Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-11-25
AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION
DR. ANDREW M. SOULE
~ DIR. ANDREW M. SOULE

III LIN 7N OAL w VA OOCLA
Of potatoes and of cattle have beer
shipped from Spalding county, but
nothing has helped as many indi
v.dually and has resulted in sc
much good as the shipping of chick
ems.
Cooperative Marketing
The REIMBURSEMENT period has
brought about economic conditions
practically all industries, and agri
culture has been the worst sufferer
of them all. These times of stress
are very trying on the tillers of the
soil, and under such conditions, it is
often difficult to determine the prop.
CT course of procedure.
Many remedies have been suggest.
ed for the solution of our agr4cul.
tural problems, but the one which
has been most universally accepted
is cooperative marketing. Co-opera
ton is by no means new in Amer
lean agriculture, nor is it just max
ing it's advent into Georgia. The
Georgia Fruit exchange has been in
operation for a dozen years, and we
have truckers associations, which
have operated successfully since
1916. Likewise We have been selling
live stock comparatively for six
years. y
The only new phase of co-opera.
ton attendant to this revival of IN
terest in cooperative marketing is
found in the organization of growers
of staple commodities, occupying a
VIDE territory. Organization along
commodity lines has been followed
IN this country for more than twenty
years. The. college is in full sym
pathy with cooperative marketing.
Our specialists and county agents
nave long encouraged the practice.
A recent decision of the supreme
court of this state, which defines
county agent activities, specifically
deslgnateS marketing as a county
agent function.
Our great interest in this verv
important work does not blind us to
the fact that cooperative MARKETING
EaS its limitations. The Wisest have
yet much to learn about co-operation,
Much that is known to leaders and
men of experience must become
more general information among
growers before cooperation can &C.
ccmpl-sh what even it's most con.
sentative advocates expect. While,
as already indicated, we are strong
advocates Of cooperation, we have
tr4ed to avoid overseeing the idea.
In exercising this precaution, it may
be that our position has been mis-.
understood by very honest and zeal.
GUS advocates Of cooperative move
mentS.
The organization Of growers in
specialized lines of agriculture has
Teen successful practice in this
and other countries for a long time.
Such organizations are particularly
successful in the handling of fruit
and truck crops. A careful study
OF the work of these Organizations
reveals the fact that their greatest
accomplishment is in the Improve
ment and Standardization of the COM
modities handled. Next in impor.
tance is distribution. Our forces wei.
come the opportunity to cooperate
with associations Of growers in the
improvement of products grown in
| Georgia. While We have been work
ing along this line for number OF
years, and feel that substantial prog.
ress has been made, we believe that
with many crops production is as
much problem as marketing.
Organization work is now under
such Roadway in Georgia until it
seems that practically all Of ourslead
lr.g crops are soon to be sold co,
operatively. This includes commod
tiles all the way from king cotton
to the lowly peanut.
Alfalfa N,,I4;uo+ g., l., So,,1I, To,rrSo
J. J. L., Albany, Ga, writes:
Is it practical to grow alfalfa On
/ these south GeoL gia lands? My
land is mostly red l1am, but
some of it has few inches of
sandy loan soil. hut all has a
splendid red clay subsoil. I
would like to know how 20 start
intelligently with this Crof.
Alfalfa seems to be quite well
adapted to most Of the red lands in
Georgia. 1t prefers a sdeen friallt
soil and one which Of curse natural!
ly drains we'll. 1t thrives best ap
Darently on the rather stiff clay
lands of the state. We nave had tx
celent success in undertaking its cGl
tivation here at the college. There
are areas on our college farm that
have been cut for more than ten
years. The average yield for five
cuttings has been better than foIr
tons per acre. Alfalfa has never SOL
for less than $25 ton. Thus you
can see that the returns per acre
have been equivalent to $500. II
costs about $40 to $50 to establish
a stand of alfalfa, but it is a cheap
investment in the long run provided
you handle the crop satisfactorily
Our experience in attempting to es
| tablsh alfalfa in your section OF
! south Georgia has not been alto
gether favorable, and we could not
with our present knowledge under.
take its cultivation on a large scale
We believe you should try a smaI
area this fall, however. You could
afford to start say with five or ten
acres. The land should be prepar-
ed Immediately. If it has been seed
I ed to coWpeas, so much the better
Turn them under, apply not less
than two tons Of finely ground, raw
| limestone. Try and have the land in
! shape to fallow from September Is
! to October Is. If seasonal conditions
are favorable in your section, SOW
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