The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1913-02-21
INSTITUTE NOTES
Being Additional Information as Prem.
lsod IN Previous Issue
FARM PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS


In last weeks issue we were
unable to devote as much space
as we would have liked to the
details of the recent farmers
institute and, as we then an
nounced, we will cover several
features more fully in this issue.
How Hoverstad Killed French
Weed
Institute Conductor Hover
stad, answering a question re-
lating to the growth and exter-
mination of foul weeds, men
toned the prolific growth of
French weed. He said he had
counted as many as 5000 seeds
orr one plant. He then told oi
a quarter 8 ecti ON in th E
Red River valley on the Min
nesota side of the river which
he ran across a few years ago
and which was the worst weed
infested field he had ever seen.
1t was a suitable place for a
series of experiments as to
methods of killing French
weed so he made arrangements
with the owner for a part of
the farm and there tried vari-
Gus experiments, always with
the idea of raising crop while
killing off the weeds. He
stated that summer fallow
would reduce the number OF
weeds but was not solution
of the question. He tried corn
and potatoes and found that he
could thus kill the weeds Out
pretty thoroughly between the
rows but not in them except
by too expensive hand work.
Sowing to bronze grass and
timothy held back the weeds
but did not clean them up.
The successful method finally
adopted was to harrow the
ground very early in the sprin g
to get air into it, warm it up
and conserve moisture, in other
words to produce termination
of the seeds. When the weeds
were a quarter of an inch high
the field was thoroughly har-
rowed and, of course, many
thousands of weeds were kill.
ed. 1t was narrowed thorough
ly every time the weeds got a
start until June first. BY that
time the strong growers had
been destroyed. Now he
divided the field into two parts,
sowed one to millet and the
other to barley, quick growing
crops. As soon as these were
cut which was before any of
the French weeds had gone to
seed, the ground was thorough
ly plowed. The next year this
process had to be repeated in
order to clean the other side OF
the furrow slice. The third
year the field was planted to
corn and what few weeds sur
vived were killed. And, best
of all, paying crop was raised
each year.
Live Stock and Crop Rotations
Don't take any rotation and
follow it blindly. said Mr..
Hoverstad. reiterating the ad,
vice given by NJ. b. Johnson.
Go down to the barn and count
the stock before figuring out
the rotation that is best suited
to your farm and YOUR condi.
tions. Then figure reserve.
In the matter of pasture and
meadow or other fodder pro.
ducing area you must have
enough and a reserve. For
your small grains you have a
market the elevator that is
always open but for your corn,
grass, ETC., it is different. You,
live stock is the manufacturing
machinery Through which these
must be marketed. Figure ul
the extent of your manufactur
ing machinery.
People do not keep live stock
for fun. How many here like
to milk cows7 Not many. Blu
you keep live stock because i
pays. AZ q basic Of crop rota
tions, to dispose of commodi
ties without waste and to re
turn proper elements to tn,
soil. you will keep more liv'
stock Both beef and dair,