The Blackfoot optimist. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1907-1918, 1913-10-02
(By c. M. sCHULTz.)


Tnere are days, and even weeks,
when the fruit grower, even with a
small orchard, II he be true orchard.
list has his hands full and running
over. At such times he finds 1t diff
cult to obtain SUFFICIENT help to take
care of his fruit and must needs de-
Ipend upon such boys and girls and
Eomen and non-competent men as he
may be able to gather from the hedges
and by-ways.
The small orchard alone will not per-
init the employment OF competent help
all the year around, but when combin-
ed with dairy or poultry raising this
difficulty is easily overcome. and the
owner Is In the much better position
to take care Of his fruit and make a
better profit out of 1t than he would
be II conducting the orchard alone with
insufficient help.
Orcharding Is of course, like dairy
ing. a specialized line Of endeavor, al.
30 Is dairying and poultrying. There
are not enough people In the business
who realize this. but the fact is slow
~ beginning to make its way upon the
intelligence of those engaged in it.
Dairying Is . mans job and so is
poultry raising. although the latter can
be conducted and In fact, Is now, be-
Ing conducted In thousands Of places
by women who find it more profitable
and healthful than indoor employ
ment
A large farm 10 not necessary for
Carrying. While pastures are needful
to a certain extent. It is a fact that
dairymen are becoming less dependent
upon them every year. A dairyman OF
my acquaintance near Danbury, Conn.,,
last year plowed up 75 acres OF pas
ture and put it all into corn which was
later turned into the silo. He now
has two pastures. each Of about 40
acres. and one Of these will 60 into
corn this spring and the other will fol-
low next year. This man says he has
demonstrated that he can produce
more milk with greater regularity Of
How by the use Of silage than On pas
ture and At less cost
On an orchard farm where there 10
say, 10 acfes Of fine land, dairy Of
10 cows could be maintained without
difficulty. OF course pasture could not
be depended upon. but specialized
feeds must be used. Good corn land
will turn into the silo Is to IS tons
|of the very best kind Of feed per acre,
and no pasture on earth has ever yet
been able to produce such an amount
|of milk-giving product.
Two silos of, say, total capacity Of
Is or 80 tons. will hold sufficient en-.
silage for six months winter of 10
cows, and also provide plenty for sum-
mer use. Ten COWS at least can be
maintained on farm Of 40 acres ex-
elusive Of the orchard. provided the
highest cultivation Is followed and the
work il specialized. OF course IL the
dbws are to be allowed to run over
large areas Of pasture this cannot be
done. While little pasture must be
used, mainly for exercise and to give
that variety necessary to dairy feed,
the main support of the dairy must
come from the silo and from green
crops. especially grown for them.
OF course, on a combination orchard
and dairy. farm crop rotation is abso-
lutely necessary. We must have clio.
yer, we must produce corn for the silo
and some for the pigs, because the
pigs are necessary to use up the skim.
milk and the oats and COW peas
should always have a place in the ro-
tation.
Ten or q dozen cows with their
calves and the pigs and horses neces-
sary to work the farm. will produce
sufficient manure to dress the land
fairly we'll. II this manure IL applied
to clover sod and this Is turned down
for the corn 1t will produce a tremen-
dous amount Of succulent feed to 60
into the silo.
A farm of this size should also have |
q field Of alfalfa-and let no man be-
Neve that alfalfa IL to be confined to
the arid regions of the west. Some
Of the finest alfalfa 10 now grown on
the New England hills In places
,shere little else have been raised for
many years, while on the rich corn
lands of the middle west, alfalfa is
now as much fixture as the corn It.
ri. The orchardist with only 40
Acres of free land at his command will
have to buy some concentrated feeds.
All right, let him buy them. He will
Ind it will pay we'll. Dairying is strict
y manufacturing business, and II
pertain raw materials are necessary to
pet returns from those grown ct home.