The Lamar register. [volume] (Lamar, Colo.) 1889-1952, 1917-01-03
ALFALFA is KING
And Prowers County Is His Throne
and the Richest Part of His
Dominions

perts on the quantity and value of
Colorado crops shows that alfalfa is
the agricultural king of the state by
a wide margin, leading his next near
est competitor, sugar beets, by many
millions of dollars, and Prowers coun-
ty although comprising only small
portion of the irrigated area and farm
ing population of the state, produced
about ten per cent of the alfalfa crop
and is the great center of the industry
and the manufactures dependent there
on
1t is impossible to get anything
like exact figures as to the tonnage
or value Of the crop owing to so many
thousands Of tons being fed at the
ranches without weighing, and the
value also varied from about S7.00 in
the field at the start of the season up
to $500 at the high point. 1t is
fair to say though that the average
value was a little better than so per
ton in the field. Owing to the big de-
mand of the feeders and meal mills
at home very little baled alfalfa hay
has been shipped out of the county,
probably the smallest amount in the
past ten years, but in every other way
the consumption has been greater than
ever before and in spite Of the big
crop the close Of the season will see
less Of the crop still on the farms
than any previous year.
The largest consumers Of the big
crop have been the alfalfa mills, and
Of these Prowers county has twelve
that are grinding for the general mar
ket besides a number Of small private
ones that grind for farm consumption.
This is larger number Of mills than
any other section Of the state of sew
eral times its area can boast, and
owing to their large capacity they
produce more meal than all Of the
rest Of the state combined.
The Denver Alfalfa Milling & Pro-
ducts Co. is the greatest producer Of
alfalfa meal in the country and of
their five mills four are located in
Prowers county and have been run
ming night and day shifts for the
past six months. They have bought
close TO fifty thousand tons Of alfalfa
hay in Prowers county besides draw
ing large quantities from other sec
tions Of the state to be manufactured
here. For this hay they have paid
the Prowers county farmers almost a
half million dollars, and have also had
n heavy pay roll each month for their
large number OF employees. At the
other eight mills of the county al
though several are much smaller, there
has probably been nearly as great a
quantity Of hay purchased from the
farmers, the big May valley mill alone
taking over ten thousand tons. All
these mills are now nearing the close
Of their runs except the farmers mill
at Big Bend which is just now ready
to operate aand has supply of hay
contracted for 80 day run.
The big feeding operations of this
season including nearly a quarter mil
lion sheep and lambs, and many thous-
and head Of other stock for the mar
kets has taken many thousands of
tons of alfalfa hsy as it is the chief
ration for the stock. Then the great
dairy industry is using up other thous-
ands of tons, anad turning it into
golden stream through the milk con-
densery at Lamar. As alfalfa is the
backbone Of the dairy industry it was
Prowers county's supremacy as
producer Of alfalfa that induced the
Helvetia company to put a plant here
and bring the rapid development
which always follows the introduction
Of scientific dairying into the farm
ing sections.
These various operations have in
all probability taken as much of the
big hay as the meal mills, and it has
brought the farms at least as good
financial results, so that it is a safe
estimate to place the big alfalfa crop
of 1916 in Prowers county at some
where between s1,500,000 and $4,000
900, and II the pasture it provides
was included it would reach the latter
figures. This means that the one crop
has produced an amount equal TO over