The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1912-04-11
STOCK ON DRY FARMS
Crops Are Made More Sure and
Productive.
II Has Been Found After Many Years
Of Experience That There Is Much
Money in Keeping 100 Head
or So Of Cattle.

live stock because feed crops are more
sure and productive and at the same
time greatly reduce the cost of mar
keting the products of the sarm. In
my farming and stock raising opera.
tions, | had for some years access
to free range. but the country in my
| immediate vicinity was finally all set
tied upon and naturally had to con
fine myself to my own farm in my
stock raising operations, writes w F.
Gardner in the Denver Field and
Farm. After having the free range to
myself for so long |, like many 9th
ers in the west, thought had been
put out OF business by the new set
tiers, but how easy It is for fellow
TO adjust himself to conditions, If he
/ will get his head TO work. After
good many years experience | find
| that there is more money in keeping
| one hundred head OF better stock. bet
ter fed and cared for, with small per
cent of loss, than there was in keep
ing the same number on the open
range; and the more organic matter |
have put into my soil the more capa-
Bile II is for holding moisture and the
less IL will suffer when drouth comes.
We of the west are in a position to
raise live stock more cheaply than the
farmers in the more humid sections
Of the country from the fact that our
soil and climate are peculiarly adapted
to the raising of that most wonderful
forage plant, alfalfa, nitrogen gath
erer and an enricher of the soil. sub
soiler and, when fed with corn, bal
anced ration. Alfalfa is king In the
west and goes hand in hand with live
stock. In many sections dairying Is
rapidly gaining on horticulture and is
bringing In more money than any 9th
er industry. The dairymen are con-
sidering the fertility of their soil the
greatest asset remaining to the Amer
lean people. Probably the best rea-
son for western farmers going into
the dairy business is the fact that
people In a new country must accept
system of farming that will bring
quick returns In actual cash. The
stock business will do this quicker
than horticulture. especially dairying.
because 1t takes from five to seven
years to bring an orchard into bear
ing. To my mind, the best farmer and
the one who will certainly succeed, is
he who keeps live stock. When the
horticulturist in the near future is
buying high-priced fertilizer to raise
the same fruit in quantity and quail
ity that he raised when the soil was
virgin, the stockman's farm will be as
fertile and more productive than when
he first turned the sod as nature left
1t. The man who goes into a new and
: untried country, builds home and
; opens up a new farm and by intelli-
, gence and close attention to business
J succeeds In converting that piece OF
. wild land into a valuable property is
not only a successful man, but has
shown himself to be a benefactor
OF his race and it will be many years
in this country before the life work oi
such a man will be given the recog
milton II so justly deserves. Cattle
raising is profitable even during the
present times of high-priced land, high
, priced help and high-priced feed. OF
course the farmer must look after anC
properly care for his live stock In the
best possible manner. The raising Of
! stock works nicely with other farm
] operations and a sood profit can be
: made If the animals are fed In the
proper way-there is so much goot
! feed that would be actually wasted OF
: the farm If live stock were not kept
/ do not give my stock any high
priced feed and yet always aim to keel
them thrifty. | plan to feed economi
cally. There Is some feed In whea
I. straw and oat straw is good and Tho
stock is converting 1t all into fertility
to be added to the land. Many logi
cal reasons can be given why the dry
=, farmer should keep live stock. Tn,
:. first essential In dry-farming is al
=, ample supply of moisture in the sol
and the keeping OF live stock on tn,
4, farm will add to Its water carrying
!, capacity, because the more live stool
4 kept on the farm the more manur,
v and organic matter will the farme
q have TO incorporate into the soil.
!, is an assured fact that the more hu
mus the soil contains the more mois
ture will II hold. The more live stool
!. the farmer keeps. the greater the in
ducement to raise larger acreage o
forage and cultivated crops OF whicl
l. corn would probably be the main one
), The farmer would rotate and my owl
) experience in farming twenty-seve
s. years In the semi-arid country is tha
!. 1t pays to put half the land into a Gu
tivated crop every year. II fed to liv
o stock, corn is the best paying croI
p speaking from money standpoint an
I. saying nothing about what II does tC
i ward keeping up the fertility of tn
;. soil by the better cultivation given an
o the greater amount Of manure mad,
II This is farming and not mining tn
y farm as Is done by the raising G
y small grain and carting away the fei
q tility OF the soil TO tho elevator.