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TUE INDUSTRIAL AND EDUCATIONAL INTERESTS OP OCR PEOPLE PARAMOUNT TO ALL OTHER CONSIDERATIONS OF STATE POLICY. Raleigh, N. C, December 3, 1901. No. 43 ri-ulture. HA?- JO- F1 ; 1 ... iSiKK-a TALKS. - r.MKii renders may , t o t olio wing state , AV HIE FACTORY v, Mill gt about one ; lV. I have lived a- close r ii; I am compelled to !; !.; to eat in order to " ' . -trength, for my work 1VV. lon aoons iur ;1 hii I have eight acre 33 I r , fjr f keep very b. u .it in V fJii if l had put the same work 3f3 i .li.i utthofuntnru V f'lr';' ' '111 1 oii " " 1 ' . ! een much better iff. h h -iv cleared all my land and t.r iM-ach year. The wages e1 f ivil "e away from my 'i! '1. 1 M vDK A MISTAKE. A iex v,.-r of saon work will m.,n out. He will be old be :re ii nuilo age and hve nothing. trpa the whistle blow- I must beat r .vl.t I wouid not advise any leave the farm for such work IhtiYt 'do. A man might work at is little to get some money to itort wili, hut it will not do to fol tow it. The chances for promotion iretw few to run the risk. A' ter a xaa starts hit faTm by close atten tea, a great deal vill come to him with but little labor. I have made h'2 moaev on rome crops Tne farm er's life is the happiest of all. I liail OO BACK TO TOE FARM. Iam nt afraid of perishing. " Here is the experience of a man who has the wcrk that thousands of firmer.-' eons are anxious to do, un til they have trie I it Harry Farmer aatel j'-i-t such a job once and latl y gt it. He worked less than ivear ni gave it up in di-gust and went back to hi farm in about a year an 1 has staved there ever since, wita the exception of a few m mths. Hicmirrenred farming at five years oil. Hi- first crop was watermeh n. No king on his throne ever felt pron-lr than we did when we planked oar first melon. Father said it was cenr.y ripa and we tok it on our ihcuM-r and marched to the house v.th it. Ir. was early in July and e hid Lad no melons that season, mi wr.en tfie melon was opened, i wa. j i-t I ke father said, not quite ripe, ;t i'. perfect to our childish appetite () ir main crop next year wa ;--:n its (We have not seen sim? yf l.T nince that we did not liav. ;,-Ti;uts the year round ) After then ah h i I some cotton, potatoes, con, hn- H j V r '.). : KMLR M Y HELP HIS CHIL LUEN ' ink fiv-rv farmer should YT-a 1 tat- : the. If y thee f;r;t for-. tint ItTlr. Ur v, nt- h . oft- mar: thir. If pi C 1 . n., ... V. . i , ar.- , Of u..'. the P3pl0 c . M crnn a small Daicn or cr - , an 1 nee tht they culti U vi 1 make them feel that i f iiM-tlr.ng to work ftir mercial feriilizrr, sell i : n s. me an 1 let them pay n thcropis sold, or be- can. If it is cotton, see . '.vt-iyh it and thus early hasinena in business ' r produce, let the rngu- ra:s be carried out. tio ' up to d business and d-al f trouble. Busi tr to deal with th fe i inHj-s training. Is is - huh to explain ditto to It is such lit le ' that make the differ- n cep and failure in '! UK HENS. : ii if, ttir idy done so, nt- no r the house and . I t the chickens; they ia -g for your trouble Hauuy Farmer. ... NT. C. I'iU It ctor : Mr. J - that h gathered the ' . trom a jteCftn tree on 1 -' t forty pounds of nuts "iiMx dollars for tl oai Tne tree is thirteen ' this is the third year V believe pecans are ii abie tree that our Ui grow. WKW8 OF THE FARMING WORLD. Our Washington Correspondent Tells What Progress is Being Hade in the Various Sections of the Country. (trrHMHntlciice of The PnerfMw1ve Farmer. The Agricultural Department ex peots soon to announce a discovery which, in its ultimate results, may be described as of tranp-cendani ira p rtince. For the first time, a method has been discovered of com bating the movement through the s il of the tiny worms that attack the roots of plant, producing the BO CALLED ROOT KNOT D18KAbE, and cauin the plants t languish and die So far, this method, which is one of selection of resistant strains, has been proved to be available only with the cow pea, which f .irnishes the great forage and reen fertilizer crop of the South especially, but there is good reason to suppose that it will also ai ply to suoh widely separated products as ieaohe8 and violets, as well as to an immense number of other plants which suffer more or less from the ravages of the worms. The investigation wis be gun by H. J. Webber, of the Divis ion of Plant Industry, in regard to the cow pea, because in some places that plant seemed in danger almost of extermination. Whole fields be came inoapab'.e of producing a crop, leading to the belief that the soil mut be exhausted, evn though this seemed impossible w th a plant, whioh, by i's power of assimilating free nitrogen from the air, oontinu ally fertiliz d the land on whioh it grew. The roots would swell, de velop knots and finally the plant would die. The Department soon found that the trouble was due to minute, almost invisible worm, which moved through the soil much as trichiDEo move through pork, in testing the roots with whioh they come in contact. To arrest their progress seemed hopeless. The De partment however, obtained sped mens of every species of cow pea some seventy-five in number on whioh it oc uUI lay its hands, and gre v them 11 cn the worst infested land it could find, this happening t to be in South Carolina. Feventy fonr of the species withered and did under the attacks of the worm ; one, the Lrttle Iron cow pea, alone, fl mrishing, immune to its attacks. This was last year; this year the te-t was repeated, the Little Iron C"W pea being grown under even mre trying conditions, and asrain it withsto d the test triumphantly. It is not yet certain that all local strains of the L'ttle Iron pea will bar the test equally well, but it is certain that Viis particular strain will do so, and the Department is n iw prepnring to distribute the seed as widely as possible. Next year it ho'ies to have plenty of seed. The Little Iron pea is some -what rare in this c mntry, but farmers wishing to grow cow peas are advi-ed to try it whenever they cm procure the ssed, even though, as wass-iid above, all local strains have not yet been proved immune. S'milir tests are now being made with h number of other plants which suffer trom the root-knot worms. If p irticalar varieties or strains can be found that are immune, they will be distributed as rapidly as p issible ; if no variety cn be found which ful fM the conditions, attempts will he m-ide to develop one. Nearly always, certain individuals in an infested cr p will escape the ruin that over t .kes the ot lers ; by saving the seed of the-e, pUnting them, and again Ravins the sed of tho-e that sur vive, a resist nt variety cm usually be developed in time. This will be done if necessary. It may be added, by the way, that those who have hesitat-d to grow the cow pea in their peach orchards, des jiteits fer tiliz ng value, for tear that it might cause the infestation of their peaches, on now use the Little Iron variety with safety. tobacco in n ayti. Aooordin to Minister Prwell, at Hayti, that island will s )on rival Cub in the production of fine grades oftoba -co. It has, he says, a m re equable olimat, free fiom cyclones and hurricanes, and a far more fer tile soil, whioh has not been weak ened by long-continued cultivation; all that is needed is skilled cultiva tion and proper ouring It may be said that tobacco onlture has now passed the experimental stage and will within a few vears beoome an important source of revenue to this Republic. A new specie, which has been produced by cross fertilizttion, is said to surpass in many respects the best Cuban grades. One faotory there, under American German man agement, employe a force of skilled Cuban cigar makers, who are turn ing out d .ily many thousands of fine cigars, amounting in value to $15, 0 0 i er month. Fifty per cent, of this is oonsunvd at home, 25 per cent. g es to Germany, and the re mainder to France, England, and Mexico. Owing to the high tar ff, no attempt has as yet been mnde to introduoe the cigars into the United States VKTKRTNARY 8CRGEON8 WANTED. Toe Agricultural Department is anxtous to secure a numl er veter inary surgeons for service in the Bureau of Animal Industry, where they will be employed as quarantine officers, to supervise the experiments of the Department, to inspect dairy products and certify to their purity and for other purposes. A civil ser vice examination is required, but as that oommi-sion finds it impossible to supply the Department with the number of surgeons needed by it, no competent man will have the least difficulty in securing an appoint ment. Dr. Salmon, Chief of the Bureau of Animal Industry, URGES TDK KEEPING OF POULTRY on all farms, and especially in all fruit orchards. He says: "Chick ens are especially valuable in oroh ards, where they can have a free range nearly all the season without doing a particle of damage, while they keep down insects. This is particu larly true in regard to plums, whioh they sometimes sive altogether from the ravages of the curoulio ; appifS also are greatly benefited. Where there are small fruits that the poul try might damage, it is easy enough to confine them during the limited time when these are ripening. The wate fruit will also form a substan tial part of their food. Poultry, however, are exceedingly valuable on any and all farms, when fenced away from the gardens and flower beds. The amount of good they will do in preserving the crop from w rms, varao and inseots is simply incalculable, to say nothing of the profit derived from their sale." United States Consul Albert, re noi ts to the State Department from Brunswick, thtt the Germans are MAKING EFFORTS TO R vlSE COTTON in their possessions on the west coast ot Africa. The government has taken into its service four intelligent ne groes from Alabama, who have had a school training and are experienced in the cultivation of cotton. Tbey were selected by the Prefcident of th Tuskegee Institute, in Alabama. The men left New York last year, taking with them all ne ertry tools and machines. The President of the Tuskegee Institute has received a letter from one of them, saying: "We have brought under cultivation 100 acres of lan 1, a prt of w hich has been planted in cotton, corn and pea nus. The cotton has already more fruit than many a farmer in America gets in a whole harvest. Six months ago there was nothing to be seen h-re but thicket and elephant grass, but today several buildings have been erected. I am engaged in set ting no the cotton sin, a t as to ready for the harvest I find the natives are glad to work, but they cannot accomplish mueh and soon become tired." It is reported fro n Alabama that there are many col ored cotton p'anters preparing to ettle in the German possessions. T"e attempts of the Eaglish toes ah linh cott m planting in Africa have failed, because the "work was dme by white men, who conld not stand the hot climate. The Germans have ma le the experiment with negroes, whose ancestors came trom Africa, and who have beoome masters ot ootton planting in America. This pioneer work opens the prospect of the development of a mighty cott n industry upen German colonial s il. A. B. Marriott. Washington, D. C. DOUBLE THE VA UE OF TOUR LAND BY TERRACING HOW TO DO IT. Mr. Blacknall Furnishes an Article Discuss ing the Value of Terracing, I specially to 8trawberry Growers. Correspondence of The Progressive Farmer. The great enemy of the cultivator of the soil in hilly or even ro ling regions is soil erosion the washing of it away by rin. The annual loss to the oounfry from this cause amounts to many millions of d dlars. The sum total of this loss doubtless exceeds the value of all the Com mercial fertilizer used and probably that of all stable and barn yard ma nure besides. Strawberries having tD be grown on very low bed, THE DAMVGE FROM WASHING is far grea'er than when the field is planted in corn, ootton or anything grown on higher beds. This can be checked, finally practically prevented by proper terraciDg. The result of terracing pr perly done is to reduce to a level all the land in cultivation, stair step fashion as it were The process is pimple and inexpen slve as oompared with the great good attained. The firnt terrace should be three feet lower than the crest of the hill and eaoh succeeding one three feet lower than the one above : the 'distance between the terraces will of course depend on the steep ness of the hill or slope. On slightly rolling land to get a fall of three feet you will havo to go some distance ; on a steep hill side a very little way These TERRACES MC8T BE PROPERLY RUN the instrument to run ff the lines for the terraces consists of a very sensitive spirit level mounted on a tripod to whioh is attached a field glass. Acouraoy is most important espcially on level terrace, whioh have proven better than the falling terrace whioh I formerly ued and reoommended in these columns. To begin, go to the crest of the hiil, place your tripod as near level as possible, then by means of the leveling screws attached bring the delicate spirit level to a perfeot level no matter in what direction it is turned. This will bring the field glass at tached also to a perfect lev-1. In the center of this glass are two hairs crossing each other at right angles. The target used in getting the level is a small round piece of beard also crossed with plain lines at right an gles. The target can be slided at will up or down, a long rod and secured at any point by means of a small set sorew. When this target is raised or lowered till the cross lines on it are exactly covered by the cross lines in the small field glass or telesoope attaohed to the spirit level, then the level is the same to the minutest fraction of an inch. Well, the instrument beiDg brought to an exaot level on the crest or the highest part of the hill slope, place your target right against it and lower or raise till the lines on the target come just even with the lines in the telescope ; the feet of the tar get pile being of course on the grcund between the legs of the tripod. This accomplished raise the tar get on the pole, whioh should be marked (ff in imhe, three feet higher Then carry the target down hill, till with its elevation of three feet, the lines come even with the lines in the telesoope. This will, of course, show a fall of three feet. On this level the first terrace should be run. It can be run RUN EXACTLY LEVEL hj carrying the target around the hi 1, stopping every twenty feet and carrying ir, pole and all, up or down hill till the cross lines on target as neen through the telesoope corre spond. This done, mark the spot by sticking in the ground a small stake : so on another 20 feet and do likewise until the hill is circled, or as muoh of it as you oultivate or wish to ter race, one of the mmy advantages of a level terraoe being that as it sheds no water it may stop anywhere. This being done, mark it off with a plow, rounding any very sharp ourves. Then with a hill side or swivel plow run with this furrow and on its upper side backward and forward, throwing the dirt always down hill. The swivel wing to the hill side plow enables you to do this by reversing it at every turn. This mode of plowiDg is oontinued until the crest of the hill is reaohed. Wain for the rain to settle the soil so it will turn well and repeat the plowing, beginning at the terrace line and working upwards as before. To attain the desired end at once, it would be necessiry to repeat this plowing, with a settling rain be tween each one, till the whole space plowed has been raised eighteen inches on its 1 wer, and lowered eighteen inches on its upper, side. By using a good two-horse swivel plow this can be accomplished at iewer plowings than wou'd be sup posed if d me rignt when the soil turned well. But there are ohjeotions to this summa'y mode. As eaoh furrow run throws soil down hill, if two many plowings are done in one year the result is leave several feet of spaoe on the upper side of the ter race bare of soil and to pile it up at the lower. But if this is done grad ually nature restores the denuded strip and but little harm will resu't Certainly the harm will bo wholly insignificant in proportion to THE GREAT GOOD TO BE OBTAINED by a proper system of terracing. The first year it will be best to give at least two extra plowings to a six-foot space just above the line of terrace. This will break the earth up on the terrace and hold the water till the gradual level ing process renders it unnecessary. So far, I have confined myself to give direotion for the first or up er terrace. The second terrace should be run off on just three feet lower land than the first one. The plow ing of this terrace begins on the line run tiff three feet below the first one and extends upward till the lower side of the one above is reached, tak ing pains, ot course, not to plow it down. The third terrace is run off three feet lower than the second and so on down. The strawberry or other crop rows must be run with the terrace. A good plan is to run off one row on the lower and then one on the upper side of each space between the ter race and let the short rows, if any, come midway between them. An unplowed strip about three feet wide should be left on the crest of eaoh terrace. This is to prevent the water that flows over in the heaviest rains from washing off the soil Grass, but. not tall weeds, should be allowed to grow on and strengthen this crest. WHY TERRACING PAYS. The good results of proper terrao ing are manifold and cannot be over estimated. Hilly or even rolliDg land can be thus doubled in value within ten years or less. Washing or soil erosion is pre vented in proportion to its thorough ness. Terraces and rows all being on a level, the water instead of col leoting in ruinous torrents, finds its way slowly, gradually and evenly downward. No soil and little or no fertility is washed away, afar larger proportion of the rainfall soaks in than on unterraoed land, lessening tl e effeot of drought. This alone would more than compensate the berry grower for tern cing. Then eros on or washing stopped the soil gathers humus as it gathers fertil ity, whioh also enables it t ooon-erve moisture and that also lessens effeot of drought. O. W. Blacknall. Vance Co., N. C. BUTTERINE SOLD FOR BUTTER. An agent of the Secret Service Department of the Government was in Greensboro last week investigat ing the butter sold by the grocers of this cty. There is no law against the sale of butterine, whioh is a per fectly harmless preparation, but it is illegal to place it on the market without being properly labeled. In the case of the Greensboro mer chants, the imposition was praoticei by tbe wholesale dealers or manu facturers who supplied the article. Greensboro Patriot The denial of self leads to the nar. row way. Exchange. Live Stock. THE LIVE STOCK INDUSTRY IN THE SOUTH. The Soil, the Plant, the Animal Their Re l&tic nship. Correspondence or TbePrtufressive Farmer. There is a very close relationship existing between the soil, the plant and the animal. Neither can exist without the other to fulfill its des tiny within its name. A soil with out plant or animal growth is bar ren, devoid of life, as shown by the great desert of Northern Afrioa. Mature is simple in her relationship. First, the soil with its many ele ments, but of whioh only ten are necessary for the growth of plants. These elements are the very basis of all plant and animal life. The body of the animal is mide up of the iden tical element found in the plant, yet the growth of the plant is neces sary for the food of all animal life. Tbe plant tkes from the air and soil the simple, single ohemioal elements, suoh as nitrogen, phosphoric aoid, potash, lime, and a few others and with these builds up plant tissue which in its turn is the food of the animal. Then the animal dies ; with its decay and decomposition comes the change of animal tissue into single, simple chemical elements again, of whioh the soil is partially made. Then the plant grows out of the soil and the decay of animal and p'ant life to furnish food for the higher life. The animal feeds on the new plant or on animals thav have fed on plant life, until that growth is obtained and then back to the soi) again nature goes. Thus we see the oyole of life. Bat what has this to do with our subject? Everything. And what follows in these articles will be along three lines, which have to do emphatically with the success or failure of farming. There can be no successful agricul ture without a consideration of these three propositions : I. A soil rich in single, simple ohemioal elements for the free growth of plant life ; If. An adoption of plant life to climatio and soil environments, so as to produce from the elements in the soil the largest growth of plant life for animal food ; III. Toe feeding of animal life to produoe greatest growth with least expenditure of plant tissue. The farmer to make agriculture remunerative must adapt himself to these propositions. He must enrich his soil. And here we find the fun damental basis. We have heard a gTett deal about worn out lands and exhausted soils. Practically speak ing, we are confronted with vast areas of this kind of land ; yet this idea is a f .llaoy. WE HAVE NO EXHAUSTED SOILS. We have only soils lacking in pro ductivity beoause of the physioal and mechanical condition these soils. To illustrate: In New England we bave vast areas, as we have in the South, of farms that yield no profit able crops. You find thope soils dead, depleted, lifeless Bat they are not worn-out, they are not exhausted. In New Hampshire, the writer, by tillage, crop rotation and fertiliza tion increased hay lauds ir m le8 than a half ton per acre to thrt e tons and over in three years' time. Let us look at these so-called soils of the S )uth. You say they no 1 jnger pro duoe paying crops. And they will not if they are abused. They hold within their surfaoe large quantities of plant fo d. WHAT THE 80 CALLED EXHAUSTED SOILS CONTAIN. The writer oollected the analyses of 47 so-called exhausted si is and found that on an average they con tained within the eight inches of surface soil nearly 4 0C0 pounds of nitrogen, 5,000 pounds of phosphorio acid, and 17,600 pounds of potash. Uhere, in those "exhausted soils" to the depth of eight inches, was enough plant food for a hundred crops of wheat of thirty bushels per acre. Small crops result because the plant food is not available. We have run them down," cr in other words we have taken out the available, as similable plant food, without permit- CONTINUED ON PAGE b
The Progressive Farmer (Raleigh, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Dec. 3, 1901, edition 1
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