Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1912-01-30
Improving A Rundown Farm.

The other buildings consist OF Q larg'
shed, in which were housed full line o
farm machinery and the necessary wag
lons and carriages. One large basement
barn, with COW shed attached, and {
lgood sized hen house.
The owner, q middle-aged man, though
born and raised on farm, did not fol
low the occupation of farming for severa
years, but chose the railroad and express
business, in which he wa, engaged unit
he bought the farm on ~. Il he now
resides. "
This farm consists of 12O acrI :,yac
tically all level, with the exception #
twenty acre hillside, which is rather
rocky and is used as permanent pas
ture. The rest of the farm is tillable
there being NO timber on it. The char
acter of the soil, according to the agri.
cultural soil survey of the county, is the
Ondawa silt loan and HOosick gravel
The greater part of the land is composed
of the silt loan, while the back part OF
the form ia Hoosick gravel.
Before the farm was bought by the
present owner tillage was practised In a
haphazard way and the fertility of the
soil was so exhausted that It was the
common saying among the farmers
"that Blanks farm wouldn't raise white
beans" By carefully reading and study
ing four of the leading agricultural pa
pers and by applying what he learned be
has been able to restore its fertility, fol-
lowing carefully every year definite
system of rotation. This plan is follow
a :. :. o,osol, 90 poee;hlo and on1v modi
fed as circumstances demand.
The rotation followed ID one Of corn,
oats and clover. Instead of ploughing
under the clover sod he top dresses the
new seeding in the oat stubble in the
fall with the manure made on the farm;
this he continues TO do until the third
year; then he turns over q heavy, thick
sod which Is full of plant food for a good
corn crop.
As evidence that the method he is fol-
lowing is a good one his corn yielded an
average of one hundred bushels an acre,
the ears were we'll tipped and OF good
size, with deep color; the oats yielded
forty-two bushels an acre-a large yield
for this season in this locality. The writ
or was told by q neighboring farmer
that his hay crop was large, and the we'll
filled mows proved his statement true.
Another thing this man was practicing
was deep ploughing. He began by turn
ing up the subsoil by degrees, until he
now ploughs about nine inches deep,
claiming that 1t gives the plant roots q
chance to 60 down deeper, therefore in
creasing their capacity to secure moro
plant food. No doubt he 10 right, If one
may Judge by comparing the character
of the sod on his fields with that of bis
neighbors. By his using this method OF
cultivation he has not failed to have q
stand of clover where before 1t has not
been made to grow, which also goes to
show that he is applying the right prin.
ciples to reclaim land that was once con-
sidered almost worthless.
One thing is fact, that no commercial
fertilizer has been used in order to in
sure good crop. He keeps three horses,
nine head OF COWS, twelve sheep aud
about seventy-flve hens. All the manure
is drawn out and spread with q manure
spreader on the fields.
He believes In intense cultivation OF all
planted crops, as 1t conserves the moist
ure and promotes the growth OF the
plants. Seeing the cultivated fields and
the crops harvested showed that he had
practiced what he preached. This man
Is in love with his work, as everything
about the buildings and yard shows. He
has system In doing his work and takes
q pride about 1t.
As the writer went out with the own
er among the cattle and sheep they all
came up around him, and as be held out
his hands and talked to them they re-
sponded In their dumb way by licking
his hands. Do you wonder tho COWS re.
spond at the milk pail and the sheep and
lambs seem to thrivef
In speaking about the labor question
he made the remark that he tried to do
what he could alone and do 1t we'll, as he
and his wife enjoyed themselves more
alone than with help around. He only
hired extra labor in harvest time, work
ing alone during the remainder of the
season.
He said that the principal income from
the farm was from the milk, which with
what other crops, such as wool, potatoes,
hay, poultry and eggs, brought, con.
stituted the farm income. The reader
must consider that this mans expenses
are small az compared with those Of
great many other farms, where help Ia
kept and large family 10 raised. This
man could probably double his income
If be 30 desired by building silo and
increasing his herd Of COWS, but Of course
this would require extra help.
This farm is situated three miles from
fourishing village Of about 1900 in
habitants, with good roads the year
around. The milk station Is only half q
mile from the farm. he has telephone
advantages and also the rural free de.
livery.
According to bis own statement the
owner Ia making money, and he has been
offered this year nearly three times the
price paid for this property In 1907. Two
important lessons can be learned from
this mans experience: First, he isa great
reader of good farm literature and ap-
plies the principles of good farming thus
learned to suit his own circumstances;
second, he attends only to his own busi-
ness and looks after the smallest details
with the utmost care. These two things
have made him successful. He 10 type
Of the progressive, middle-aged, practical
farmer who 10 awake to the needs Of the
times and who studies and grasps the
scientific methods that are having 90 i'm
portant bearing on agriculture
Robert B. Fisher, Cambridge, N. T., 10
Tribune Farmer.