The Mena weekly star., 1911-07-27
CROP PROSPECTS
 NEVER BETTER
In Polk County the Early Season Drouths Were Overcome by Cul- tivation and Rains Have Now
 Filled Soil With Moisture.

Polk county never had better
 prospect for fine crops than this
 season, and there is a larger acre.
 age planted than ever before, all
 this despite the fact that the total
 rainfall in May was but 2.02 inches
 and the dry spells between rains
 being very long and trying, together
 with the excessive and unseason-
 able heat prevailing at that time.
 At the request of this paper, MT.
 4. E. Wear, who has for two years
 had charge of the demonstration work in this county. has furnished the following report on crop con- Iditions, incorporated in which are some excellent suggestions:
 Tn spite of all the unfavorable weather conditions early in the season, the outlook was never bet ter at this season of the year for a fine crop. While the reports of burned up crops are coming from many sections, our Polk county
 farmers have every prospect of harvesting one of the best crops ever grown in the county. This is quite remarkable, when we remem- Der that from May 10 to the goth Der that from May f0 to the 20 to June i7 the weather was not only cry, but one of the hottest spells we ever had. After the light rains of June 1T, which were general over the county, there were some local showers, but in many places in the county the ground was never thor oughly wet from May 20 until July 20. Yet in spite of this light rain- fall, our crops continued to grow and develop, until now the copious rains of last week have again filled our soil with moisture amply suf- flcient, if properly conserved, to carry the crop to maturity. I am
 aware of the fact that some crops
 were injured by the protracted drouth, and some few almost en- tirely ruined. but this occurred only where the cultivation was neglect ed or improperly done. Under fla vorable weather conditions any kind of cultivation will produce a fair crop, but under conditions such as have existed this year the inn Iproved common-sense methods have demonstrated their vast su- periority over the old careless, slip shod system of the past. Com- nonsense methods of growing crops resolve themselves into this:
 Prepare deep and thoroughly pull
 verized seed bed before planting.
 This will store an immense amount of moisture. Make the cultivation
 such as best to conserve this sup ply of moisture, and incidentally, to kill weeds. Where this method has
 been followed crops have sustained
 no serious injury from the drouth. It is encouraging to note the ever-increasing number of our farmers who are reading and think
 ing-who are using their brain as
 well as their muscle in producing their crops.
 The recent rains have filled the
 soil with moisture and we are like
 y to ned it all through the month of
 August, especially on our cotton
 and late corn. Let us go to work to
 save it. If we allow the ground to crust and crack on top the hot summer sunshine will soon take it out of the soil and set it free in the air, but if we keep that cru0t brok- len by shallow cultivation and a good mulch of looses soil on top. the moisture can't evaporate, bat will be saved for the use of the growing crop.
 Don't Hay by" the cotton and let a little dry spell cause the forms to drop from the stalk, but keep the plow going. If we can but save and bring to maturity one half of the forms now on, the cotton crop will be the best ever grown in the county. A little work inieiiigeItiy done at this time will pay better for the time than any other work done on the crop"