The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1912-01-05
DIVERSIFIED CROPS
The Importance of a Crop Rotation
For the Irrigation Farmer.

FOR the irrigation Farmer.
By w. H. DIN, UNIVERSITY of Idaho;
(Lecture delivered on Oregon Short
.t., Line Demonstration Train.)
Basis of Success.
The basis of farm success is organi-
zation, system on the farm; the basis
of organization on the farm is crop
management; on the successful man
agement of the crop largely rest these
FIVE fundamentals:
l. Economy of business.
z. Maintenance of soil fertility.
3. Productivity of the soil.
4. Subsistence for live stock
5; Farm profits at end of season.
The term rotation of crops" is used
to designate a system of crops which
give a recurring succession of field
plants with differing plant food re-
quisites.
Reasons For Rotation.
The primary purposes of crop ro-
tation are LIST, Prevention of "Crop
Sick. soils, the result of continuous
cultivation of the same crop for
period of years; I'd, The elimination
OF weeds, insect pests and crop dis
eases; Sd, Increase in the productivity
Of the field crops by conserving the
soil FERTILITY.
First Irrigated Crop.
i, The first crop to be grown in any
appreciable degree under the ditch"
was wheat. Wheat followed wheat
year after year on the river plain
farms of Utah and Idaho until in some
instances the yield of grain fell Is and
Sl1 ho11uv -
gave the farmer. This was on COM
paratively virgin soil which we think
IS rich as cream. Why is this? Feed
ing at the same depth on the same
plant food elements absorb the readily
available plant food of this particular
element SO this class of plants is then
sparingly fed. Like starved pig, it
cannot make it's owner the profits the
we'll fed ones do.
All plants do not feed alike. They
either use different foods or the same
food from different depths. There
fore, plants feeding at different depths
OF soil, although they may use the
same food elements, the deeper feed
ing plants can follow the shallow
feeders without serious immediate
loss, although eventually, unless these
absorbed food elements be restored,
the available plant food will become
exhausted and the soil will therefore
be impoverished
The depositor who continues to
draw his money from the bank with
out making deposits will at last find
his checks returned marked "Short."
No bank will permit continued over
drafts. We should not be taking off
all the time, without putting back the
food elements upon which plants
feed, some of the time. If we do, we
have Crop sick" soil that does not
pay its checks" for want of funds
the available food elements that have
been taken through previous with
drawals. .
Our Utah and Idaho soils are either
OF granite or volcanic rock formation.
These soils seem to hold an abund-
ance of potash, a reasonable amount
of phosphates, limited amount of
nitrates, abundance of lime, but
great deficiency in organic matter
commonly known as humus. Here are
the essentials we need in these soils:
they constitute the soil barometer
since the lessened amount of any one
of these will most seriously affect gen.
eral crop culture. Humus not only in
creases the water holding capacity of
the soil but it also carries an appre-
cable amount of nitrates. Hence we
need, early in our cropping, to get
hxmus in the soil. Feed the soil con-
stantly. that it may. in turn, feed our
crops. How may we do this? By
growing crops that tend to store what
little humuS we have with nitrogen
while 1t increases the humus content
Of the soil. These are legume crops
alfalfa, beans, peas, alsike, red clover
and vetches constitute the legume
family group-which have proven pro-
htable for us to grow in the west
Choose the one that is best adapted
to your farm environment and your
field will grow you the most dollars
Give it permanent place in your field
crops.
These plants seem to have the Pc
culiar property of Utilizing the free nj
trogen of the air and thus store nj
trates in the soil, and accumulate hui
mus. the one thing our soils seem most
to need. How is this done? Through
most peculiar little family of lower
organisms known as bacteria which
grow on the root hairs and tiny root
lets of the root system of these legume
plants. This creates, as it were, a
fever in that particular part of the
plant, calling for more air and more
water. In chemical process no,