The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1913-02-22

have about a similar way OF doing
things. That is, all raise more or less
the same kind of crops, or keep the
same kind of cattle, wheat rye, oats,
barley. potatoes, turnips, a little corn
and a great deal of hay. AS far as
could be ascertained on an area Of
forty acres of tillable land the farm
er raises
acres, Potatoes.
Y acres, Spring Wheat.
Y acres. Turnips.
II acres, Goats.
25 acres, Hay
AS a general rule, hay Is raised
year after year, for at least eight to
fifteen years, and the yield is about
one ton to the acre, and many times
less. Looking over the inventory of
crops, one could readily see that this
Kind of farming cannot be very profit
able, and more than that, II Is very
risky. For instance, the hay field.
During the past season we had plenty
of rain and what was worse we had
rain during the haying time, and so
the farmer could not cut his hay at
the proper time, and If he did have a
chance to cut the hay. he could not
cure ii. SO il rotted on the field, or
spoiled a good deal and lost not only
from the yield, but from the quality.
thus reducing the market value per
ton considerably. So that with all the
abundance of rain and with all the
sunshine and the long days of growth,
etc, still he could not claim TO have
had a successful year. IL he could
claim an unsuccessful year the past
year, what will he have to say II 1t
were total dry year?
The question of farming Is not the
mere plowing. seeding, cultivating OF
the crops. but the application of some
business methods based upon sound.
art and science of farming 1t must
be understood that farming is by no
means the occupation of fools. or i'm
beetles or some kind. or that any awk-
ward individual could be a farmer. If
he cannot adapt himself to anything
else. This is very erroneous idea or
conception, the farmer nowadays is to
be constant student OF all the phe-
nomena of nature, soil. plants and an
imals. II is no more the question
whether the farmer can raise turnips,
hut II is time for the farmer to know
that 10 produce a good crop OF hay.
corn. POTATOES, etc. il requires some
plant food which is to be supplied from
the soil from water, and from the air.
We take for granted that the soil pos
sesses all the required plant food, yet
it happens that we have poor yield.
Where shall we lay the trouble If the
soil is all right? There must be some
thing wrong with the crops. and there
fore. we have to seek the remedy by
understanding how the various crops
feed and live.
Potatoes, corn, barley, oats and
timothy hay. all feed from the soil
only, while clover, vetch. peas, soy
beans. cow peas, and alfalfa. all get
most OF their food from the air, and
partly from the soil. Again, corn has
roots that penetrate the soil very
deeply and gathers the food from a
great depth, while potatoes feed most
~ near the surface. oats and other
grains feed partly from the surface
and very shallow depth. Glover and
the other plants similar to it get most
/ of the vital plant food from the air
and after the crop is harvested, leave
a good deal OF the plant food accumu-
: lated from the air in the soil Uhroush
its roots and parasitic Bacteria which
have been living on the roots of clover
plants from the gas known as nitroeen
tyhich is derivatiye from ammonia
gases of the atmosphere), and in this
way IL increases the fertility of tn,
soil Now, If we will follow the crops
which add plant food to the soil. by
those which take plant food from tho
soil there will be stored for them ar
available amount of plant food read,
for their use, and thus larger yields
might be obtained. So much for thu
yield of crops.
With the prtsent methods of farm
ing the farmer Is exposed to grea
many risks from rain, draught, frost
and pests. The season may be favor
able for one crop, but very unfavor
able for another. as was the case th'
past season with hay. To overcome
this difficulty and to facilitate tn
systematic plan of farming must b.
adopted. and this can be done in tn,
following manner:
Suppose the farmer wants to rails
the same crops as he did heretofore