The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-12-14

icrons from every acre" said. NEVER
,oss than three" he said, "adn some
less than three" he said, land sohe-
times four or five, counting summer
cron which is hay. OF course we 90
NOT hit it every year on every crop
,bougb we seem to be destined to do
SO this year."
Mr.. Davis then proceeded to tell me
mat this wonderful land that VIII
raise three four or five crops year
cost him a total of 5000 per acre.
which will give some idea of his IN
vestment OF course this means the
improved land, and includes clearing
and the irrigating and thing system
hut does not include the first cost OF
the land The overhead irrigation
costs $3.50 per acre, the tilling $lOo
more. and | presume the balance was
made up in fencing, ditching, etc.
Certainly not a proposition for a poor
man unless he works up as Mr.. Davis
has done.
He tells me that he makes good
money even for his hay crop, getting
two tons to the acre, which has a val
ue of s25 a ton, which costs practically
nothing to grow. He plows under the
stubble from the last cutting and this
helps enrich the soil, putting back
rather than taking from it. He car
ries 16 head of work horses, 4 head OF
mich cows and 100 head of hogs, feed
ing them all from the place and nav
ing hay to sell. He tells me that he
has never sold any of his Jersey cows
for less than 500, and he says that
the raising of stock is about the most
profitable thing a man can go into
in Florida. He says that every big
trucker should keep not less than ~
head of stock, as they work in well
with a truck farm, and can live on the
residue of the place. He says: II can
keep hogs for six months without the
cost of a penny by feeding them the
waste of the farm, and I raise corn
enough to carry them through, and l
begin to kill them off as soon as feed
gets scarce"
Mr.. Davis has the reputation OF
keeping up with planting, storage and
marketing conditions al over the coun-
try all the year through. He tells me
that he takes all the government bull
letins bearing on crop conditions. I
asked him WIN, if ever, the vegetable
growers would get together here in
Florida for the purpose of marketing
their crops as part of the citrus
crop is now marketed, and he said that
it would not come in his time. He
claimed that it was feasible, but to be
success the bulk Of the crop pro-
duced must be inside, and there must
be uniform method of packing
adopted. AS it is now each farmer
has his own method, though they use
practically the same carriers.
l asked him about how he marketed
nd hn kr
"stung" by dishonest handlers? He
told me that he did not get burned
any more, and that he now usually has
a man at the other end in the market
season to look after his interests, and
he said that there were some receivers
who he knew so we'll and trusted so
implicitly that he sold to the open"
and payment is made by check on
arrival. He does not sell subject to
inspection at the other end, the buy
er must inspect in Florida or take his
chances. Most of his produce is en-
gagged in advance, and usually the firm
has man on the ground to watch the
packing and loading. Buyers with
whom he is not so we'll acquainted
must deposit the value of the car in
Barlow bank before it moves, the
money to be released on the arrival of
the car. Sometimes he makes a con-
tract with the buyer to plant certain