The Elbert County tribune., 1912-06-28
COLORADO and
OPPORTUNITIES
IN 1910 METAL OUTPUT $4,000. 900;
COAL, s24,ooo,ooo; MANuFAc-
TuRED ARTICLES, st12.ooo.ooo
HAY IS LEADING CROP
THREE CUTTINGS OF ALFALFA
ARE TAKEN FROM THE FIELDS
EACH YEAR.
we.tern New.paper Union Sew. servlee.

Washington.-The state Of Colorado
and its agricultural opportunities is
made the subject OF one OF the first
of the pamphlets issued by the divi-
sion of information of the Department
OF Commerce and Labor. Among the
subjects to be covered are climate,
surface. soil. irrigation, principal
crops. stock raising. land prices. in
ducements to settlers and other infor-
nation desired by the homeseeker.
OF the agricultural opportunities in
Colorado the pamphlet says:
"Of the i6,170 farms in the state,
25,926, or 56.2 per cent. are reported
as irrigated. The area reported Is g.
792,032 acres. or 64.9 per cent of the
Improved land In farms. The area to
| which enterprises existing in 1910
were capable of supplying water was
$500. 166 acres, and the total area In
cluded in irrigation projects complet-
ed or under way was 5,917,457 acres
"The leading field crops of the state,
in the order of their Importance, as
judged by total value in 1909, are:
Hay and forage. s17,2s2.0o0; wheat.
s6.464.ooo; oats. s4.177.0oO; potatoes.
sS,705.000; corn. s2,674.000. and barley.
si101.000. OF the totals for hay and
forage crops. alfalfa contributes nearly
| two-fifths Of the acreage and over one
half of tho quantity and value.
Alfalfa takes the place of clover
| and timothy. Three cuttings are TAX
en- from the fields. each yielding from
one to two tons. the yield at the end
of the yehr often being as high as
| seven tons for the acre. 1t Is worth
from SIS to $40 a ton in the stack. or 81
to S15 II delivered at the market. 1t
costs about 81 ton to raise.
"Of the total acreage In wheat. near
iy one-haif is common spring wheat
and little more than one-seventh is
durum or macaroni. or the cereals,
oats ranks second in value and third
In acreage. while corn is second in
acreage and third in value.
Many European immigrants have
established themselves on gardens
near the principal cities of Colorado.
either on rented or purchased land.
and they get large incomes from small
tracts: but there Is room for more.
shipped into Colorado annually from
other states amounts to $3.000,000.
Colorado potatoes are famous. The
average yield OF high quality potatoes
on irrigated land in Colorado is 200
bushels per acre. Many Of the yields
go over. 300 and 400 bushels per acre.
Although the best-known potato-pro-
ducing district is around Greeley, In
Weld county, other sections OF the
state are rapidly coming to the front
as good potato lands. These districts
are: San Luis valley, Uncompahgre
valley. Durango and vicinity. Routt.
Moffatt and Garfield counties. Fine
potato land can be bought for $45 an
| acre up.
"The growing of sugar beets Is an
important industry. The climate and
soils of the state are well adapted to
the successful cultivation OF this i'm
portant commercial vegetable.
Colorado apples, peaches and other
orchard products command the top OF
the market in eastern centers. Coio-
RADIO is one of the leading fruit-pro-
ducing states of the West Although
good fruit land is rather high in price
800 to 5000 an acre for raw land
the returns from the orchard lands are
proportionately large. Gross yields of
5000 to $1,000 worth of fruit on an acre
are not uncommon.
"The total area OF the state is Sc.
100000 acres. Arabic area. 22.4O0.000
acres; irrigable area, 100000 acres;
acres; area adapted to dry farming
and stock raising. 20.0o000O acres.
There are still about 10 ,000, 900 acres
OF government land open to entry N
Colorado. About 6,500.000 acres OF
this government land are adapted to
agriculture. Immigrants who have de-
clarcd their intention to become citi-
zens of the United States may obtain
not to exceed 800 acres OF this land.
1.-The average value of Colorado
farm, including equipment. has ad
vanced in the last decade from $6,520
to more than $4,000. OF which over
$500 represents the value OF land and
buildings. over 81 500 the value of live
stock and nearly 5000 the value of i'm
plemcnts and machinery. The average
value OF land and buildings is now
$30.12 an acre, or somewhat less than
three times as much as ten years ago.
Almost half of the farmers hire Ia
Dor. and the average amount expend-
ed by the farmers hiring is $4S7.7s. A
little less than one-fifth of the amount
reported as expended for labor is in
the form of rent and board.
Although the metal output Of the
state in 1910 was s33,000.00O. the coal
output $24.000.000 and the value of the
products manufactured s112.000.0 900,
agriculture and fruit growing prob
ably nffer the heat nnnort1lnifiaa 10