Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1913-07-17
DOES IT PAY TO SUMMER FALLOW OR SUM-
MER TILL THE SOIL, WHERE AND when?
Much Diversity Of Opinion Among Farmers Of the SemArd
West on the Subject-MOsture the Great Concern Of
the Farmers in Western Counties Of State
How TO Conserve the Rainfall.


much moisture as crop OF WheaL
The real object. therefore, OF the sum-
mer fallow or tillage at present Is to
store up as much of two years pre-
cipitation in the soil for the use or
the crop that is to be grown, usually
wheat. The men who are operating
their farms under the fallow system,
where winter wheat is the principal
crop grown, whether in the plains or
the mountain dry farming area, are
the ones who are succeeding best.
The men who are farming the great
est number Of acres are not the ones
who are making the most money.
Farming IN plains states or in the
counties of extreme western Kansas
is very exacting II profitable crops
are produced The country is all right
II the natural advantages are intelli-
gently utilized. In a very large meas
ure the farmer can control the mois-
ture that falls on his land. The sum-
mer fallow Is the best known method
of doing this.
There is one possible way in which
farmers operating under a low annual
precipitation and summer rainfall,
such as the case in the extreme west
ern counties Of Kansas, can produce
profitable crops OF wheat every other
year without the use Of the fallow,
and that is by the substitution OF in
terrified crops for the fallow. BY the
growing Of such crops as corn, sor-
ghums, potatoes, Canada peas, Next
can beans. alfalfa in rows, etc., the
land can be made to produce crop
and at the same time can be placed
in fair condition for wheat as the re-
suit of the cultivated state the soil
is left in after the growing of one OF
the intertilled crops above mentioned.
The main drawback to such a system
at this time lies In the fact that most
OF the intertilled crops now available
are not very drouth resistant and are
late maturing. hence cannot be re-
moved from the land in time to plant
winter wheat at the proper time. Also
many of these crops are caught by
frost because OF the short seasons
common to the semi-arid west. In or
der to insure profit by utilization OF
intertilled crops in rotation with wheat
It will be necessary to discover or
develop more hardy, drouth resistant,
early maturing varieties. Special ef-
forts are being directed along these
lines by practically every scientific
investigator dealing with plants and
operating within the semi'arid dis
tricts of the West. Until such dis
coveries are made and their pract-
cability demonstrated farmers would
do well even in western Kansas TO
summer fallow or summer till their
land at least once in three years.
There would be absolutely no doubt
II such a system were practiced that
more farmers would be producing
larger quantities of grain from one
half their land each year than they
are now producing from their whole
farm.
The writer would recommend, there
fore, that the farmers Of western Kan
sas; that is, of those farmers operat-
ing west of the eastern line OF coun-
ties of Decatur, Sheridan, Cove, Lane,
Finney and Gray, handle a small tract
for a number OF years in accordance
with the summer fallow or summer
titled system. But in doing so they
must adhere strictly to what Is con-
sidered and known to be an ideal
summer fallow: in other words they
must pillow their land at the proper
time and to the proper depth and to
keep it cultivated and free from
weeds until they are ready to plant
It to winter wheat.