The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1913-11-14
INTENSIVE FARMING
AS COMPARED WITH
EXTENSIVE FARMING
BETTER FOR THE FARMER TO
CULTIVATE FEWER ACRES
PER LABOR.
MANY TRYING The SYSTEM
Soils Can Be Made Eighteen Inches
Deep by Proper Flowing and the
Use of the SubsoiIer-More Money
and Satisfaction.
(By Capt. I. F. Peck, Commissioner
of Agriculturel

| (By Capt. T. F. Peck, COMMISSIONS,
of Agriculture.)
There appears to be a question in
the minds of some people as to wheth
er intensive of extensive farming is
better for the individual farmer. the
community and the country at large
By intensive farming is meant tax.
ing few acres and by thorough prep.
aration and cultivation of soil pro-
duce larger crops and more than one
crop per year on the same land.
BY extensive farming is meant Gull
tivating large number of acres with
smaller working force, which neces-
sar1ly means less thorough prepara-
ton OF the soil and cultivation of
crops and left of the trucking crops.
| Many OF the people of Tennessee
have been trying extensive farming
With the result of washed and run
down land, Improbable crops, with
less reward for labor each succeed
ing year.
Inc experience of SO many ought
to convince us that the extensive
system of farming in Tennessee is
not what we want.
By farming on the intensive plan
we are simply developing the soil to
nearer the extent of it's possibility
FOR development, and no system of
farming is going to succeed that does
not plan to return plant food to the
SOIL in some form to replace that TAX
en- out in the growing crops.
Now, l think it would be better
for the farmers of Tennessee to cu1ti-
vate fewer acres per laborer and chi.
tlvate them better, with a very few
exceptions.
IL our farm lands in Tennessee
were divided into smaller farms and
cultivated as they should be thew
would accommodate and proftably
employ a farming population eight
times the population now on them
and the production would be more
than eight times what it now is.
Mr. Business man, Mr.. Banker, Manu-
facturer and Professional man, don't
you think your business would be
more profitable if your patronage by
the agricultural classes was increas-
ed more than eight times it's present
volume.
Brother Farmer, don't you think (
you could have better roads, better
schools, better churches and better {
to live in if the farms
were reduced in size and their pro-
1ucing capacity increased '
When we appreciate the fact that t
we can have our soils ten, twelve or {
even eighteen inches deep by break
ng up the subsoil and getting mixed
With it vegetable matter to separate
he soil particles, making it porous
70 that the water, air and frost can
penetrate 1t and make the plant food a
hat has been locked up available. .
We will realize that we have increas- :
a the producing capacity of our
arms several times; that we can sell
If three-fourths of the acreage of
ur farms and still have greater crop
reducing capacity than when farm
ng in the larger area with haphaz-
ard methods. We want to get in the :,
abit of piling up our acres instead :,
spreading them out. There is :
lore money in it, more satisfaction
l it and possibilities for better adj =,
antages every way.