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DEPARTMENT
HOUSEHOLD
PAGE
EDITORIALS
LETTERS
FROM READERS
MACON COUNTY -AGRICULTURE
VOLUME XLV
FRANKLIN, N. C, THURSDAY. APRIL 3. 1330
NUMBER FOURTEEN
MM CENSUS TO BE AID TO' AGRICULTURE
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ADVANTAGEOUS
Construction Should Be As
j Everlasting As Source
Of Water
PIPING SYSTEM GOOD
Gravity System Superior If
'Lay of Land' Permits
Its Use
(By Elmo G. Harris)
PART VII
Ts your spring still just as ' your
grandfather found it? Is it periodic
ally filled with mud,' sand or leaves ?
Do hogs syil have access to it and
do cows occasionally cool their feet
in it?
Our, fore-fathers were better engl
- neers than some of us for they used
: to the best effect the materials at
band. They cut off a section of a
hollow tree and inserted it over the
spring so giving us the old "gum
' "enrinor " At this dav. with all the
" - j i
-better facilities and so, many more
people to enjoy the luxpries of a good
spring and spring hOuse,..is it not our
duty to fix up that faithful old
spring so that it will be a thing of
joy and a pride forever?
Type of Enclosure ,
The , scheme for housing a spring
depends on what use it is io be put
to, and on the immediate surround
... ings about and under the spring.
We may be content with a mere" box
to give depth and keep out the mud
or we" may want an enclosed house
with shelves, troughs, etc, for stor
age of dairy products, Vegetables and
the like, or we may want a pump
liouse and considerable reservoir ca
pacity. Then the spring may flow
out of a solid rock or it may "boil"
up thru a sand bottom from un
known depths, or there may be a
number of small springs seeping out
along the foot of a hill and we de
' sire to collect all into one outlet.
In any case the task of housing
tip 6r controlling a spring is one that
should , be approached with caution
and carried , out with great care and
thoroughness. A spring is an ever
lasting thing, and the housing should
also be everlasting.
- One caution' may be given "here
that will apply to all cases: Do not
try to stop up a spring, for it is
sure to break out somewhere else
and that may be where you do not
want it. You may loose your spring.
The great variety of conditions and
requirements makes it impossible to
give general directions. Some typi
cal cases will be discussed. The
Teader will understand that these are
intended to be suggestive. Every
actual case will present a different
combination of circumstances.
Locating Rock Bed -
The presence of rock within , ten
feet of the surface can be detected
in a few minutes with a small steel
Tod. This can be driven down in
wet ground by hand and easily drawn
out with a monkey wrench set loose
ly over the rod and raised by the
handle. Many soundings should be
made so that the operator will be
sure he has or has not found the
bed rock.
If bed rock is within four, feet of
the lowest water level that can , be
maintained the wall can be put on
the bed rock, tho the concrete may
have to be placed under water. How
ever, it is better to use a pump and
keep the water down while excavat
ing and concreting.
Without special apparatus it is a
tedious, and expensive job to excavate
under water, but circumstances will
often justify the cost On such small
jobs as here considered it can be
done by two men, one on a movable
scaffold (or board) over the pit,
who lowers and lifts a bucket tied to
a rope; the other stands in the water
and scoops up the soil with the
CORN IS MORE PROFITABLE
THAN TOBACCO AND COTTON
bucket. Details of operation will sug
gest themselves.
Concrete Under Water
If concrete is to be placed under
water in such a case seal the ir
regularities along the bottom of the
form by sacking or straw weighted
with stone against the outside. Then
the concrete can be mixed rather
dry, placed in cheap open mesh sacks
(or even in paper sacks) and the
filled sacks placed under water by
hand and tramped gently into a com
pact mass. The paper sacks will
break, of course, but this will do no
harm, it will even be better so, if
the concrete is not stirred after be
ing in place. There are other ways
of laying concrete under water but
the preparation is too elaborate for
purposes now under discussion.
With such a wall with water in
side and earth filling outside the
water could be dammed up several
feet but it should not be considered
a satisfactory scheme for a dam or
retaining wall in their true sense.
In case wheer no rock bottom can
be reached, the wall .must rest on
earth, and may be level all round.
Perhaps the best scheme in such a
case would be to build the walls
above ground in one solid piece (knit
together with a few . rods of steel
made continuous, by hooking togeth
er along the bottom and top). Then
after the. concrete is set hard ex
cavate the earth from inside and
beneath the walls, allowing the walls
to sink as the excavation- proceeds.
Wells thirty or forty feet in depth
are sunk in this way by skilled con
tractors. Ordinary intelligent labor
ers should be able to go down four
or five feet. The. wall can be fin
ally brought level by carefully ex
cavating' under the high side and
weighting that side if necessary.
Type of Pit
The pit can be made round or rec
tangular. The rounjj form will be
very much stronger; but the rec
tangular form is strong enough. That
is all that is needed. '
After the base wall is thus brought
to place any desired structure can
be built on top.
In some especially favorable cases
all the concrete work can be done in
the open by passing all the water
thru a pipe that can be finally with
drawn and the holes plugged.
In building a concrete dam found
ed on rock it is necessary to take
every care to clean the rock, break
off all loose scales and get the earth
out of all pockets before placing the
concrete. Then see that the concrete
fills every porepocket or seam along
the base. .
As a rule for a low concrete dam,
such as we are discussing, make the
thickness of base one-third the depth
of water to be held back. ' The top
may be whatever thickness desired.
Another problem relating to springs
is the case where a number of small
springs may be brought to one res
ervoir or spring-house. The first in
formation needed is the relative ele
vations of the several springs. This
known, "a point must be selected for
the spring-house to which the water
will flow, by gravity, from all of
the springs. If the springs are far
apart and in rough country an en
gineer had better be employed to run
the levels and make a plat.
Tile Drain
Then each spring should be brought
under control and directed into a
tile drain leading to the reservoir.
The entrance to the tile had better
be underground, where it will never
be. obstructed, tampered with, nor
the water contaminated. The tile
should for the same reasons be every
where underground. A three inch
tile will usually be abundantly large.
The fall should not be less than one
foot in a hundred or about one . inch
in eight feet.
Sometimes it is impracticable to lo
cate the true spring which , is the
source of the water forming a marsh.
In such a case an investigation may
Properly Supplemented And
Fed To Hogs, Yields
Good Returns
Corn properly supplemented and fed
to hogs in 1930 will be more likely
to return a profit than will cotton
and tobacco.
"The cost of producing, four, acres
of corn is but little if any greater
than the cost of producing one acre
of cotton or tobacco," says W. W.
Shay, swine extension specialist at
State College. "This corn when fed
to good hogs will ' certainly , stand a
better chance this year of paying a
profit on the venture. Therefore in
stead of planting cotton and tobacco
with less than the needed amount of
fertilizer, and therefore working two
acres to get the amount that one
should produce, try putting in several
acres of Jarvis Golden Prolific corn
this season to be hogged down in
August and September."
Half-Starved Hogs
Thousands of acres of Jarvis Gold
en Prolific corn should be planted
for hogging down, believes Mr. Shay.
Other thousands of acres of corn
should be planted to meet the re
quirements of the half-starved hogs
which , are not profitable now but
which could be made so if they were
properly fed. .
Unless the amount of corn grown
in North Carolina is increased, some
of the hogs now on farms should
be decreased. During 1929, eleven
county farm agents assisted 45 farm
ers , in keeping complete . records on
the feed eaten by 918 hogs during
periods of time averaging 83 days.
The hogs ate 6,852 bushels of corn
which was charged to them at the
current local market price of $1.09
a bushel. After paying for all other
feeds, including 92 birshels of wheat
for which thev paid at the rate of
$1.36 a bushel and 135 bushels of
barley for which they paid $1 a bush
el, the hogs then paid $1.50 for each
bushel of corn consumed.
Jnfr. Shay says that these hogs sold
at an average price of $11.54 a hun
dred ' pounds and that market con
ditions are equally as ' satisfactory
during the coming year.
STAND OF CORN
CONTROLS YIELD
5,445 Is Standard . Number
Of Stalks For Each
Acre
The number of stalks of corn grow
ing upon an acre of land will be one
of the important factors controlling
the total yield of grain secured from
that acre at harvest.
G. M. Garren, cereal agronomist at
State College, says that the number
of stalks the acre will support de
pends chiefly on the fertility of the
soil and the rainfall during the grow
ing season. One may fertilize well
reveal a bed of gravel beneath the
decaying and decayed vegetable mat
ter on top. In this case the water
can be brought under control by
sinking a pit into the gravel bed.
Fortunate indeed is the home that
can find a spring in the hills at such
an elevation that the water can be
piped to the house, yard and garden
without pumping, thus avoiding the
expense and troubles of pump and
pumping. Many neglected opportun
ities of this kind can be found in
the mountains and along the foot
hills. Outside the subject of home
making theer is heer a possibility of
investment that will be many times
repaid in the selling value of a farm
or country home. But here a warn
ing should be given against doing
such development in a slipshod, tem
porary, , patched up way.
FLOWER GARDEN
HEEDS DAHLIAS
They Add Genuine Beauty
To The Home And
Premises
The flower garden owner who wish
es to specialize in one plant that will
add beauty to the home will get con
siderable satisfaction in growing dah
lias. .
"This plant was named from a
Swedish botanist named Dahl," says
Glenn O. Randall, floriculturist at
State College. "The person interest
ed in flowers can get genuine pleas
ure in collecting, growing and sort
ing the choicest varieties of this
flower and in exchanging with neigh
bors. . Clumps of dahlia roots should
be divided in the spring after the
buds or eyes begin to show. Each
tuber must have an eye so the di
viding ought to be done with a
sharp knife. Usually the buds will
come from those eyes located near
the point of union of the tuber with
the parent stem, therefore it is best
to so divide that a small portion of
the old stem is attached to the tu
ber." (
Early Cuttings
Where one has a greenhouse, the
clumps may be started in soil or sand
in March or early April. The cut
ting obtained will root readily in the
sand' and may be placed in small pots
until time to transplant in the open
garden. ,;:;. .
Mr. Randall says that light, sandy
soils are more desirable for dahlias
than heavy, soils, yet, the heavy clays
may be used if liberal applications
of decayed organic matter are work
ed in. Sand or sifted coal ashes
may also be used. Dahlias respond to
reasonably heavy applications of a
good complete fertilizer, such as a 4-8-4
mixture that is worked well into
the soil before the tubers are plant
ed. ,
It is better to plant the tubers a
bit late than too early. Get them in
the ground so that "the plants will
come through the soil just after the
last killing frost. Only one tuber
or a potted plant should be used at
one place and the distance between
the plants should range from two
and a half to four feet, advises Mr
Randall.
and yet not have a good stand and
thus fail to make a good yield. Us
ually, rows of corn are planted four
feet apart and the hills kept from
12 to 24 inches apart on the row
according tov the soil fertility. Mr.
Garren says that the best yields se
cured in tests made by the North
Carolina Experiment Station were ob
tained when the rows were four feet
apart and the corn planted 24 inches
apart on the row. Such a distance
will give 5,445 stalks to the acre
when a perfect stand is setfured.
50 Bushels, Standard
Usually with a perfect stand of
5,445 stalks to the acre and each
stalk averaging one , good ear, the
yield obtained when figuring it takes
125 ears to shell one bushel of grain,
will be 43 bushels to the acre. When
a prolific type of corn is used, at
least 60 per cent of the stalks will
bear two' ears and thus the yield
will then average about 50 bushels to
the acre. Fifty bushels an acre is
the standard set for corn growing in
this state.
To get such yields, Mr. Garren
urges growers this year to plant
only on a thoroughly prepared seed
bed, to plant plenty of sound seed,
to use only mature seed and to use
those Varieties which have proven
best yielders in the local neighbor
hood. When these suggestions are
followed and the corn fertilized and
side-dressed as it should be, one
should more than measure up to the
standard of 50 bushels an acre on
each acre planted.
DATA TO COVER
DAIRY JNDUSTRY
To Learn Extent Of Use
Of Mechanical In-
novations 4:
DECREASE TO GO ON?
Farm Population Estimated
To Be Smallest In
30 Years
The 1930 farm census is of special
importance in view of the far-reaching
economic changes which have oc
curred in American agriculture the
last ten years, says Nils A. Olsen,
Chief of the Bureau of Agricultural
Economics, U. S. Department of Ag
riculture. He appeals to farmers -to
give every assistance to the census
enumerators. Approximately 70,000
enumerators, will be engaged in tak
ing the farm census in conjunction
with the population census which will
begin April 2.
"The farm census," Mr. Olsen says,
"has been organized to yield basic
information which will enable federal
and state agricultural institutions to
aid farmers in formulating ..plans for
improving the economic position of
farmers. In this connection, the cen
sus is vital to the research and sta
tistical work of the Bureau of Agri
cultural Economics as it provides bas
ic data from which to estimate an
nual farm conditions in inter-census
years. v : '
Exact Data , , '
"The 1930 census will' make avail
able exact , data regarding acreage and
livestock, expansion in recent years
and regarding the various shifts in
specific lines of farm production. We
will know precisely the extent to
which mechanical power has replaced
animal and man power on the farms,
and we shall be able to form some
judgment as to future developments
in this field. The farm population
now is estimated to be. the smallest
in thirty years; we should like to
know how much longer this depop
ulation of farms will continue.
"The information that the census'
will yield on farm ownership . and
farm tenancy will give an indication
as to whether the trend si toward the
development of large farm holdings
worked, by tenants , and hired hands
that . is, toward so-called corpora
tion farming or whether despite the
reported industrialization of agricul
ture, the family farm will persist.
Income and Expenditures
"The agricultural census, for the
first time will endeavor to secure in
formation regarding farm income, and
expenditures for operating equipment.
We shall learn the amount paid for
taxes, " and obtain data concerning .
mortgage debts. The amount of the
mortgage debt, and the amount
charged the farmer for interest, com
missions, bonuses and . premiums will
be asked for the farm, he owns and
operates, and also for other farm
land he owns. The need for more -complete
information on the payment
of interest and other charges on
mortgage debt is very urgent. '
"Data covering the dairy industry
will be especially valuable in view of
the present uncertain position of that
industry. We shall have figures on
the number of milk cows and the
quantity of milk produced in 1929.
The schedules will yield information
as to the number, of cows milked
which are of beef or dual-purpose
breeding; quantity and value of milk
sold, cream sold, butterfat sold, and
butter sold, together with data on the
number of cows being milked at the
time 'the census is taken, and the
daily production of milk at' that
time. ... ' ' -..
Poultry and Livestock-
"Complete information will become
available on all phases of the poultry
and other livestock industries. The
number of each kind, of farm ani
mals sold, number purchased, and
(Continued on page three) ,
"KEEP YOUR FARM AND IT WILL KEEP YOU'!