La Junta tribune., 1913-02-22
OUR
SUGAR seer
INDUSTRY
BY J. =. cro~i.
= = = 80 80 ,


The history OF the business or th'
profession OF farming. has been on,
Of more uncertainty than II is now
and will be- OF less uncertainty in IN.
future. As We advance In scientif
ic knowledge. farming Is becoming q
profession rather than 4 business
The effort OF the farmer In continual
ly In the direction OF producing larg.
er yields per acre aud breeding farm
animals with view to making each
individual more efficient The crop
that yields the largest gross return
per acre is usually the most profit
able to the farmer. and u unqucs
,ionably the best crop for the bust.
ness welfare OF the community.
Sugar beets have proven to b. one
OF the crops that yields the largest
return per acre OF any OF the crops
that W. grow And. properly cared
for. there H. no safer crop for the
farmer to grow nor Is therc any
other crop so generous In distribut.
ing the returns TO the eommunity as
the sugar beet crop.
This distribution begins In The
spring. when the thinning must be-
done The price for the work aver
ages about fs5o per acre. With
1000 acres In community. this
means. therefore $4,000 thar must
be spent Naen the crop Is only fair.
ly started Following this come the
labor OF hoeing. irrigating and rIl
tiyatine The harvesting of the
crop costs from 81 to $40 per acre,
putting about $4,000 more. or this
acreage. into immediate circulation
for hand work alone. Our laboreH
have to live while at this work and
II is a fact that they take very
few dollars away with them. Most
Of 4, Is spent here. II Is not good
business for farmer To plant the
whole farm to one kind OF crop ghen
IN. land is well adapted to several
crops In making som" conn ison~
OF returns of bee,s with otiie or crops.
II Is not Intended to speak dispar.
agingly Of any Of the other crops
tha, ". grow. We need them all,
and each has its place In the econ.
omy OF managing the farm.
\ One farmer regarded his beet crop
AS failure. His yield vas light
Hts wheat on the zane Kind Of land
made a yield OF twenty. five bushels
per acre. quite Il satisfactory re-
turn on new land The price OF
wheat was about si.35 per hundred
making return OF little more
than $40 per acre. After deductinE
the hand work on the beet crop
the thinning and topping hich cost
,l3io. from &3i. which vas about
the gross returns of the bects per
acre he had abou, the same amour,
as the Who'll. value OF the wheat
crop. with all the erpsuss charged
against II.
THIS was fairly good yl-ld OF
wheat and a very poor Yield oi
bee,s-about five tons Very good
alfalfa can be expected tp 5ield from
three to five tons In srason. AZ
81 per ton. $50 would b. 'he maxi.
mum. This amount would pay for
"A very heavy yield OF grain. 4
maximum yield of beets vin yield
that much clear profit Vine crops,
grown for seed. or whom f.ndins u
, satisfactory marke, Tor maIuns. oft.
. cn rival and sometimes bring great,
, er returns than bccts Do. but do
. not leaV. as large proportion Of
the returns scattered though the
, community. \ successful ,fop OF
bc"ts returns from 81 10 100 per
) acre. and not few has, Ion. bet,
. ter than that last year The b~nc,
, hts Of beet growing do not end
) With the beet crop. Grain and alfsl
b IA srown on land fouoUIns bcets
: yield from on"-fourth TO onc.haif NOR,
! by reason of the intensive cujtivs
tion OF tn. land In bceis w. have
become better farmers Einre learn
INK 10 cultivate bee,s ssfuliy
}. and consequently get larger Yield,
of other crops.
. would like To call your at,rntIou
= to our own community. We havs
i no, on..half enough farmers Nort1
b OF the river. under the Fort i.,uo q
= nal. "" have body Of land rsacA
= Ing from the hcadga,e o, that sres,
. sys'"m tn IN. county limo ease--as
. good land a. there Is IN o,ero coun
". The Reynolds ranch. of stcu,
$500 acres Of good land. has ahout
, half dorm fsrmers Between her
and the eas' line of the coun,v ar,
' 'W 10 700 acres with fonr f.s-n