Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1912-12-20
FARMERS TOO CONSERVATIVE
More knowledge and Better Business
Methods Needed In South-Ursed
to Rotate Crops.

their living out of the ground for q
long time, and l know the conditions
and the shortcomings of the people in
this line of business.
And the thing that impresses me
most is that most of us are so apt to
go along in the beaten track, doing
the things we have been doing and
that our neighbors are doing. without
even thinking about making any
change in the regular program And
there Is a good reason for this. too.
says a writer In the Farm Progress.
When we branch out and tackle some
new kinds of crops and new ways of
doing things, we are pretty sure to
strike snag. Where was raised, in
an eastern state, every farmer
knew in a radius of ten miles planted
corn and tobacco. and sowed wheat
and oats. Some made money and
some did not; it depended on the
business methods of the farmer.
| thought then, and know now
that II Is foolish for a man to go on
doing the same things the others are
doing, just from force Of habit. And
this is notably true of the people In
most of the southern states ano
those bordering on them. But 1t is
quite true also of many farther north
What we need is for men to rise
above the level of the dGily work and
its associations and do some think
ing for themselves. have been in the
business most of my life. and my
opinion Is that the man who gets his
living from the soil is more "sot IN
his ways" than anybody in any other
business. And there is where we
make our mistake.
For third of a century have been
associating with the same men who
own farms in one of the Oldest
states, and / have never known them
to make any material change in their
methods. Their crops are composed
of wheat, oats, corn and tobacco
Their rotation is oats after corn
wheat after tobacco. Some of them
save all the manure; all Of them buy
| cOulG lOI lOOoCSOs aAe
some have them for their wheat.
Almost all of them SOW clover on
the wheat, and, generally get good
growth of both on tobacco land. They
may SOW some grass on the oats; but
most likely they do not. So il is very
natural that the tobacco lots" are
keeping up, and the rest of the land
is running down. But there are
some who are wide awake. and IN
some neighborhoods they have taken
to sowing Canada peas, as well as
the common cowpea, on as much
of their land as possible, and do not
know of a man who is a crank or
cowpeas who is not making his farm
better every year. Some, not SO many
SOW a good many of the Canads
field peas. which come earlier and
when there is greater need for some
thing to supplement pasture for cat
tie or hogs.
| have used both these forage crops
with great satisfaction. and am con
fdent that the general adoption of q
rotation including one or both Of
them will do more to cheaper produc
ton of pork or of beef and milk thar
any crop not of the grass or clover
kind. II man is cropping his farm
to corn, wheat and oats, with some
other special money CROP" he viii
find that any such crop will make
better returns planted on a clover
sod or peas than anywhere else;
cotton or any of the market crops
that prevail in the limits of the corr
belt
Both corn and wheat can b,
counted on for the best yields wher
they follow any of the leguminou
crops. And, If the owner is wise ant
up to date, no matter whether hi
main crop is to be corn, tobacco, 20
tatoes, wheat, oats or something else
d he will find that stimulating the sol
for the improving crop is by far tn
best method to secure the larges
crop of whatever he gets his prof
out of. In some tests | have mad
with corn found that where tn
soil was a little thin in spots, an
the clover had to be helped by goo
application of fine manure, the Glove
on such places was almost equal {
the rest, and the succeeding crop wa
even better. like to see field i
any crop, particularly of grain eve
in growth, color and yield, and car
not but feel that man is might
careless farmer who will let thi
spots in a field mar the beauty G
appearance and cut down the actus
profits. And 1t is really surprisin
how many men seem to be extremel
careless about such things.
Perhaps, when all the young men /
the agricultural colleges get down I
practical farming all over the countr,
their example will stimulate US olde