The Oakley herald. [volume] (Oakley, Idaho) 1908-1961, 1916-03-10

ment OF Agriculture
Under present conditions, says =
new publication of the United States
department of agriculture, Bulletin No.
321. a wire fence ia in many sections
OF the country the only satisfactory
kind for the farmer to construct.
Hedgerows, stone walls and rail fences
are usually expensive to build, re-
Quire much labor to maintain, occupy
excessive ground space and form
breeding places for weeds and insects.
For these reasons the government in
vestigators found that in the north
central states they are in general be-
ing replaced as fast as they become
unserviceable, by wire fencing.
The kind and amount of this fenc-
ing that farm should have will be
regulated largely by the kind OF farm
ing practiced and the size Of the farm
The large farm requires proportion
ately less fence than the small one.
For example, square ten-acre field
requires 16 rods Of fence per acre,
while square field of one acre re-
Quires approximately SO rods. More
over, since the crop rotations on a
small farm usually require as many
fields as those on larger one, the
small farm requires much more divi-
sion fence In proportion to its acreage
then the large one.
TO give satisfactory service a farm
fence must be able to turn all kinds
of animals without injuring them and
to be really economical 1t must pos
sess durability. A short-lived fence
that is erected at a low first cost may
be a very expensive investment
The type Of wire fence to be select
ed will depend on local conditions.
The bulletin already mentioned, which
Is study of conditions in the north
central states, contrasts, for example,
conditions ip western Dakota with
those in. Ohio; In Dakota the stock
are mostly cattle, and large acreages
are devoted to permanent pastures.
Barbed wire fences which will turn
cattle can be constructed much more
cheaply than woven wire fences, and
under such conditions as prevail in
Dakota are almost as satisfactory. The
saving of the few steers that may be
lost as result of wire cuts would not
compensate for the higher cost of
building and maintaining woven wire
fences. On the other hand, in Ohio
the average farm has about 70 of it's
80 acres in crops. Cattle, horses,
swine and sheep are pastured and on
many farms some part Of the land is
always given up to pasture in the
course Of the year Under these con-
ditions the fence must be general
purpose one for which woven wire is
best suited. A barbed-wire fence that
would be adequate for all kinds Of
stock would nearly equal in first cost
q good woven wire fence, and the cost
of it's unkeep would be much greater
In addition there would be the danger
of injury to stock. For this reason
the farmers of Ohio have mostly aban-
doned the use of barbed wire.
In constructing a woven wire fence
1t Is better to economic by the elm
nation Of unnecessary wires rather
than by the selection of light grade
wire. The initial cost Of the heavy
wire is greater but its durability is
more than sufficient to Offset this dis
advantage. the cost Of construction,
exclusive of the wire itself, is prac-
tically the same whether a light grade
of woven wire ia used or a heavier
one, and as the heavier material lasts
30 much longer, this cost is distributed
over a longer time. The repair costs
for the heavier types of fencing are
also less. The influence of these facts
10 shown In the increase in the per-
centage Of heavy wire sold for fencing
purposes In the last five years. On
many farms, however, it Is no. neces-
sary to have close spacing in the
turned more easily than swine, and
where no swine are kept the first cost
of the fence can be materially reduced
by eliminating the wires that are not
needed for the other stock.
Where all classes of stock are kept
\ good general purpose fence is one
which has approximately ten line
wires and total height of about four
feet. The bottom wires are spaced
about three inches apart and strand
of barbed wire is stretched across the
top to prevent stock from putting their
heads over the fence and crowding it
| down The cost of such a fence, con-
structed from durable materials, in
GLIDING posts, wire and labor, is esti-
mated at 1914 cents rod. Its upkeep,
including repairs and interest at Ave
per cent on the average value of the
| investment, will amount to about nine
cents year per rod. To this should
be added the interest on the land
which the fence occupies. 1t has been
calculated that each rod of wire fence
withdrAws abox& 100 square feet from