South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1917-09-29
SOME TIPS FOR
THOSE WHO LIVE
ON. SANDY SOIL
Is ST. Joseph COunty'S Prob
lem to Make Such Desert
to Bloom and to
Bear.

Interest is. they live and work upon
sandy soil
sand iu soil is Boz some ways AN
advantage. sand also makes the
desert. II IS quite possible 10 tura
s the country hereabout into desert.
u IS possible instead, 70 make the
desert bloom. All this sounds like
poetry. What are the facts?
"O1 much of the typical yellow
sad gray sandy lands Of this re-
eion." SAYS a L.. 5. government docu-
ment TO be explained later "agri-
4 culture in general has been SOME
what backward for q number of
years The farms as q rule have
been urder cultivation for a COM
! paratively long period. The sandy
) soils have been tree 10 hberate the
elements of fertility which have
been gathered in crops and sold of
with 10 provision for keeping mp
production. The period OF heaviest
crop yields and greatest prosperity
i has long since passed. Good houses
these often tell only of former
.hrift In many instances yields
have been 50 reduced that the aver
- farm now fails To pay reason
able income and often affords the
! owner and his family little more
than mere living"
Where is the region in which
these disheartening conditions are
] found In Indiana the northern
tier Of counties contain the largest
areas OF typical sandy lands. but
there arc smaller areas OF some
what better sandy soil i'm Jasper.
White. Pulaski, StaTke ana Marshall
and also in parts of Cass. Fulton.
kosciusko, Whitley and Noble. In
Michigan the principal sandy area is
ia the southwestern part of the
state. though there are some in
southeastern Michigan. and i'm Ful-
ton and Lucas counties i'm Ohio.
Thus it is plain that st. Joseph
county is in the heart Of the sandy
region. that South Bend is the capt.
tai OF this region. and that the prob
lem is our problem more than any
one eise's. Is there a solution for
it7 If South Bend is 20 grow and
ST. Joseph county 20 prosper. there
had better le.
Government experts think there
is remedy. Farmers do not all
ways believe the experts often
times the farmer knows as we'll as
the expert what 70 do. but ne can
not do II for lack of the money
necessary. You might as well ad-
1 wise the consumptive i'm the poor
house 10 travel around the world for
his health as 20 advise the average
farmer To pillow under two success
sive crops. lie cannot do it; he
must make a living for each year
from MS land.
But when an expert talks i'm this
wise. farmers viii listen. The
greatest difficulty lies i'm the start
The real problem is 10 ind a prac-
teal plan whereby "a man ON "a poor
farm. and with limited means. may
begin at once TO make profit. and
from this build up the farm and de-
veIop "A well-balanced and profit
able farm system. To is compare
lively easy to suggest remedies and
20 point out what should be done.
but il is quite another thing 20 make
the money on poor farm 10 follow
GU. these suggestions. II costs
money 20 buy the fertuizing ele-
ments and lime which may be need
ed IL Is expensive 20 grow crops
and pillow them under. IL takes real
cash 20 pay for fences that will turn
live stock There must be some
thing 60 WELD am immediate and
fairly certain and continuous i'm
come How 10 set this ont of "a
depleted farm. and ar the same time
build il M. is the big problem ON
i these sandy land areas
The key 20 the situation is said
10 be soy beans and COW peas. first
for sale as seed and later as feed
for live stock. These crops are said
To offer. under present conditions.
the quickest and surest source of
income on farms in the sandy area.
and 20 make il possible 10 start the
poorest farms on the road 90 better
ment.
Col C. a. Carlisle John Bordner
and BRO. Leo. all of South Bend. are
capable Of advising as 90 a choice
between SOY beans and COW peas.
III fact their services have been ac-
knowledged 10y the United States
government ST. Joseph county
farmers have also iu ". A. Johns.
head OF the new Notre Dame school
of agriculture valuable man FOR
Il consultation. Cow peas and SOY
Beans each have their advantages.
Cow peas for instance. may Dee
sown on sandy lands without in-