The weekly messenger. [volume] (St. Martinsville [i.e. St. Martinville] La.) 1886-1948, 1917-03-10
Waste LANDS SHOULD
PRODUCE LIVE STOCK
Aiiuvlal Lands in Pasture Carry Near.
" Two Head Of Cattle per Acre Nine
Months in Year-Cut Over Pine
Lands, Properly Fenced and Improv-
d, Also Make Valuable Pastures

Statistics show that only about Is
DER cent OF the lands in Louisiana are
in cultivation; the remaining 50 per
cont includes abandoned farm lands,
timber lands, the cut-over pine belt,
a considerable area Of swamp land
along the rivers, and large strip Of
marsh land along the coast.
Even in the better cultivated Sec
tions there is always an abundance OF
land which is not cultivated every
year, and when these lie in the allu-
vial plains or smaller river valleys
they are almost invariably clothed in
q wonderful sod of Bermuda grass
and white clover, with smaller tracts
OF lespedeza, Johnson grass and many
other useful forage crops intimately
mixed with liberal growth Of weeds,
briars and underbrush. 1t is also ap-
parent to anyone that from early
spring to late fall the great bulk of
this pasturage goes almost entirely to
waste because of the lack Of sufficient
cattle or other animals to Craze it of
In a way to return a profit to the own
er The cut-over pine lands and hill
sections Of the state are generally COW
cred with a natural growth Of the
sedge grasses, some of the wild le-
gumes and varying amount Of un-
derbrush, which increases as one goes
toward the northern part of the state.
II would be almost impossible to esti-
mate the amount Of natural wealth
which is wasted In not properly util
hing these spontaneous growths for
live stock production. as there II IN
questionably enough Of It to maintain
many hundreds of thousands of cattle
and sheep IL properly used.
While no accurate data IL available
that would show the carrying capacity
Of all classes Of pasturage. It is ose-
tain that the better pastures in tn
alluvial section of the state have q
carrying capacity far in excess of the
ordinary estimates of average land in
Southern states. One pasture Of 200
acres. consisting Of heavy black land
sod with Bermuda and white clover
has carried nearly two head of cattle
TO the acre for nine or ten months
of the years 1915 and 1916. The only
pastures which one sees grazed down
10 where they are really in the best
condition are the small plats about
barns and premises where the mules
and family milk cows have free access
to comparatively small areas.
The carrying capacity of>the cut
over pine and hill lands are, Of
course, not nearly so great. It is
perhaps safe to say, however, that the
poorest Of our pine hills and flats will
carry one mature animal for every five
acres without Improvement, though 1t
is not recommended that they be used
in this way, as all of them can be
greatly improved for pasture purposes
by a small expenditure for seeding
with lespedeza, white and burr clover,
Bermuda and paspalum grasses. II is
quite probable that for at least a gen.
Grafton to come these pine lands are
going to be more useful for stock rails
ing on an extensive basis than for
any other purpose. and when they
have served their purpose in this d.
rection they will be more productive
when cut up into small farms, as they
no doubt will be in due course Of
time.
To look at the question more from
the standpoint Of the individual farm,
casual survey will convince anyone
that the average farmer of Louisiana
owns or controls much more land than
he utilizes for any practical purposes
year after year. These waste lands,
generally speaking, could be made to
pay part of the expenses of the farm
~ they were properly fenced and con-
verted into pasturage for the grazing
OF live stock.-G. z. Nesom, Live Stock
Extension Service, Louisiana State
University.