American Falls press. [volume] (American Falls, Idaho) 1907-1937, 1915-09-16

ImpovIng : Splendid Record.

grew 1O3 bushels Of corn on hs club acre In 1913
his achievement was regarded as one OF excep-
tional merit A hundred -bushel yield In bis locali-
ty is q rarity, ard no had good reason to be proud.
He was not content with this. however, and en-
tered the lists asuln last year, determined to I'm
prove upon his record II possible. He figured that
with the previous years experience he ought at
least to equal the yield and probably could cut
down his cost OF production, which would be just
as much Of an achievement as Increasing his
number of bushels.
How we'll he did this is shown by the report he
turned into Roy p. Stillwell, county superintend-
ent. In 1918 It cost him s41 to produce his acre
of corn; last season his cost Of production was
s3s.15, a clear gain OF s4.s5. And he not only
ecualed the yield of the year before but added
an additional ten bushels to his previous figure,
his exact yield being 1913 bushels. Where 1t
cost him 1913 cents a bushel In 1913, he grew his
corn for 31.9 cents last year.
Nor was this all. In his first effort his crop
was worth s107. 20, partly due to a demand for
the corn as seed. This gave him a net profit of
t66.2b for his seasons efforts. Last season his
corn was worth s121.05 on the local market which
left him $84. 80 to add to his bank account after
all expenses had been paid.
His achievement was sufficiently great to win
for him the championship Of the state and a free
trip to Washington. His qdiet statement that he
trapped for moles and got them" will go a long
why toWdfu tApiuihihb bin but,pop WI hH n''N
work for the two seasons shows a determination Of
purpose that will not admit defeat.
Building for the Future.
When q club member fails to /ecure any OF the
larger prizes Il does not necessarily mean that his
work was not a success. The corn-club boy who
studies his plot, who knows where his work could
be improved, and who knows why II Is necessary
to do the things he does, is doing more for him
self and for club work than many n state champion
who won because of better climatic conditions.
Edward Petranek. OF Danvers, Minnesota, Is
credited with having written the best story OF
How / Made My Crop that was received In the
state.
"The object OF this club" he writes. "is to I'M
prove ourselves, our farms, and our community.
SO far we have succeeded fairly well. ] plowed
my ground In the fall 30 as to let the frost act
upon II during the winter. as the freezing ana
thawing actions pulverize II thoroughly. This
gave me n chance to start cultivation early In the
spring 30 as to get ahead OF the weeds, since half
of the job Is to eradicate the weeds.
about a week later ! disked the plot and con-
tinued II until complaining time. which gave me
n clean seed bed, also conserved more or the
moisture which the corn plant would need later.
Directly after planting | narrowed the ground,
repeating the operation In four or five days 80 as
to make a dust mulch. My corn was up In ten
days, 30 using n corn cultivator l gave 1t two
deep civilizations and three shallow ones. The
reason for the shallow cultivation is to save the
young roots which are Just starting to form a
network Just beneath the surface.
about September fifteenth l went into the
field with a bag over my shoulder and picked my
seed corn.
my acre yielded I'LL bushels. OF which I saved
sixty bushels OF seed. which I value at two dollars
= bushel. Then l have ~ffty-one bushels OF feed
corn worth sixty cents a bushel. which gives me
q total Of $4,000.
aT,ha cnot ~ nrod,,cioy N acra eqk an nr
t~hirty-one cents a bushel. which gives me "A net
profit Of 1880.
"In summing up what I have gained from the
corn club work l will name the following points:
Il. l have 1880 in clear money.
~. I have learned the fundamental principles
Of raising the corn plant, which will help me to
raise more corn per acre as a farmer.
%. The value Of making a close study OF any
business proposition.
=. ] am not satisfied with my results this year.
and know ! can do better"
This young man ranked eleventh in Central
Minnesota last season. He has been In the con-
test three years.
Winning Under Strong Competition.
vyrle Croweli. Of Walthill. Nebraska. state corn
club champion for 1914, is n born optimist. when
first enrolled" he says. "the boys told me there
wasn't any use trying. but I thought l would show
them."
He grew n.nety-two bushels and forty-six
pounds OF Rcid's Yellow Dent corn on his acre,
at a cost Of $12.7S. which was Just a little bit
better than any other boy was able TO do, and
besides the championship he won a free trip to
washington. In addition, no won first prize In the
single-ear exhibit and second prize In the ten
ear EXHIBIT At the waithii fair. He has established
. local reputation that will be Of great value TO
him In marketing his seed corn, which he says
should be selected In the field before frost. He
was careful to test his seed before planting
Owing to climatic and soil conditions the state
10 divided Into the eastern and western districts,
and the club members Of the district are not In
direct competition with those Of the other except
for the state championship.
OF the first twelve places In the eastern dis
trict Thurston county secured six. Elmer Loren.
ger wa3 declared by those making the awards
10 rank second for the district, his yield exceeding
that Of vyrie Crowell, although his cost produc
ton was somewhat higher.
The records Of the Elk boys make an intersstin,
study:
YIELD COST PROFIT
Blu. Lbs.