worth at least ten
cents each on the farm where they are
grown.
/ 6. All oyer the treeless plains song
and insecteating birds are largely
conspicuous by their absence. When
the farmers Of a community begin
planting groves these birds begin to
ind suitable places to build their nests
and as the groves grow, the song and
sinsect-eating birds increase rapidly
lin the community, the former filling
the air with melody and the latter
destroying vast numbers of insects
sinjurious to crops. II a ten-acre
grove of trees was growing on every
quarter section Of land the bird popu.!
aation would be so much larger that
the insects injurious to crops would