The log cabin Democrat., 1920-08-17
WILLIAMS TELLS
 OF GOOD FARMING
GEORGIAN AVERAGES HIGH
Farm Inspected On Tour Described and Lessons Drawn-Lands Found
 General Poor.

south Atlantic states in devising meth ods that will make land produce moreD
 That truth is stronger than fic- ton is well proved In the following story.
 A near neighbor of Mr. J. Wade Drake, Anderson, s. C., Route No. :, told me that Mir. Drake harvested 191 bales of cotton for each one hundred acres in cotton and had 800 acres. This statement was verified by a bank CT of Spartanburg, s. C., and further stated that similar yields had been coming from Mr. Drakes farm the past few years.
 l asked his neighbor, s. NJ. Byars, what was the secret of MT. Drake's success. There is no secret as most all the farmers are doing nearly as well'' he replied. So I asked "how do you do it ''
 The following reply is food for thought for all farmers of Faulkner county
 In 1907 We realized that he had to make more yields per acre or quit farming, for it looked as though the market would not rise in proportion to the cost of production, especially when our lands were so poor that it required three and four acres to pro- duce bale of cotton.
 We tried terracing and sowing rye to keep the land from washing away. The terrace broke and the rye died. q thought of similar experi- ences over in Arkansas.) We went back and built the terraces wider, sowed more rye and fertilized it with 200 pounds of fertilizer per acre. This time most all the terraces held and the rye lived through.
 We kept this up some four or five years until we thought our land was fertile enough to grow crimson clov- CT.
 You mean you kept this rye on the land during the winter, turned it under in the spring and followed with out losing a crop on the land?" | asked.
 "Of course, the same was true of the crimson clover I started to tell you about. We fertilzed the clover with as much as 300 pounds of fer tilizer per acre. About this time we discovered that the more clover we turned under the more fertilizer per acre we could use on our cotton.
 How much fertilizer have you un- der your cotton this year," I asked.
 "One ton, and this week the men are 'top-dressing' with 100 pounds of nitrate of soda"
 About this time it began to sprinkle, which recalled that water was a very necessary thing where a great quanti- ty of fertilizer was used, so I asked what was the rainfall per month dur ing June, July and August. An aver age of five inches each month. which We get about as regular as the sea- sons' he replied.
 The rainfall for Faulkner county for these months is, average, 400, 3.57 and 1925 inches respectively. but varies from this in extra dry years. to POS, 0.70 and 090 inches. to extra wet years 3.S1, 3.34 and 3.9S inches. respectively, Which you will note is not as much rainfall our wettest years as they have on an average yearly. Inl other words their rainfall is more de- pendable and it is not so much of a risk to use great quantities of fer tilizer.
 In commenting on this feature of our seasons with MT. Byars he said: Yes that is true, but the more of these cover crops you turn under. the more fertilizer you can use regard less of the rainfall, because these crops, after decaying will help the soil to retain more moisture through the growing season.
 l asked Mir. Byars if he had been west of the Mississippi or in sec ton where they did not produce so much per acre, nor had as great a rainfall as Anderson county, if so what would he advise doing or would do if he lived over here.
 Yes l have been In Arkansas. in fact have relatives over there, and the great mistake they make is in let ting their land wash away. If by| they sow any rye for a winter pasture, they never think that it will be harder for the rye to live through the winter than for the crops during the growing season, so do not fer tlllZe. You know. 1 Would not think of sowing seed which cost me several dollars per acre, added to this the cost of preparation, without using 1000 pounds of fertilizer per acre"
 "Of course you would have to use less he added, but I would certain ly terrace, SOW rye and fertilize it with at least 100 or 200 pounds per acre.
 Suppose you were a small farmer, had to borrow most of your money to make the next crop, what would