Arizona republican. [volume] (Phoenix, Ariz.) 1890-1930, 1911-10-08

: with cotton. The following is worthy
Of a careful reading:
Having been asked by a number of
South Side farmers whether or not cot
ton can be raised successfully in the
Salt River valley, l take this plan of
telling something about cotton, its
growth, mode of marketing, etc.
Cotton is a very erratic, or rather
sensitive plant, although one of the
most valuable grown on earth. 1t can
promise more and do less. and promise
less and do more than any other plant
that l know. II can be grown only in
tropical or semi-tropical countries. the
least bit of frost killing its leaves and
stopping its growth.
There are many different kinds of
cotton, running from the East Indian
short staple and the Peruvian tree
cotton, both of which are exceedingly
short staple and hardly come under
the head of commercial crops, to the
long staple. silky Egyptian plant
grown along the Nile valley Each of
these different varieties are natural to
certain conditions of soil and climate
and cannot be grown successfully any
where else. The larger portion of
these different varieties of cotton de-
mand warm, moist climate not to be
found in the Salt River valley. and I
doubt very much if they could be pro-
duced here successfully without years
of experiment and careful breeding.
but the long staple Egyptian plant
seems, from governmental reports. To
be well adapted to the hot. dry sum-
mers Of Arizona.
Il believe there are several condi-
tions in the Salt River valley which
should go far To make it the ideal cot
ton country. These are the long sea-
sons rich soil. scarcity of rain storms.
and the facilities for irrigating. all of
which, combined with the selection of
the right variety. should make the Salt
River valley one of the richest cotton
countries of its size on the globe.
In regard to the length of the sea
son helping cotton, | will say that cot
ton is progressive plant II never
stands still. but hustles for dear life
from the time it is planted until frost
Kills the leaves, or retrogrades Given
The proper elements Of growth and the
number of bolls are limited only by
the strength of the stalk and the length
of the season. Check these conditions
and il Immediately Undoes the work
If maybe several weeks growth by
throwing off all young squares. forms, |
blooms and even half grown bolls. SO
the length of the season frequently |
saves a planter by allowing the plant
to grow a new and more numerous
crop of fruit than it sheds off. Again. |
every open bloom that catches a drop |
Of rain is sure to sour and drop off, |
producing no fruit. This would rarely |
happen in this climate But it is the |
complete regulation Of moisture in the |
soil. by irrigation, that l rely upon to |
make this valley a successful cotton |
country, for upon that one thing de |
ponds, to a larger extent than any
thing else. the amount of fruit pro-
duced and matured by the plants. |
Cotton soil should be kept as near one |
condition of moisture as possible: any
serious DETECTION from wet to dry or |
dry To wet will cause a loss OF young |
fruit. Too much moisture is not good |
as it produces too much stalk and less |
fruit
The careful selection of seed is also |
a large factor in good production of |
cotton. In the southern cotton belt |
it is generally thought that from TWEEN
ty to thirty bolls Of ripe fruit to the /
stalk will produce a bale Of lint to the |
acre. but l have known individual |
stalks to be made to produce and ma |
ture as high as 400 to 500 bolls in a |
Of cultivation, by a close and careful |
selection of seed for four or five years |
Having been connected with the |
growing and handling of cotton all my |
life, especially Of the grades grown In |
the southern states. I do not believe |
those grades can be grown here with |
the same success as Egyptian cotton. |
for of the three grades which are |
grown in the south only one can be |
grown successfully in that climate ov-
er any large extent of territory and |
that is the shOrt-staple upland cotton. !
Both the Sea island and the semi-long |
staple are being grown in certain small |
sections. where the air is very moist |
and warm The uplands Of the South |
are too dry to produce a long lint of |
SulllNltnl texture TO NlInStdnd the |
spindles in spinning. Moisture seems |
to be essential TO toughness and fibre
in any of these three grades. Cotton
is not a hard plant on land and can
be grown continuously for years with
out materially injuring the soil This
is especially true where the land is
level and does not wash: but being n
crop that requires clean cultivation
the top soil will soon wash away wher-
ever it is possible for it to do so. AL
so. after the leaves fall the sun bakes
the soil, so many good farmers
throughout the South are now sowing
their lands to barley or vetch after the
first picking in the fall, thus forming
a cover crop for the ground and pre-
venting a waste of soil by washing
l think in this climate. as in any
other. cotton should not be planted I'M
til the nights are warm enough to as
sure a continuous growth. Cold nights
cause what all planters know as pos
sum ear" or in other words. stunts
the growth of the small plants, caus-
ing the two first leaves to crimp and
resemble the ear of that noted little
animal of whose meat Mr.. Taft is so