The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1912-05-25
OBJECT LESSON IN FARMING.

| &SSSh Eaas UEiAssgEGe
) Farmers Demonstration Work Shows
What Louisiana Soils Are Capao
BILE Of Under, Advanced Methods
I of Cutivation-VaIue of Cotton
| Crop Doubled.
/ The Chief is in receipt of an ab.
4 stract report of the results obtained
/ by the farmers cooperative demon
stration work for 1911 in Louisiana,
compiled by the Bureau of Plant In.
dustry of the United States Depart
ment OF Agriculture from the reports
sent in by thirty-eight agents work.
ing in forty parishes. The data
shows that it is possible for Louisi.
ana farmers to double the corn and
cotton crops Of the state without
putting another acre Of land into cul.
tivation, simply by applying the dem
onstration methods OF better seed
bed, better seed, better cultivation,
and the growing of legunes and the
raising of livestock to increase the
fertility of the soil These simple
methods apply equally well to the
growing of all crops, and their gem
eral adoption will mean much to the
agricultural industry of the state.
Examining the results of the dem
onstration work in Louisiana for the
past year, the following comparisons
aresfound:
Cotton demonstrators to the NUM-
Der Of 1875 reported on 33,022 acres,
an average of 1911 acres for each
demonstration. On this acreage, they
produced an average yield Of 1063.5
pounds Of seed cotton per acre and
Ia4total Of IS ,122Q ,291 pounds. The
aVerass
as estimated tIle sIliraa I'd . gEs
tistics In December, 1911, was 522
pounds. Thus it appears that the
demonstration methods produced an
increase of 104 per cent, or 5415
pounds per acre above ordinary meth
DDS. At a valuation Of So per hum
dred this increase amounts to $16.24
per acre, or $536,277.2S on the 3d.
022 acres reported.
Corn demonstrators numbering 1915
reported on 16,7S2 acres, an average
OF 1873 acres for each dernonatsatcs,. =
They secured an average yield OF 822S5
bushels of sheHed corn per acre, u
a total production Of 479,Ig3 bushels.
The average yield of corn for ItoSi-
! lslana in 1911 as reported by the Ea-
ieau Of Statistics was 1876 bNsheIs
per acre. This shows an increase
under demonstration methods Of 64
per cent or 10.1 bushels per acre,
which at 70 cents per busheI, shoWs
vol x,f: -.
or $128,755.81 on the 1878 acres re.
ported
Combining results on these tHo
crops, we find total Of $685.. .0s9.a
representing the value Of increased
production of cotton and corn in
Louisiana, due to demonstration meth
DDS on 4g.805 acres reported for 1911.
In addition to the work reported
above, there were il 1911 over $500
demonstrators and co-operators in
Louisiana, following demonstration
methods, whose reports are not avail.
able.
It must be said to the credit Of the
Louisiana agents that they are opar.
atlng over d larger acreage in Gotten
and corn than those Of any otrisr
southern state. and they hare re.
corded the highest average yield of
cotton reported from any cf tie
states included in the WeeYi1infested
area.
The best results were obtained in
Rapides and Avoyelles pariGhas,
where as much as $500 pounds Of
seed cotton per acre were produced
on farms planting from 6 to 20 acres
in cotton. The yield In these tw0
parishes, on 29O9 acres in damonstra-
ton, averaged over 1850 pounds of
seed cotton per acre.
In the southern district Of no
| state. in charge Of Special Agent IL.
r. Perrin Of St. Landry, thirty-ei#ft
local and parish agents were erne
ployed, two of whom operated in fft5
eastern wards of this parish. 'he
data for the district shows that hse
cension is at the bottom Of the list
in cotton production, the aTefage
yield for 35 demonstration farms bee
ing under 400 pounds per acre.
against a general average in the sec.
ton of 227 pounds In corn. Asc IN.
sion shows up fairly wei, 45 fafEas
reporting an average Yield CT a8Y
bushels per acre. The main factor
against more satisfactory results Is
lack Of drainage. The fall on New
River for the last seven or eiTht
miles is almost not aDpfeciab1e. and
this stream offers tic only means
Of drainage for the section Operated
In. A project to dre6ge New II gep
is contemplated, and it is 80 be hoped
rfri11