The Covington leader. (Covington, Tenn.) 18??-current, 1921-08-11


/ Abandoned Farms.
! (By 7. f. Peck, Commissioner or
Agriculture.l
In my opinion no better oppOr-
tunity is open to young men with a
practical knowledge of agriculture
and character Of soils than that Of
buying neglected farm lands and im-
proving them, either for permanent
homes or for developing the farms
and selling. A farm in a good state
of cultivation viii sell for far more
than the price it can be purchased
in its neglected condition and the
cost to put it in a good state Of cul-
tivation. ] know this is true, be-
cause have repeatedly bought neg
lected farms, improved them and
sold them for more than double the
price / paid for them. / also made
the crops cultivated pay practically
all cost Of putting them in condition.
When | began my capital was
small and | had to begin in a small
way. | remember my first purchase
was rs acres. | paid SITS for the
tract. built cottage for Sl25
and my own labor. cleaned up the
place; cultivated one crop ON it and
sold it for $1,000. My next purchase
was 65-acre tract. / put it in
shape and cleared $4,000 on it. My
next purchase was a farm Of 373
acres for $4,000. ! kept it three
years, improved it, made the money
On IT spent for improvement and sold
it for $1,000. Another tract l
bought for $4,000, double crop pro-
duction on it per acre, and sold it
for 100000. Either of the last two
farms mentioned would sell today
for 5000 | have bought and sold
more land than the average man.,
and do not know Of person / sold
to who did not sell for d profit ifI
they wanted to sell.
Of course. 1t is necessary to know
soils and how to build them. There
is land that lies we'll that would not
buy, because it is hard to rebuild and
hard to hold when rebuilt. There is
unlimited possibilities for develop
ment in our red clay or limestone
soils. | have taken fields that have
been allowed to wash in deep gull
lies, filled the gullies with brush
and plowed them in until / could
cross them with any team and pillow.
| would locate hillside bitches to
take care of the water to prevent !,
washing, break and subsoil the land
in the fall and seed to rye and Grim
son clover, using every ounce Of ma
Rure | could get, spreading it broad
cast, working it IN the surface when
the seed bed. / would get
some pasture during the winter and
when the land was dry enough, TAX
ing everything off for the spring
growth. This | would turn under
early in May and seed to soy beans,
using $50 pounds of is per cent.
acid phosphate, When bhe beans
were ready to turn under in the fall,
| would plow them under and apply
two tons of ground limestone per
acre and seed to wheat, using 100
pounds Of rs per cent. phosphate.
On one plot threshed 43 bushels OIL
wheat per acre. / found | could
take good CLAW subsoil, break 1T
deep during the fall, apply manure
to help dry out the rye and crimson
clover, let the frost and soil water
disintergate the subsoil and make
plant food BY growing rye
and crimson clover in winter and SOW
beans on peas iii summer, turning
all under and thoroughly mixing the
vegetable matter with the broken
UP suhsoil | could have soil that
could grow profitable crops in a
short time.
Nature teaehes us some valuable
lessons IL we will look for them.
When land was cheap it was the Gus
ioIo PUG pueI qs7IJ din 1g9Io o. uuol
i to death and abandon it and clean
lp more just ais soon ais we ahan-
loned it, nature stepped in to re-
ouild il and make it fit for culti-
yation.
Prices Of lard during the war
period were inflated, but found
hat period good time to sell, but
low lana can be bought at prices
hat, with intelligent methods Of
can be made To pay d
'rofit on the investment. Neglected
ands can be bought more advantage
ously than those in high state Of
ultivation, and Ultimately a greater
'roportionate profit can be realized.
never see neglected farm with
good subsoil without wanting to
ret held Of it ard make It what it
ould and should ne. AS our popu
alton increases the demand for
God and clOthine will increase. We
an not do as orr forefathers did
axe up and clear virgin land. 1t is
Il taken up. 0r~ task win Ia to re-
uild the neglecfeA land If INTEL
GENTLY done. it aan be made profit
bic To the n who knows soils
repeat. there Is treat possibilities
Or profit. and sh work is 4 dis
net service r. the communitv and
the state. I rent to see al the
eglected land ID the state reclaimed.