The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-06-03
 GOOD FARMING IN
 CAHAbA VALLEY Some Examples in Vicinity
 of Leeds CHARACTER OF SOIL Tha Coat E.~x.I.k-
The Great Fertility of the Valley Has Never Been Fully Appreciated. Conditions Are Ideal
 for Farming

for Farming
 Fly WALTER HARPER
 John B. Jones of Leeds, farmer who works at the business. say he can make a living for himself and family on five acres of Cahaba valley land and lend money.
 John Jones has made money farming. He Is still making money and has some of it loaned out, perhaps. Since he has been farming he has always had good living.
 I was told about a widow living near Leeds who, was left at the death of her husband about even with the world, four acres of ground and one or two small children.
 She tackled the proposition of making living with brave heart and with wilt ing hands and at the end of the first year she had had & good living and had about $500 in the bank. She had also paid the wages of young negro to help her in the truck farm
 She adopted a plan that is worthy of emulation by other farmers. When she gathered truck from the ground she im- mediately put other plants to growing where she had cut or pulled out any. If she cut cabbage she immediately put another cabbage In its place or planted something else.
 In this way she kept every foot of ground busy all the year round
 When another Jefferson county farmer heard this story he declared that if he did not improve his methods. he would petition his neighbors to ostracise him. He cultivates 35 acres and had been satis- fled with a good living and an easy clear ance with the annual expense
 This was good farmer. but he realized that he is not getting the maximum re- turns from his operations.
 But there is but small percentage of farmers in Alabama like those of every other profession who are doing their best. Perhaps it is not necessary, but the op- portunties before the farmers of the state might be more fully appreciated.
 The bushes man in town struggles for existence and fertilization against pan les. The existence is far easier for the farmer and he can hear the rumble of the panic about two years before it can affect him seriously. He has plenty of time to stand from under.'
 But the farmers of Alabama are to be congratulated on the fact that they have awakened to the value of their honor able profession. The progress of more perfect operation and a more satisfying prosperity that is making it's way across the state as well as the entire country is most encpuraging-s agsorlsaa5 ,s .sasaes. I
 One of the best evidences of the new era in agriculture is the numerous schemes that have been recently matched to help the farmer borrow money, help handle his crops and extend other cour tesies for which. he would have been nightly grateful few years ago. Now the farmer who needs money and can borrow 1t under any circumstances can get 1t on "his own face'' easier than the average business man in trade. And he is certainly better able to handle his produce without the assistance of outside selling corporations than ever before. He is getting higher prices and the demand for all his products is steadily increasing.
 MT. Farmer is the most independent op- orator in the world.
 But was really going to say something about the magnificent country around Leeds, up and down the Cahaba valley in the eastern part of Jefferson county.
 This Is one of the prettiest valleys in the county and Its great fertility has never been fully demonstrated. The prin- cipal soil formation is the Hagerstown loam, which also predominates in Jones and Opossum valleys in this county
 This soil consists of from six to eight inches of reddish brown loam, contain ing few stones and iron concretions It has looser and more open structure than what Is known the Decatur loam. The subsoil to a depth of about 20 inches is a heavy red crumbly silt loam, grading into clay loam at 36 inches This material may be many or a few feet deep, owing to the irergularity with which the limestone rock dissolyes. This soil is recdual formed by the de- composition of lime rock and the filtra- tion of shale and dolomite formations: The land is undulating, usually well
  bold springs of pure water.
 Cahaba valley is one of the ideal gar dening spots of Jefferson county and the development that is now under way there is simply astounding.
 We of the city of Birmingham have general idea that behind the. hills and mountains. bald and red, that surround us are more hills and mountains of the sarne texture As we ride on the trains through the valleys we can see but little of the real agricultural development and we have a general idea that what soil there is is composed of iron ore, coal dust and steel shavings.
 Really. so much of this land is held at such high price that many people would hesitate to buy it for the cultivation oI yeeetab bles. corn and cotton.
 Rut in Cahaba valley I saw corn, cot ton cabbage oats and other stuff grow ing on land that cannot be bought TOT sas,eraI hundred dollars an acre The Iands around Leeds will produce rom 5p tn so bushels of corn and bale or cot ton to the acre without fertilizer lhe s,a al, lands of south Alabama can do no better. ~ .,.,a+;o,
 Rv fertilizing and scientific cultivation ,,,,,ber of farmers in this section are growing much more corn ana as hir.n ,,,. es tuo baIes of cotton to the acre ihe Ua acarstown loam is especially adapted to the growing of cabbage and other iiNe nrodncts You can almost get a crop ol cabbage by hauling crate or heaes across the field .,,,. sao-
 If is fact that the planters in this sec,