Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1913-03-19

/ be divided between strawberries.
blackberries and raspberries. so as 70
extend the harvesting period as much
/ as possible and enable the farmer to
supply custom trade through long
| season. The kitchen garden may &C
cupy from one-fourth to one-half of an
/ acre, and there should be a similar
area devoted to mixed tree fruits.
In buying the trees advice should
be sought from the state experiment
station and the United States depart.
ment of agriculture concerning the va
rieties adapted to the locality and the
| prices which ought to be paid.
The new farmer is the prey of the
fruit tree agent, and he should never
buy until he has the advice of disin.
! terested specialists. The agent who
tries to sell BIN novelties at $1.5e
apiece should he entirely eliminated
| These novelties have no place on the
farm of the beginner, and. besides.
standard trees OF the best sorts can
| be bought for very much less.
IL must be remembered that we are
/ y
for living for small family. The
area of land for the field crops will. OF
course. depend upon the type of farm
ing followed.
If it is decided to make fruit the
market product, not less than ter
acres of tree fruits should be planted
Until these come into bearing the liv
| ipu NOV no u,ada frorn yaoata hloo c,tI
tivated between the rows. In add
ton to this area at least six acres
should be devoted to a rotation OF
corn. wheat and hay-in regions
where this rotation is adapted. in or
der to produce feed for the poultry ans
live stock.
The corn and wheat win furnish
grain for the hens, the wheat will fur
nish straw for bedding and for the
scratching pens for the poultry. while
the corn and hay will furnish feed fol
the horse and the COW.
Half an acre of land will be requir
ed for the poultry, three-fourths OF an
acre for the garden and kitchen orch
ard. and half an acre for the house
and lot. Counting the area taken by
fences and roadways, this gives US 8
minimum area of about IS acres.
This also assumes that the fruit
or vegetables which furnish the cash
income are to be supplied to local
market and not shipped to commission
men
1t would be much safer to start in
with twice this area. devoting land mo-,
needed for other purposes to the pro
duction of ordinary field crops. which
will assure an abundance of feed for
the stock and some crops for sale.
If dairying is decided upon. would
not advise beginning on less than GO
acres of good land. This will permit
the keeping of IL cows. II the farm
can supply all the labor needed, Il
good cows will make an excellent liv.
ing for family.
few men have succeeded on much
smaller areas with dairying, and after
the farmer becomes thoroughly ex
perienced and gets his land rich u
cows could be kept on about half the
area above mentioned.
Under present conditions there is
not much profit in dairying where one
buys all the grain fed to the cows; but
on 60 acres a good manager can raise
all the grain and roughage needed for
all the live stock kept on the farm
Another excellent type of farming
for the beginner is hay farming, es
| pecially in those sections where hay
can be sold at more than $12 per ton.
/ 1t is possible to keep all the land oil
the farm in hay, though it is desirable
/ to grow a little corn to feed on the
| place In this type of farming fer
/ tilizers must be used literally. as is
! the case also with fruit and vegetable
| growing By proper fertilization the
land can be made to produce two and
onehalf tons of hay per acre.
I Forty acres of land devoted 10 hay
+ growing win make a family good
| living. The hay should never be left
down more than two years, bat II can
be reseeded in late summer without
losing a crop
On irrigated land smaller areas than
/ have given above are possible. and
under high-class management the
same is true in non-irrigated regions,
The three types Of farming de.
scribed above are those which would
advise for the beginner.