The Kennewick courier. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1905-1914, 1913-12-05
FARMERS ARE
COMING TO TOWN
Tomorrow's Meeting Of Crop AS
! .ociation will Draw Attendance
from All Parts Of County

Tomorrow occurs the first annua!
meeting of the Benton County Crop
Jmnrovement Association and the
event will bring together the pick
Of the progressive farmers of the
county.
The meeting will be called to
order at 10 o'clock at the CONNER
cial Club rooms in this city and by
noon it is hoped to have the election
Of officers, the appointment of COM
mittees and the details of finance
settled so that the afternoon may be
devoted to discussion of important
plans for next years work.
Chief among these is the plan
which is being shaped up by Mr..
I.ampson and officers of the asso-
citation, whereby it is hoped to place
Benton county in the very first place,
agriculturally, among the counties
of the state, and carry off the banner
at next years State Fair.
The plan is to divide the county
into districts, the farmers of each
district to devote one acre each to
growing the best grains, vegetables
and grasses that they possibly can.
There will be prizes for. the winners
in each district and it is hoped to
get a good substantial county prize
donated by one or more of the rail-
roads to be competed for by the dis
trict winners. Then the very best
of all the competing exhibits will be
taken to the State Fair as Benton
county exhibit.
Benton county took third prize
this year with hurriedly-collected
exhibit. Working on a systematic
plan as outlined above it is felt
that we can make the other counties
go some' to beat us out for first
honors next year.
Another plan of vast Importance
to the farming industry of the coun-
ty is that of furnishing cheap fer
tilizer to correct the Deficiencies of
our soils, which are lacking in phos-
phoric acid and nitrogen. Nitrogen
may be secured by growing the
clovers and vetches and to supply
the other it is planned to ship in
raw phosphate rock from the de-
posits in Idaho, grind it here and
place it in the hands of the farmers
at a fraction of the cost of the COM
mercial phosphate fertilizers.
The Idaho phosphate rock is now
being mined by several companies,
under government supervis ion,
treated with phosphoric acid and
placed on the market as super
phosphate" at cost of about $25. 90
per ton. It is estimated that the
ground rock can be furnished local
iy at not to exceed $40 per ton. The
Idaho rock is said to carry twice the
percentage of phosphoric acid as is
contained in the Tennessee rock
which is being used so successfully
In the corn states of the east.
Mr.. Lampson was in Idaho last
week and arranged to have a car
load of the rock brought here for ex-
perimental purposes. It is prob
able that a small mill for grinding
1t will be installed this winter. 1t
is the hope of the Crop Improve
ment Association to interest the
farmers IN eventually establishing a
cooperative factory at this place to
grind and treat the raw rock.
These and other important plans
Tor the betterment of the Benton
county farmers will be threshed out
IN detail tomorrow. The work and
plans OF the association under the
direction of the county agriculturist
Is fast taking substantial form and
In another year or two Benton coun-
ty will be known from one end of
the state to the other as a commun-
!ty where they are doing big things
IN the farming industry. Every
progressive farmer will want to be
IN on this development, 80 attend
the meeting tomorrow and help
yourself by giving the association