The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1912-01-16
GRAIN GROWERS
OPENED ANIMAL
SESSION TODAY
Speakers All on Hand For
Initial Program of the
Fargo Meeting
SHAW POINTS GUT ESSENTIALS
IN PROPER AGRICULTURAL WORK
Lays Down Rules Which Will Bring
Forth Better Yields and Leave the
Soil In More Satisfactory Condition
For Succeeding Years.

Soil in More Satisfactory Condition
For Succeeding Years.
1 Tri-State Grain Growers convention
was opened in Fargo this morning
\ with fair attendance. although the
crowd was not as large as anticipated.
The bad weather is responsible for the
decreased attendance.
Only one change was made in the
| first days program. NJ. L. Wilson Of
Montana taking the place Of 7. r. At
kinson of Bismarck. Mr.. Atkinson
will speak Wednesday morning in
stead.
The speakers this morning were
President j. P. Hardy of the Fargo
Commercial club. who delivered the
address of welcome. with Superin-
tendent Selvig of the Crookston school
Of agriculture making the response.
w. r. Porter spoke on dry farming,
and Hugh j. Hughes spoke on Co
operation"
This afternoon the speakers were
Thomas Shaw, John 7. Stewart of the
University of Minnesota. Prof. ]. II.
Shepperd of the North Dakota agri-
cultural college and Prof. L. B. Wal
dron Of the Dickinson suh-station.
The address by Mr.. Shaw follows:
The Elements of Success in Agricul-
tllre.
The elements that lead to success
In agriculture are SO many that they
may fuy be- termed legion. and yet
they embrace few essentials which
include all the others. Very promi-
| nent among these essentials are the
following: Il The farmer must rec
ognize the conditions amid which he
labors; (2) he must adopt some sys-
tenn Of crop rotation: f3) he must
maintain producing power in his land;
(4) he must cut down all waste to
some system that will give him en-
ployment all the year.
Recognizing tho Conditions.
BY recognizing the conditions is
meant the adoption of that system
OF farming that Is likely to bring the
best results when all conditions that
(infiuence the results have bean- taken
into the account. These conditions
are such as relate to soil. to climate,
to moisture and to markets.
AT the very outset the farmer
should study his soil with view to
adapting the crops which he grows as
far as may be practicable to the ca
pabilities of the soil. If the soil is
an impervious clay that Is hard to
till. he may know that it is i'll adpated
to the production of field roots while
1t is maybe we'll adapted to the grow
ing of certain grasses. If the soil is
exactly the opposite in character, that
Ia. II 1t is sand SO light that it blows
he may safely conclude tina: such land
Is not we'll adapted to the growing Of
small grains while it may be made
to produce good crops Of alfalfa for
an indefinite period. If it is consider
ably impregnated with alkali. he may
know that it is useless to plant ordi-
nary crops on that land until some
measures have been taken to remove
the. alkali. Likewise he may know
that If land is much saturated with
water for any considerable time at
any season of the year it would be idle
to SOW alfalfa on that soil. while it
may be that good crops of Alsike
clover may be grown on the same.
The strange thing Is. that farmers in
the Red river valley did not long ago
discover the value Of Alsike clover on
lands where grain crops frequently
failed, because of the excess of water
present in the same. The complete
adoption in soils may not be fully
known until certain crops have been
grown. but the facts stated above may
be known at the outset, so that ex-
pertinent to test the crops specified
lost.
The climate must be studied with
a view to ascertain its adaptation for
certain lines of production. If Il ia
known that the period that is free
from killing frosts is not more usually
than 30 to 100 days, it is practically
certain that the farmer under such
conditions should not think Of COM
peting with the farmer in the corn
belt in growing ear corn, while it is
quite practicable for him to grow corn
successfully to provide fodder for
stock or to be fed off in the field. II
will also be apparent that under such
conditions there will be an element
Of hazard in growing such tender
crops as field beans. sag beans and
COW peas. 1t is also foregone con-
eiusion. that while some fruits may
be grown with such climatic condi-
hons present. it would be folly to try
to produce fruit under these condi- |
ttons that would compete in a COM
mercial way with fruits grown in q |
more congenial climate.
With reference to moisture, the
farmer may know that where the pre-.
cipitation is more than 20 inches in a |
year. he may by judicious manage
ment obtain paving crop Of some
kind from his land every year: that
with only 15 inches year. this viii
hardly be possible under any kind of
management that may be adopted;
and with only 10 inches in year,
about the best that he can do is to
grow one grain crop in two years. |
He may also know that with a rain
fall Of Is inches and less, certain
valuable crops as timothy and clover
will not grow at their best. whereas
certain other crops to take their place, |
as alfalfa and western rye grass can
be successfully grown. Moreover he
may know that with rainfall 80 low
on sloping land. to underdrain the
soil would be waste of money,
whereas on level land with twice that
amount of rainfall. underdrainine |
would prove a most profitable invest
ment. These things are so we'll |
known that they require no further
dem onstratfon.
The market conditions should be
we'll wotghed The distance tn ,n.rl