The Raymer enterprise., 1912-03-14
TO RETAIN MOISTURE
Deep Flowing, Followed With
Drag, Will Do It.
Fully Demonstrated That Considerable
Portion Of Rainfall Can Be Con-
served and Carried Over Into
Next Year.

Portion Of Rainfall Can Be Con-
served and Carried Over Into
Next Year.
(By ]. H. WORST, North Dakota Agri-
cultural College)
Plow deep and follow the plow with
. drag. The drag will conserve
more moisture than will get into the
soil from melting SHOWS. Besides wa
ter thus conceived is where it is need
ed, instead Of on the surface where 1t
will evaporate speedily.
The question is sometimes raised.
Shall We practice dry farming when
there is plenty Of rain? Most assur-
edly. The time to conserve moisture
is when there is moisture. A farm
er remarked to me the other day: Il
have got the moisture on my farm
down to depth Of more than three
feet already" That farmers idea Is
exactly right. He is conserving moist
ure now for next years crop while his
neighbors are allowing the moisture
that has recently fallen In abundance
to go its usual way, according to the
laws of chance. Next spring his neigh
bors will plant their wheat and other
small grain and depend upon the
clouds to furnish moisture as the grain
may need 1t. This farmer will get
Just as much rain from the clouds as
they and will, In addition, have a
large quantity Of water stored up In
the subsoil to nourish the crop, should
dry spell occur during the growing
season. And that dry spell is very apt
to come. will venture that this par
ticular farmer will have big crop
next year whether his neighbors do or
not. II they get big crop, he will
get bigger one.
1t has been fully demonstrated that
considerable portion Of the rainfall
OF any one year can be conserved and
carried over, In the soil, for the bene-
ne OF next years crop. Where the av-
erage rainfall is IS inches 1t should
be an easy matter to carry four or
five inches Of autumn rainwater over
the winter for the next seasons crop.
Four inches Of water represents ap-
proximately $50 tons Of moisture per
acre-a sufficient quantity to nourish
the growing crop during weeks Of pro-
tracted drought. am convinced that
by means of suitable cultivation, which
includes deep plowing. the bogie OF
drought will be forever dispelled.
There Is absolutely no necessity for
single crop failure In North Dakota
or account Of drought. The fault is
not with the soil, nor with the climate,
nor with the plants; 1t Is with our sys-
tenn of farming. AS long as we apply
humid methods to semi.arld conditions,
we may expect repeated crop failures,
or partial failures that will materially
lessen the profits which farmers should
realize from their business.
1t requires approximately seven dol.
lars per acre to grow crop. This in
cludes interest on investment, cost Of
seed, wear and tear Of farm machin.
cry, labor, etc. BY adding one addition
al dollars worth of labor to each acre,
there Is little question but that the
average profits would be doubled. In
other words, as much profit should be
realized from the one additional dol
lars worth Of labor as Is now real.
lied from the seven dollars worth of
unavoidable labor and investment
Consequently. II farmers would de-
vote one-third Of their land to the
growing Of corn and alfalfa, neither of
which interferes with the time and la
Dor employed In farming wheat, and
put the one-third more labor, thus
made available, on only twothirds as
many acres Of wheat, they would grow
more wheat than when they spread
their energies over the one-third larg-
er area.
The corn and alfalfa fed to live
stock would insure them a large add.
tional income, and one that Is not
often adversely Influenced by climatic
conditions, while the fertility deposited
upon the farm resulting from feeding
the corn and alfalfa to live stock
would vastly improve the productive.
ness Of the soil. Corn and alfalfa usu.
ally can be attended to when the
wheat needs no care. thus distributing
the labor more equltably throughout
the season.
Another thing, shock threshlng Is
generally bad business, for the reason
that oil cannot thresh at once when
the grain Is ready for the machine,
consequently all who cannot thresh
early stand good chance OF having
their grain injured In the shock and
also are hindered from plowing until
the grain is threshed. Fully half
the farmers are thus hindered from
plowing early, many Of them being
compelled to postpone plowing opera.
tions until the following spring. Bet.
ter to stack the grain as soon as fit
and start to plow.
Charcoal for Little Chicks.