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The Commoner
YOL. 15, NO. 9
26
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In the Field of Agriculture
BEYQND THE CITIES
advanced with leaps and bounds in 'string, double string, corn tree,
After tlio cities have hold you,
After their glamor and gleam
Have palled you and spoiled you and
' spoiled you,
It is then for tho country dream
The faith of tho good green country, ' farmer is informc
Its peace and power to sustain
When tho shops and temples havo
fallen
A"nd tho lure of the lights is vain.
After tho cities have worn you,
After their thunder and strife
Have crushed you and rent you and
torn you,
Oh, then for tho country life J
Tho green of the quiet meadows,
Tho peace of the mighty hills;
Tho volco of tho birds mid the shad
ows. Tho runes pf the rippling rills. '
After tho cities havo fed you
On passion and fury and pride;
After the dreamB of their splendor
Havo sickened your spirit and
died
It is then for the beautiful valleys,
Tho far-flung summits, the glen,
That heal us of hovels and alleys
With the beauty God fashioned for
men.
Baltimoro Sun.
tho la3t decade, and much of this im
provement is due to the good work
accomplished at tho experiment sta
tions. There modern methods aro tried
out and when they aro profitable the
Many old farm-
WAYS YOUR EXPERIMENT STA
TION MAY KELP YOU
ing ideas have been proven to be of
little value by the work carried on at
tho experiment station.
The state spends money annually
to further tha interests of the farmer
and it is up to him to take advant
age of the wor!: carried on for his
benefit.
WHY AND HOW TO SECURE GOOD
SEED CORN
Mr. Farmer, are you taking ad
vantage of the experiment station in
your state? If not you are losing
valuable information which is com
piled for your benefit; says Drovers'
Journal.
-Practical farm work is being done
continually at the various experiment
stations of the country -and the re
sults are recorded,- an bulletins on
these experiments' ar,e to be had free.
Even tho oldest farmer is certain
to encounter some puzzling problems,
and by writing to the experiment
station he may have them solved for
him. '
Tho state carries on experiments
for the benefit of the farmers and
those in charge of tho work are only
top willing to give out any informa
tion that Is wanted.
A trip to the experiment station
Will be "well worth your while, as you
The first requisite fpr a good crop
of corn is good seed secured from a
crop that was grown in your locality.
Too often we depend upon imported
seed which invariably brings disap
pointing results for several years, says
John Klinka, agricultural represent
ative of University of Wisconsin Ex
periment station.
Seed corn should be selected, as
far as is possible and practicable in
the district in which it is to be
grown, and about a week before the
first killing frost is expected. In
northern Wisconsin this time usually
falls between tho 10th and 15th of
September. Some where between
these two dates the careful corn
grower will go through his cornfield
and select his seed corn. If the corn
is fairly well matured a light, frost
will not hurt the iusk covered ears
but they should be picked, husked
and put to fire drying the day fol
lowing the frost.
The first test to apply to seed corn
is maturity. In tha northern part of
Wisconsin where every day must be
utilized for ripening a crop the aues-
tion of getting seed that has matured
in our latitude is of prime import
ance. We want a corn that will ma
ture nine years out of every ten and
this corn can only be secured from
our own cornfields by selecting the
best matured ea.j one week before
the usual time for the killing frost.
We want to raise large corn and get
big yields per acre, but maturity
must not be sacrificed for size.
"Having made our selection of
about double tho amount of corn we
frame covered with chicken wire and
boards into which finishing nails
have been driven. In the last meth
od the seed ears are jabbed onto the
nails. This device has the advant
ages over the others. It is inex
pensive and easily made. When the
corn is tested in spring the ears can
be numbered very easily by writing
the figures on the boards below the
ears.
The curing of seed corn Is depend
ent upon two conditions a free
circulation of air and a temperature
above freezing until tho corn is
thoroughly dried These conditions
can best be secured by fire drying.
Open the windows in the room in
which the corn is stored and build a
firo every day until tho corn is
thoroughly dried. After it has been
thoroughly dried freezing will not in
jure its vitality and if it is kept in a
dry placo where it will not. absorb
moisture it will make the best seed
corn that you can secure for your
farm.
"BACK TO
THE FARM"
MENT
MOVE-
"Will have a chance to see the vast
and valuable work carried on there expect to plant, our task is by no
and come to realize what can be ac
coinplished. '
Not only crop raising Is carried
on, but experinu-its in feeding live
stock are being made from time to
time and tho results of these ex
periments may be interesting.
The successful farmer is willing
to learn',' and he can find no better
place than the agricultural college
to- get-the .desired information.
Farming 4s a business which has
means completed. The ears, if left
only over night when the weather is
damp, will become covered with
molds which will germinate and
produce more spores or mold seeds
which will become parasites and feed
upon the young plants when the seed
germinates the following spring.
As s.,on as the seed corn is picked
it must be cured. Many devices have
been used for drying seed corn. The
most common of these aro single
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SOUTHERN!
IDAHO IRRIGATED LANDS
No drouths. No floods. No crop failures. Mild winters
Cool summers. Good water rights. Land very fertile and pro-
ductive. Price $45.00 per acre up for fully paid up water right
For farther information write
W. B. MILLSON rome, Idaho, Box 26fi
For some years past we have heard
a good deal about the "back to the
farm movement." Every speaker and
every member of an agricultural col
lege faculty who discussed the farm
needs would tell about the ways and
means to head the urban population
toward the country, says "Connelly"
in Mankato (Kas.) Advocate. It is
barely possible that conditions will
force these matters aright. A trip
to any one of the cities these days
will show that the city has too many
people who are trying to eke out an
existence by standing aside the
streams of humanity and plucking
therefrom enough driftwood to live
upon. Go to a "town like Colorado
Springs, where the tourist furnishes
the fleck to be fleeced and you will
find five rooming houses where there
is need for One. The result is that
people complain that their business
is poor. Colby has half a dozen gen
eral storey; what it the' same busk
ness should be divided up between
three times as many business houses,
me mercnants, not realizing the real
trouble, would stand around and
blame the tariff and the financial
conditions. , Every one thinks they.
couiq see tne false conditions, but
our idea is that pretty soon the av
erage fellow will find that it is much
more profitable to be in the country
on the farm than it i3 to bo in. the
town standing beside the stream
watching for the driftwood that had
Deen nsnea out a few miles above
the point where they have taken up
their station. This will serve more
than one purpose. It will add to the
production of the world and it may
have a tendency to reduce the cost of
living. It will relieve the conges
tions of the cities where only dire
poverty is known, and it will come
nearer bringing real relief to society
than will a number of the Utopian
dreams that never come true.
ment station, -of thirty-one miioh
cows, mostly grade Holsteins, jer
seys, Guernseys, Ayrshires, fed both
home grown ana purchased feeds thn
calculations of cost, of production be
ing based both on tho actual cost of
growing the crops fed and on tho
market prices of the products used
Tho feeds used included soilinc
crops of different kinds, corn silage
mixed hay, oat and pea hav. jiif.nifo
bay, corn, stover, beet pulp, distill-
oiq 6"""D wuctti man ana oil meal
The average cost of feed per cow a
year (based on actual cost of produc
ing the crops used) was $95.7.3 or 2 4
cents per quart of milk produced
placing the market valuation upon
tho home-grown products, the cost
of feed per , cow per year was $121. GO
or 3.04 cents per quart. Tho esti
mated average cost of labor (but not
supervision) and incidental expenses
was $70.22 per cow per year, or 1.7G
cents per quart. Tho incidental ex
penses include bedding, stabling ($5
per cow) , interest, on investment in
animals, depreciation in value of
cows, keep of bull, etc., but not inter
est on land, buildings, and dairy
equipment.
Based on actual cost of growing
and harvesting products consumed
and of labor, the total cost of feed,
labor, etc., for the year was per cow,
$165.95; based on market valuation
of feed consumed, $191.82. The
yield of thirty-one cows averaging
8,661 pounds of 3.96 per cent milk,
the total cost per quart of milk will
be in the first case 4.16 cents, and
in tho second case 4.8 cents. No
credit, however, is given the cow for
the manure voided or the calf pro
duced, neither is the farmer's time
charged for. Calculating the manure
worth, $.20 per cow, and tho. grade
calves $6 each at five days old, the
cost of producing 4 per cent milK
even with the high yields reported,
and not including cost of supervision,
was approximately 4. cents per quart.
WHEN TO MAKE HAY
COST OF PRODUCING MILK
"
0Th In1creas cost of feed and the
rise in the price of good cows with
a corresponding increase in the price
of milk gives special significance to
any accurate data bearing upon the
actual cost of milk production Such
data is furnished by records given in
a report of. the New Jersey experi-
According to the North Dakota
Experiment station there is a "best
time" for cutting the crop to seouro
the best results. Alfalfa, for instance,
should be cut when it is coming into
blossom, or better yet, watch for the
new shoots coming up from the
crowns. These are the new crop
coming on, and 'the alfalfa should be
cut before these shoots are long
enough to bo cut off by the mower.
Crover should be cut when in full
bloom, or when the first blossoms
are beginning to turn brown. Cut
timothy when blooming or soon af
ter. Rye or wheat grass needs to be
cut early, a little before blooming, as
otherwise it becomes woody. Brome
grass can be cut at blooming. -It is
often left until the seed is ripe. Cut
it high for the seed as the seed stems
extend above the leafy part, and
then cut the rest in the usual way
for hay. This does not make as sat
isfactory hay as when cut earlier.
The point to remember in general
in making hay is that at the time of
blooming the nutrients are distrib
uted through the whole plant, and
as soon as the blossoming is over
these nutrients are transferred to the
seed, and the plants become woody.
While there is a gain of nutrients in
the seed, there is a loss in the amount
in the other parts of the plant and
the digestibility also decreases. Corn
develops a little different. BotA the
nutrients and the digestibility in it
increases up to the douc'-i stage.
USE THE HARROW PROMPTLY
In preparing a good seed bed, or
securing tliorough pulverization oi
the soil, there is no more important
rtntnt tlion fltof no annrt n.B tllO lallU
is broken or plowed it should be im
mediately, .harrowed,, .says .Progreso-,
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