County Agriculture Shows Much Progress
Agent's Annual Report Indicates Big
Interest Increase in Local Farming
Tin? annual narrative eport of
county ??ent. A Q. Ket.\ .ind as
sistant county agent. D. C Snodgrass
for tlx- year 1340 defines considera
ble improvement and progress in
Ciierokee county farming. Especial
procre&s lias been made in several
departments where stress has been
placed during '.he year
Special emphasis was placed on
development of pasture land during
the past year and a marked impro
vement. as well as extension, is evi- i
dent Livestock raisin* and breeding
l as increased very much, both in
quanity and quality
Farm management p iwtires have
reached a point of improvement that
brought commen'. from several of
ficial sources One of these was a
statement by W B Collins, state
farm management sujiervtsor who
said Cherokee county farming com
pared "very favorably" with other
mountain counties where the same
farm methods are used
Agronomy
Cherokee countv farmers were well
pleased with crop yields of cereal
grains during th ? ? > in spite of
adverse weather n jit Ions. Tlie bad
weather, however, brought about
some very Interesting demonstrat
ions, resulting in improved practic
es. Those farmers who used recom
t tided practices in use ,{ ferlilUei
seed, rotation to . received much
higher yields than did t )s? who did
not use these Pi a tices
fa these demons' rat; one far
mer rotated 'orn ? : :i clo\ .
greatly increasing ..?> ...t, product
ion. and more -hi:: doubling produc
tion of corn per acre Various ferti
lisKtion methods were used over the
four-year period, finally developing
to tha most, productive.
In still another demonstration, a
unit demonstration farmer brought
the producivity of land from 20 bu
shels of corn per acre to over 60 bu
shels in a period of five years. This
increase in yield was due to use of
hine. legumes, and phosphate ir.
systematic rotation.
Se/eral demonstrations in rye were
made m the county during the year
with very satisfactory results. These
excellent yields were a result of pro
per fertilisation :n some cases, but
one showed great productivity with
out use of any kind of fertilizer. This
crop followed a legume crop that was
left on the land
Neither wheat nor oats were pro
duced very widely over the county,
but several Rood demonstrations were
made in each, illustrating the ad
vantages of using certified seed.
Some of these demonstrations sliow
I t-d an increase over home-grown se?d
of as lug h as forty percent.
Payment for soil building practices
and receipt of free phosphate stimu
lated a great interest in seedling le
eiimes during the pus' -'ear. result
:i in cnarmoui increase in le
?n: ?< :e.i ??? In adtl-.ti n practically
?>.. .e farni rs a producing th-lr
own - -Cil.
IIany of the farmers grew lespe
deza ; i supplement their cash in
come. selling the hay to dairymen at
a ver^- good price. Others raised cow
peas and soybeans, declaring better
results than from lespedcza.
T ie number of farmers seeding
crimson clover this fall has increas
ed more than six hundred percent
o\ ;? former yrars. This is due mainly
to the organization of watershed
? - and a drive by the county a
? to set each farmer to seed at
I " one acre.
More emphasis was plad-.-d on
pasture improvement this year than
any other phase of the extension
work among the unit and area de
monstration farmers. These improve
i menu included resecdins. fertilising j
and clearing. Several excellent de- j
monstrations were made in the
county by use of lime and phosphate.
Special Crop*
Ordinarili the average farmer in j
...?i county pays very little attention I
- to special crops. Those growing irish |
potatoes, however, have realized
. Quite a bit of revenue for their ef
forts These special crops axe section
alized. more or less, in production
but some grow in almost any land
situation under varied weather con
ditions. Sweet potatoes make a rea
j .sonable yield in any part of this
county while irisii potatoes, cowpeas
j and tobacco are grown in different
' sections.
Very few grow sweet potatoes for
j profit in this county. Producers of
I cowpeas. however, are finding quite
I a great deal of cash income from the
j raising of cowpeas. Production of
: burlcy tobacco in this county shows
a gradual decrease each year, with
j only thirty farmers eligible to vote
ir. the last referendum. This is pro
1 bably due to the inaccessability of
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Murphy, N. C.
Offers You
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A "Clean-Up" Loan
For The New Year
Why not begin the New Year with the satis
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Get out of debt by placing your affairs on a
budget basis.
A whole year to pay in equal monthly -um?.
CITIZENS BANK & TRUST CO.
MURPHY
ANDREWS
the markets.
Horticulture
The most outstanding piece of
work conducted in horticulture this
year was in connection with home
garden projects. A noticeable im
provement was observed throughout
the year in the number of gardens,
the increasing number of different
vegetables produced and the protect
ing of gardens from poultry and
livestock.
The provision in the Agriculture
Conservation program allowing a
payment to farmers for producing a
garden that meets the requirements
of an approved garden, did much
1 to stimulate interes? in better home
gardens Well over 90 percent of the
1530 farms cooperating in the pro
gram was given an approved garden
practicr. Through the programi
many of the farmers are growing
rail gardens for the first time
Exhibits at the annual Cherokee
county fair showed the stimulation
toward better standards in the grow
ing of vegetables in addition to a
larger variety.
Forestry
Considerable attention of tiie
farmers of the county continues to I
be given to three phases of fores
try: reforestation, timber stand im
provement. and forest fire protect
ion
A total of 81.900 trees were set
out in eroded lands of the county
during the year, the majority of
which were shortleaf pine. Fifteen
farmers planted Thomas Black wal
unts. the remainder being yellow
poplar and white pine.
Special care is being taken in the
improvements of timber stands in
the county, with some 135 farmers
doin;, satisfactory work in this lin".
The main activity in the large
stands of shortleaf pine is thinning
to give better growths a greater
chancc of surviving.
The very apparent shortage of
forest fires during the year indicat
es the realization of people in this
section of the value nf burning per
mits. A larger reduction in fires is
expected as a result of this interest.
Agricultural Engineering
An increasingly large number of
the farmers of the county are lining
blue-prints for construction of ne-.v
buildings, housing units, etc., ar. a
gainst the older method of building
"as-you-go." During the past y?ar, 80
per cent of the farmers constructing
new buildings used blue-prints. A
total of eight homes remodeling
projects were completed according
to specified plans and prints were
furnished for ten new dwellings
Poultry
Recommendations for poultry rai
sing in the county have generally
followed lines of fundementals, with
results showing a constant increase
in productivity and economy on the
part of the poultrymen. Projects
have involved better housing, better
feeding and culling of bad birds.
Though the cooperation of a local
hartcheryman. many bad flocks have
been converted to purebred groups
with profits per bird going as high
as $1.90 each, over and above p 11
costs.
Animal Husbandry
Good livestock and good (arming
have always been associated, and
good farming practices in this
county have resulted in a like quali
fication of livestock. Exhibits in the
annual county fair have shown de
finite improvement, especially in
beef cattle smd dairy stock. During
the past year 16 purebred sires have
been placed in the county, with seve
ral other well bred sires.
Some difficulty is being encoun
rtn'rTTiT in this county to
ward finding a market or place of
dWoospl for lower erades of milk. A
large market, formerly provided by
the influx of TVA employes has left
this part of the market empty and
a satisfactory disposal has not yet
been found.
There are five grade A dairymen
in th" county, all of whom expanded
for this trade but are now wanting
for a market. Progije?; is being
made, however, in Improvement of
feeding and breeding. Three of the
graded dairymen have started test
ing. and it Is hoped that srt least
one of these will soon be able to sell
registered cattle us well as use them
for producing dairy' products.
Results from using purebred beef
bulls in this county is being realiz
ed more and more. This was very
evident In the exhibit of 10 fine
aberdeen angus be<*f calves at the
state fair, all of which carried away
prizes with several first. These calv
es were exhibited by 4-H club boys.
A champion beef sire was also dis
played at the fair by a county man.
Work with swine in this county
has been devoted almost entirely to
production for home food. Every
farm home in the county averages
from one to ten hogs raised for home
use. Educational programs have been
carried out In teaching the farmers
better pork curing methods and ot
her methods of preservation of the
meat. These methods include proper
cutting in order to get more from
each carcass
Farm Management
Every phase of farm management
has increased considerably this year.
The most noticeable results are the
increased amounts of lime used. Im
provements on homes and farm
buildings, and the amount of work
dene on improving pastures.
Along with pasture improvement
the interest in livestock has increas
ed. Several farmers have bought
high grade heifers for breeding pur
poses.
Considerable work hats also been
done on erosion control.
Ther^ are 62 unit demonstration
farmers who kept records during the
past year, and regular inspections
show that the records this year far
surpass those of last year. Five water
^ cheds have also been organized and
all farmers in the areas report ra
pid results from use of fertilizer ma
terials afforded them through the
various agriculture programs.
4-H Clubs
There are six organized 4-H clubs
in t lie county this year, two in high
schools and four in elementary
schools, with a total of 108 boys en
rolled.
Largest projects undertaken, by the
club members this year was in Deef
calves, in which unprecedented re
cords were set, not only in comple
tion of projects, but in prizes achiev
ed at both local and state fairs.
Both boys and girls in the clubs
participated in one or more educatio
nal projects, concerning local, dist
rict and state clubs. Local projects
of club members included corn. rye.
| irish potatoes, sweet potatoes, home
gardens, truck crops, poultry, dairy
cattle, beef CErttle, swine and horses.
Agriculture Conservation Program
The 1940 conservation program
came nearer to meeting the needs
of the local fanners than any of the
previous programs. A total of 1.530
farms signed up for work in this pro
gram. and less than five percent
failed to complete any work. An in
creased use of lime was seen by all
farmers in hundreds of demonstrat
ions over the county. Lime was used
in increasing amounts smd proved
much greater yields in legumes. The
program has had a valuable effect
on practically every phase of exten
| iiion work in the county.
County Fair
A total of 637 exhibitors competed
for the $1,100 premium money offer
ed at the annual county fair this
year, which operated for five full
days and nights. Purely an agricul
tural fair, the exhibits were excellent
this year and showed periodical pro
gress in every phase of agricultural
work adapted to this section.
Wildlife Conservation
In three of the watershed areas in
the county. 300 quail ?ere rele4sM
this year by an orguizatloa 0f iac41
sportsmen. The fjrmers In the
have a k reed to feed and shelter these
birds during severe cold weather i?
two cases this has been done (or the
past three years. During the ver,
severe winter last year, local sports
men estimated the mortality 0(
quail to be over 80 percent.
Land Use Planning
Land use planning was started in
the county last year with mapping
amd classification, all work being
done on a township basis. A tottl ot
81 men and 48 women were selected
on committees to carry on this wort
I A county co-workers counc.l was
organized in the latter part >f the
year to coordinate the operatuns ot
all public groups and agencies in the
county toward forwarding of the
program.
Periodically, meetings are held br
the committees in the community
represented in the plan, and a stud;
j is made of the problems of that com
munity in all phases of necessary im
provements. following this recom
mendations are made for making
these improvements.
MARBLE NEWS
Mrs. Fr-nk Walsh was confined to
her home last week with fu.
The many friends of Arthur Cooke
will be sorry to hear he has been ill.
Mr. and Mrs. Elbert Queene spent
Saturday in Murphy with Mrs. Sally
Queene.
Miss Mildred Marr of Henderson
ville and Mr. arjd Mite. Cliarles
Burnett and children. Carslyn and
Buddy, ot East Flat Rock spent last
week end here with Miss Marr's and
Mrs. Burnett's father, the Rev. W
W. Marr. Mrs. Marr and their sister.
Miss Margaret Marr.
Mrs. Lonnie Hunsucker spent
Thursday afternoon with Quince
Stiles.
Vinson Hall spent the week end in
Sylva with his family.
Tho Home Demonstration Club
met Monday at the home of Mrs. B.
B. Palmer. Mrs. P. A. Arrowood,
president, presided. Plans were made
for the years work. Mrs. Alline
King, home agent, demonstrated
what could be made of native pro
ducts to t-3 sold on the market. M:5S
Annie C. Rowe of Raleigh visited the
club and gave an interesting talk.
After the meeting q^osed, Mrs. Pal
mer, hostess, served refreshments to
the following members: Mrs. P. A.
Arrowood. Mrs. Frank Littlejohn,
Mrs. Cor.i Bryson, Mrs. Victor West,
Mrs. Prank Walsh, Mrs. W. B. Mul
key, Mrs. Lillie Smith, Mrs. Clay
Kimsey. Mrs. Edwin Bameti, Mrs
W. W. Marr, Mrs. King, Miss AW
King and Miss Rowe. The next meet
ing will be at the home of Mrs. Lil
lie Smith, Monday, February 24.
Mr. and Mrs. Vinson West an
nounced the birth of a daughtet
January 22.
Mrs. Lillie Smith spent last wee*
in Knoxville with reatives.
Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Barnett spent
the week end in Murphy with his
parents.
Inez. Grace and Emily Davis visit
ed with Marilyn Llttlejohn Satur
day.
Mrs. Fred Barton has been ill
her home the past week.
Miss Bessie Barton spent MondaJ
in Andrews.
The many friends of Mr. and Mrs
Glade West will be sorry to hear the?
have been 111 with flu.
SANDWICHES?MEALS
Beer Wine Smokes Music
Good Food-?Fine Cooking?Smiling Service.
A SECOND CUP OF COFFEE FREE
Meet And Eat At?
BARNEY'S
CHAT AND NIBBLE