The Delta independent., 1917-10-05
LETTER OF INTEREST.
FROM &. ". STATES.
FORMER RESIDENT WRITES CON-
CERNING EXPERIMENTS MADE
tN ,OArO ALONG Day FARMING
LlNGo-oUGoEoTS WE TRY lT.
Dultor Independent.

september spent several udyS in
LENA county. after an absence OF ii
numDer OF years 1 was greatly i'm
pressed with the countys advance
ment along many lines. / saw many
OF the old-timers of the county; they
looked little oldder but | found
their hearts We're beating true to old
time friendships as well as true to
the ideals OF present day American
/ ism.
Since returning to my home in Idaho
have felt it a duty to write few
lines to the people there with your
permission upon the subject of Dry
Farming.
The reader will at once ask. what
does a physician know about dry
farming?" All | can say is that with
observation, and a little practical ex.
perience with dry farming in this
part of Idaho, makes me believe that
some sections of Delta county could
be successfully dry farmed. l lived
in Delta county nearly twenty wears
and know conditions in all parts of
the county. Some of the high mesa
lands which in the spring come out
green with bunch grass and other
vegetation could with proper prepara-
tion be made to raise what we term
in this country dry farm grain. If
such upon experiment is found to be
the case it would add materially to
the resources of that country.
Not many years ago all the grain
raised in this county in Idaho was
raised under irrigation Today ninety
per cent of the grain is raised upon
non-irrigated farms The irrigated
farms are given over to more inten
sive farming principally to beet, al
falfa and fruit growing.
Some of the upland skirting the
Grand mesa, like lands in the region
of the North Fork of the Gunnison
and Crawford could be believe made
to yield hundreds of thousande of
bushels of dry farm grain If the prin-
ciples of scientific dry farming were
Tcarefully adhered to. OF course each
community because of climate and al
titude is in a measure a law unto IT.
self but the same underlying princi-
pies of scientific dry farming must
prevail.
IL would be a wonderful boon to
your county if tracts which are now
useless because of lack of irrigation
facilities could be made to raise the
dry farm grain which is so success
FULLY raised in this part of Idaho and
Northern Utah.
1t seems to me that some exneri-
menting upon a small scale at first
should be undertaken in that county.
Many farmers here claim that land
which will produce luxuriant growth
OF sage brush will produce dry farm
"heat. Every year in this part of
Idaho see them breaking up new
tracts of sage brush land and plant
ing to wheat. Many of the hillsides
which would be impossible of irriga-
''''' "'S siSiuiiS from 10 TO 80 push
hels of wheat per acre
The past three or four years the
seasons here have been unusually dry
and many farmers. and good ones. are
only securing half yields as compared
with the wet years but there has been
no total failure of dry farm grain to
my knowledge in thirteen years.
While in Delta county last month
talked with a number of men upon
this question and number Expressed
themselves as satisfied that some
sections of the county could be sue
cessfully dry farmed
Any farmer interested in this aues.
ton can secure some valuable sug-
gestlons through the Department Of
Agriculture, Washington Farmers
Bulletin No. 769, entitled Growing
Grain on Southern Idaho Dry Farms.
issued by the Department gives a very
comprehensive review of this aues.
tion.
Before I close believe ] will say
] know little besides theory as l
own couple of farms myself out
In this country and have had a little
practical experience
GEO. w. STATES.