The weekly times-record. (Valley City, N.D.) 1912-1922, 1914-02-05

of various kinds, and a few sections
were sown with a crop OF clover to
turn under. It took lot OF work
He started by putting in twenty OF
thirty acres of wheat and oats, some
corn, five or six acres OF potatoes
and a small field OF buckwheat. This
was about the usual acreage of crops
each year, with, Of course, a piece OF
meadow and pasture on the uplands.
BY no means would he plant the same
crop in the same field twice in sue.
cession, unless it was buckwheat.
which was quick growing and which
was often planted on piece OF
rough ground, and under which a crop
of clover was set to be turned under
the next spring or summer. At the
same time he started to put some.
thing back on the land and this is how
it was accomplished.
Put Something Back.
He built a large barn in the center
of the 100 or more acres of bottom
land. All crops were stored in this
barn at harvest time. Here in this
band, and in the lots adjoining, was
where all the stock was kept and fed
during the winter months, and in the
spring all the manure, and straw that
had been tramped down and rotted,
was hauled out on piece of the
ground. This usually made enough
to cover in good shape five or six
acres. This newly MANFRED piece of
ground was usually planted to po'
tatoes. Year after year the manur'
ing process was rotated the same as
the crops, with the result that each
year we we're adding to our acres of
fertiliZed land. In place OF a FEW
bushels of wheat to the acre we were
able to get around the 20 bushel mark,
which was considered wonderful for
that section. Corn ana other crops
of course were in proportion. This
was accomplished on land that had
been almost run out, and which would
have been in fine condition had a
little care been taken years before
by returning something to the soil.
In this you are shown some of the
advantages of live stock.
On this old farm we always kept
eight or ten head Of horses; as many
Or more cows; several yearling and
two-year old calves; hundred head
of sheep; as many hogs and, of course
a large flock of chickens and turkeys.
By careful feeding there was always
ample feed for the stock, above a
small amount of grain sold annually.
The inducement. to raise live stock
was not nearly so great have seen
my father sell fine draft horse
three years old for $50 and $50,
worth SITS easy today, while horse
that would bring 500 was consid-
cred fine one indeed. Cattle were
also in proportion. Butter usually
sold for ten cents per pound and ten
cents per dozen for eggs was con-
sidered good. Most or them went
for six and eight cents.
Kept Land in Shape.
Going farther back in the rotation
matter l will tell you what have no.
ted on my grandfather's farm. He
had about 100 acres of land, which
he could farm. He was farming 1t be-
fore the civil war, raised family Of
seven or eight children on it, gave
them all a good education and when
he passed away was worth little
money besides giving each of his chill
dren little money to start for them.
selves. All about him were farms
equally as we'll located, but which
were practically abandoned and grown
up to weeds and nature was practic-
ing rotation to reclaim the soil. On
his farm there were few weeds, the
fence rows were clean and a general
appearance of prosperity prevailed.
His idea of farming was that if a man
expected to make a success Of it he
must work about 300 days in the year,
which is about the same amount of
time a city business man puts in at
his desk or in his store. He raised
stock, he rotated and cultivated, and
l have heard him say that crop OF
! weeds cost just as much as a crop Of
grain.
Live Stock.
As l have stated before my father
always aimed to keep about as much
live stock as he could produce feed for
Among the live stock were couple
of good brood mares, which made 6
splendid team of work animals, witt
the exception of few weeks whe1
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