Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1916-07-16
Farmers OF ROANOKE
MAKING GREAT STRIDES
Demonstration Work Has Brought
- About Many Changes in the
County.
MUCH ALFALFA NOW GROWN
Eight Cooperative Clubs Buy. for
81 Cash. Fertilizers. Irvine. towpeas,
:; Salt and Numerous Other Com
modities That Are Needed.

80. SALEM VA, July lS-Eoanok' IS
Comparatively small county. hoins
Etwenty miles in length and about -FOUR
Rsreen in width, and containing l95.5sl
4 saores. The surface IS mountainous =
some parts. all the boundaries being
q crests Of mountain ranges The
streams Of the county run I'm various
S .iirections. part OF the water going
! north into the James while the itoa-
.noie River flows to tho southeast,
S The soil in Roanoke County j. above
S g.fe average in fertility III" county
4has almost all the different types az
soil, and most Of it undertake Win
good red clay Sutsoil which has
Ntendency IN hold tho improvements.
Corn. wheat. oats and rye az" the
: p flncipal cereal crops Grass alfnlf
& peas and SOFA beans thrive here.
4 = u. M. Gsh. who has been employed
3 ,fof six Years as county demon>.ra-
Sttion agent. operating under tn" DC
spai tment OF !\griculture OF 'he United
States, states that the demonstration
d work has been Growiuc during the
siperiod named. 1t IS certain that
demonstration work has done worders
/. IN awakening the farmers II the
county to the Importance Of grass cul-
4 .sure, stock raising. dairy deveIopmont
4 and other things that pertain to iNen-
q. tieth century agriculture
9 CALLS ALFALFA KING
or ALI. THE GRASSES
s Mr.. Gish is OF tn" opjnion ;ha; n!
81 talfa is the King Of all the grasses.
He says:
=, II have grown alfalfa ON ny farm
successfully in small way, while
si-some of my ncirhhors have from tor'y
* to 100 acres. ! also have seeded TO
alfalfa hundreds Of acres FOR other
& -Sarmers In varying soils in many Soc
4 tons of the county The growing Of
- Ia F,.b 10,
st.of system than many Of our most
~ successful farmers employ IN their
< work. 1t takes about two years 10
Il get the land in tho right condition for
alfalfa. There are l.02o acres Of al
& .falfa growing in tho county to-day,
: as compared with twcnty-sevon acres
~ six years ago. Roanoke County Won
third place in alfalfa in the world
y class at the Worlds Fair At Dallas,
Tex, two years ago"
50 Mr.. Gish says the old method OF seed
SinE grass in this county was with
nurse croDs-with wheat, rye. oats and
Y heat-sometimes getting good
y results but too often 1t failed Since
+ the majority Of tho farmers have been
q ipracticinr seeding grass alone in An
4 gust or September on wcll-prcparcd
seed beds and using lime. they &c,
q better results, making from two &c
81 three times greater yields per acre
b There have been seeded under improve,
H m e IN odS 3,oiI acres.
= DR. +. a Schubert. assistant SUPER
s7tendent OF the agricultural depart
s ment of the Norfolk and Western
& Railway, states that his records show
& there was only half as much ha,
shipped Into the county during TN.
past year there was five wears ago
MANY DEMONSTR tTIONS
ARE HELD EACH YEAR
lssfg Mr. Gish says he has from forty !,
8s nftY adult corn demonstrations - year
Is and forty TO forty-tve boys arc in the
y corn club He is also working with
y boys and girls piG and poultry clubs
The Chamber OF Commerce Of Roa
noEe city entertains the members Of
the bows corn club each year abou,
December They extend their invi.
tsrons 10 the members Of the pig and
poultry and girls canning club this
Being asked for further details o,
tae Demonstration work. the aeen, re
piled:
am running some experiments thi
year with Sudan grass. also with IN.
different varieties of SOFA beans Anon,
1000 acres in the county are seeda,
10 coWpeas and sofa beans for hsv
we are using, on an average 100 car;
f % lime each year, and have ser
marked results from its use We have
b eiGht farmers cooperative clubs II
~ the county - huy:I6r cash. co-orsr
ii lively. fertilizers.-tv.tne. 'cowpeas SEA-
S salt and anything else. needed on ~.
farm have encouraged the hu,ldtr.
s. or si!os, and there are in the county
y AT present IL"
kt5 COUNTY HAS WON
s3s MANY FAIR PRIZE,
., Roanoke County won FIRST prize a,
i the Virginia State Fair az Richr;onr
ls for the best county EXHIBIT, 10, ~
G years 1911, 1912, 1919. 1918 and ,sit
q In addition. the county Won the We,
Is moreland Davis silver ,ronhv .,,r
S valued at $3.50. for four successN!.
Is Years.
81 There are many WAYS IN which ~.
M county agent can be Of valuable szr
h wee 70 the farmers Some Of ines,
3 are seeding of small grains. for,..
S crops. cover crops summer leyyn7c
e 2otato culture, truck and carder
VI crops and sugar cane and the r9ri,s
~ Ter orchards. tie hone mixinc Of IA
IA9 tinzef pr"i.r uses Of manure rot.
Il Ton CT crops. drainage, seed saI4c,.o,
.E and Eat,inr IN water systems
rs Along al q these lines MI CO,
is wide awake. and for nearly 81,
81 years has proven 70 ne Of worderfi
" assistance 10 farmers