Pine Bluff daily graphic. (Pine Bluff, Ark.) 1893-1942, 1914-12-27
Prepared in the Dairy Division of
States Department of Agriculture.

Prepared in the Dairy Division of
States Department of Agriculture.
In many sections of the South one
crop cotton-grnwing system prevails.
Certain evils produced by this system
are very .foroibly demonstrated on
many farms, among which are Cd a
cash income but once a year, (2) an
unequal distribution of labor through
cut the year, and CD impoverishment
of the soil.
Dalrying Provides a Steady Cash In
come.
A One-crOp cOtton-g growing system
forces a great many farmers either to
borrow money With which to make the
crop or to- buy supplies on time
basis High rates of interest must
be paid The merchant who furnishes
the supplies also frequently does bust
ness on borrowed capital What the
South needs is not the abandonment
O! ccttcn growing, but the weaving in
to the farming system OF something
that will in itself be profitable and
also furnish ready cash throughout the
year. Dairying meets these require
ineuts. 1t is adaptable to the condi-.
tions of the large and the small farm
er, whether he owns or rents the land.
Dairying, properly conducted. is
profitable business and safe and
steady line of farming affected less
by uncertainties Of weather extremes
or late season than many cropping
systems. 1t is 90 cash business, fur
nishing a sure and reliable income,
puts the farm on a cash basis, and
thus saves tie high rates bf interest
paid for money On short loans and the
High prices charged for supplies
bought on credit. On large proper
ton of the farms in the South small
herds CT good dairy cows will furnish
enough ready cash to finance the MAX
ing Of tho cotton crop and at the end
OF the year leave the money received
from the cotton as clear cash profit.
Such plan, more than anything else,
will eliminate the old lien system.
which keeps many farmers one year
behind.
Dairying Equalixes the Distribution Of
Labor Throughout the Year.
Dairying furnishes profitable en-
distribution of labor throughout the
year The gathering of bedding. haul
ing of manure, repairing of fences.
etc, furnish paying work for the farm
hands at seasons when, on account Of
wet weather, help is not needed in the
cotton fields Sor when steady work is
scarce or lacking {altogether. With
cash coming in every week or month
better class of labor can be employ
ed. 9F4
On farms where there are children
of years and older, dairying fur
rishcs them with profitable employ
ment which does mot interfere with
their attendance at fschool. They CAN
assist in milking and other work be-
fore and after school and in this way
contribute materially to the income
Of the farm. s mSg q. ss.
DaiIying Improves the Soil.
Dairying furnishes large quanaities
Of manure for the cotton fields and
thereby returns to the land about %
per cent of the fertilizing value Of the
crops which the cows have consumed.
Likewise the cOttonseed mael. so
largely used as "a initrOgenous fertiliz-
or. is one of the best milk7producing
feeds and lcses onlysa small percent
age of its fertiAzing value when fed
to cows. Every garden spot in the
South is a manument, to the value of
manure. .t+,
A good system of dairy farming
rests upon crop rotation, which in
itself restores fartilityato the land, for
the raising OF feed is necessary to the
profitable Keeping Of cows, and the
best feeds for them are the legumi-
nous crops. such as soy beans,
vetches. lespedeza' and other clovers,
velvet beans, alfalfa, etc. These crops
are eninently soil builders. since
they gather nitrogen from the air.
Nitrogen is the, most expensive ele-
ment of fertilizers, and it is a valua-
BILE part of ration FOR dairy COWS.
The rotation Of crops and the manure
from the COWS continually going to
the land will soon double the produce
ton of Gotten per acre and at the
same time decrease theafertlizer bills.
This icnreased production will enable
the farmer to raise on a smaller area
of land as much cotton as, or more
than, he does at present.
Dairying Provides n Market for Feed
Cows.
llairying furnishes a gocod homo
market for all the feed crops which
can he grown on the farm. In rural
districts and small towns the local
markets for most of these crops are
very limited. and often times the COM
parativelg small amounts possessed
by the farmer make it Improbable to
transport them to the larger markets
This is especially true If the roads are
bad. In such cases dairy COWS fur