Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1915-05-30

be brought This amount Of water
Will grow alfalfa In the Rio Grande
valley without rainfall, SO il is pre-
sumed that with the sixteen inches OF
rainfall available In the spring
months, for soaking into and prepar-
ing the ground for planting. and in the
SUMMER, for growing, II will be suf.
iiclent for raising alfalfa and similar
crops In the Bluewater valley.
Results Show prOducti,cncss.
In the last analysis, however, 1t is
mol what can be done, but has been
done and is being done that tells OF
success. The Bluewater valley took
great many first prizes and great
many more second prizes al the state
fair In Albuquerque the year IL had
water In plenty for irrigation. Beans
nave produced as high as 2,1O0
pounds per acre. The farmer re-
Sl43 an acre Beans are a good crop
IN the valley. as they produce well
every yeor and there is steady mar
ket for them at three TO five cents
pound.
Corn produced last year twenty-five
to thirty bushels to the acre.
Oats have produced as high as
seventy-one bushels to the acre. Last
year the average yield IN the valley
was fifty bushels to the acre. The
only irrigation these oats had was
from the flood waters IN the spring,
when the growers soaked the ground.
The valley grows excellent potatoes.
Oats the Heavy Crop.
This year most of the planting is
oats. The reason for this is not hard
10 find. The mines at Gallup. less
than sixty miles away. consume great
quantities Of horse feed; so do the
freighters who make Gallup their
headquarters. The valley. by reason
OF its being the only oat producing
area within many miles, gets the
business because it can lay the feed
down al Gallup cheaper than any
other community can. There IA also
a copper mine at copperton that Is
being worked extensively now and
this uses much of the valleys product.
The same situations provide an in
comparable market for all the valley
produces in the way of foodstuffs. Ev-
cry sort of forage crop that is not
wanted on the farms can be sold in
Gallup at a price that takes full adj
vantage of the long haul freight rates
to Gallup from other production CEN
ters, Every sort of garden stuff has
the same advantage over crops from
other communities.
Gallup Takes All Produce.
So far Gallup has consumed every
item of the valleys product Chat has
been offered it, from chickens and
beef steers to garden truck and hay
in car lots. one man sold 400 pigs
there last year. fattened on his ranch
on feed he raised himself No one in
the valley sells fat livestock except IN
Gallup. The Galluptes' willingness TO
pay nearly as much as foodstuffs from
other places would cost aud give the
business to the Bluewater people, be-
cause IL saves them money, assures
good prices all the time. Friday,
May 2S. chickens sold for two cents
a pound more in Gallup than they did
in Albuquerque. This is just an in
stance: similar ones could be sup
piled in numbers.
As to market competition, since
New Mexico consumes more than 1t
produces, Kansas and Colorado are
the nearest points on the east that
compete with the Bluewater people at
Gallup, and California, whence comes
a large portion of the potatoes used, Is
the nearest point on the west
Topography of the Valley.
The formation of the BMewater
valley is, roughly, an ellipse, with long
arms extending toward the mountains
in several places. On the east lies
Mount Taylor and the range which
takes it's name from it, On he west
are the Zunis. TO the northeast is the
Mesa Redondo and a chain of lesser
hills connecting it to the Taylor range.
Near the upper, or northern end. the