Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About La Grande evening observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1904-1959 | View Entire Issue (May 16, 1921)
1 o . . o - AgE THREE . . . , g LAGRAW)E EVENING OBSERVER MONDAt, MAY 1. 1MI! ......... ijn FARM-IRRIGA D IT. 1 Where Crop Returns Are Three Fold ; ( I t . I ' I I - ill .- .". V:; . . l a n Id s- I . ii mi K l Ml The Great MALHEUR COUNTY IRRIGATED Lands Are Just Now Being Settled The Warmsprings Project, Watering 30,000 Acres of the Best Land with a Surplus of Water to Sell, Is the Ideal Spot for Profitable Farming and Stock Raising The Value of litigation From tlio Slaiitlpoliii of Crop production. M. O. Hope, a pioneer farmer and business man of -Malheur Valley, now secretary of. tho Warinspiings district, gives tlic following conserv ative observations and figures based . on carefully compiled data. I urn plat I to statu Home of the benefits which will come with the completion of the Warmsprings Ir rigation Project now under con struction. Under the present plans this project will servo about 30,000 acres of highly productive lands. In this Valley, at present, thore aro only about 12.000 acres actually In cultivation and uono of th-is land has to exceed a two-thirds water right. The Warmsprings system will pive to this land the necessary one-third or full water right and will also reclaim the remaining 18. OtfO acres in the district which is now nrid. There is no hotter, land to bo found in the In tor-mountain country and none that will produce more abundantly than the land of the Warmsprings Irrigation Project. I have compiled some figures to show what we can reasonably ex pect with the completion of the Warmsprings Bystem. My calcula tions are ultra-conservative and 1 believe will be interesting. Of the present 12,000 acres now under cul tivation within this district which wn commonly designate "Wei lands" probably one-third or 4.000 acres are producing alfalfa. With the full water right these lauds can bo mado to yield at least two tons per acre more than is now harvested imder present water conditions. Therefore tho present wet lands will at least produce 8000 tons of alfalfa more each year which estimated at $10 per ton will enrich the present farm ers $80,000 annually. For the bal ance of lauds now irrigated let us make, wheat the basis of nut calcula tions as it Is easily figured and more readily understood although, to bo sure, there are other crops that can he raised on this laud that will yield larger return. Now the remaluiug . SOOfl acres can be made to harvest one thfrd more wheat or, say, ten bushels per acre hi excess of the V present vleld..- Kali mating this at .-.V?L25 prr'husBel .tliero w.lll he added 'tU) (.he -4tUvind ot'-'uuV present taViu; era$l 6 0,1)00 each year. ' These:' two Items are large in themsejves, but they constitute only a small portion of the actual benefits io he derived to tho district. -as a whole As two , v 1ih vil11iu0. far '-- rily- cons! doted thni present wet lands. We have yet to consider the remaining 18,000 acres which are now totally nonproduc tive. Let us assume that 1 0.000 acres of the new lands will soon be A Few Exceptional Bargains in Good No. 1 . 2SU arres' all feiived i and ciiH3 fenced, 225 neres under tho ditch. Good soil. 1 ! 5 . acres in cultivation. Abundance of water for Irrigation.' Seeded to grain and alfalfa, 165 pe res. The 22 5 acr.es call all be farmed. The river runs thru the place. . Flue pasture, on the rlVer. Has good 4 -room house, cellar, good well water, stable, ' gTan.nry uhd blacksmith shop, chicken house and other out buildings. ' Fine shade all around the house. 'Orchard. This is one of-the finest stork and dairy farms in tho valley. This land will produce 5 to 7 tons of alfalfa and 55 to fi5 bushels of wheat per acre. Vegetables aud melons, fine potato iHtid. Sudan 'and blue grass,- sor ghum cane, locatd A miles from Valf on county road. It. V. ). -and telephone. Prire 1 25.00 per acre and. a good reasonable rash payment down and good terms on remainder at I'A. No. 2 1Kb acr'-s all fenced and cross fcnceirj. 1 50 ' acros ready to crop. Consult these C. J; BLACK S CO. Foley Huli'I. building raising alfalfa and will produce eight tons from each aero per year. Tliis means 80.000 tons which If es timated at J 10 per ton Bhows an nnnual hay crop of 800.000 for the farmers of tho new lands. Now let us suppose the balance of 8000 ncres will yield forty bushels of wheat per acre or a total of 320, 000 bushels, which, if estimated at $1.25 per bushel produces $400,000 which will be "placed In the pockets of the farmers. Therefore from the above observations wo can draw tho following conclusions: lnci-t4fil AtfiiirM. croo. obi limd $ Im-roHsetl wheat crop, old IkihIk Alfalfa erop frmii new lamr Wheat crop from new land KO.ooo.no loo.ooo. on Kim. nun. ihi 400.000.00 Total $i.ns.ooo.on You will note from ttui above I have figured prices on a very con servative basis and also have not even touched on tho Increased pro duction of horses, cattle, sheep, hogs, fowls of nit kinds, etc., which, of course wtill amount to a great many thousands of dollars each year. Safely therefore the Income to tho farmers of the Wapmsprings Irrigation District may he reckoned at about $2,000,000 annually, ns follows: 1 Value preHvitt nlfnlfa ppon $ 'J 10.000.00 1000 nrrcxxft tn. -fl $10. Vh)ii prexent wheat i-mn 300.000.00 RO00 ncresx30 lui. fl Va lu of Inereawd wheat Mlirt nlfala rropw J.3SO.0O0.00 Value of oilier farm nro- iluce Inelmline imnHry. dulrylntr. live stork, fruit and vegplahles averaged nt $10 per aero 3. 000.00 Tnlal J2.2iO.000.00 Note: Alfalfa In now nellitijr at from S'i to and .wheat U worth $'J.0O per bushel. With the project finished we can also look for tho early coming of factories, mills and (industries of all kinds and no doubt the populations of our cities and towns will increase many times. IHi Hu. When! li Ton A If nl to If 40 acres will prod tic this without summer water, what will a full water rifiht make possible. Chamber of Commerce. Vale, Ore gon. I have 40 acres of land ad joining the city limrts of Vale. Ore gon. 7 ncre.s of which are take-i . up with buildings, corrals, garden V'etc. . In the year of i'lISfrom 11 "bcivb 1, jhrcshc(K4 5Kj blihela uf 'wheat' tlirtt 1 am now selling for i! Mi cents per lb. From the remain ing 22 acres of ground 1 cut 105 tons of alfalfa, 2fi tpnft r kept to feed my cows and horses -tind tho fltlu&.LOA intin-T -sold for $1-h0O pr tou measured in the stack. I had I had no water for Irrigation nfter tho 1st day of Juno except what 1 pumped for the garden of about 2 acres. I,: J. HADLBY. All level and good soil. ' 4 5 acres in alfalfa. Itnluuc,j seeded to grain. Hen ted (can give possession this fall). Abundance or water or Irri gation. Has one 4-room house and a 1-room house, good well water In kitchen, stable, gtinary and other outbuildings. Good shade all' round houses, or.ehard.- Located 7 iuil"3 from Vale on state highway, gravel ed. One mile to good school. One mile to :R. U. aiding. There are wood and posts that can be gotten out of the la-rge standing trees to' last 5 years. Price $100.00 p'r acre ati'l a reasonable payment down and good terms on remainder at 7 interest. N. ; 1(10 acres all fenced 'and cross euced, all In cultivation, the bent of sol! Good for 5 to U tons of al falfa per acre and 50 to f.5 bushel of wheat. Fine corn land-that will produce a heavy crop from 60 to 'JO bushel per- ac.ro. Fine vegetable Jul melon and fruit land. A bun dance of water for Irrigation under the Warmsprings project. Has siptfll house, other outbuildings, good La Grande Real New IjiiuI Produces The following letter is from tho president of the Warmsprings Irri gation District Hoard of Directors and shows tho productiveness of the new lauds In the Malheur Valley. Chamber of Commerce, Vale, Ore gon, March 22. 1919: Tho past two years on a Ifi acre field of new ground 5 miles east of Valu 1 have thrilled an average of 75 bushels of barley to tho acre. On another ffeld the first crop after Br raping off the sago brush yielded 53 hush els of blue stem wheat. This is one of the greatest advantages of farming nev land in this valley, for here It is not necessary to turu tinder a first grass crop to get the land producing1. RKX MARQUIS. Alfalfa a ml Clover Commercial Club.. Ontario, (Ore gon: I have ten acres of alfalfa 1 miles west of Ontaiflo, which produced In IMS seventy-threo and sixty-uluo hundredths tons of fine alfalfa hay which sold at fifteen dol lars a toil making a total of $1105. 35. The first ruttlug of hay on n threc-ncro piece of clover brought $ 105.00 and the seed crop made $215.00 and tho threshed hay from the seed made $50.00. The three acres making a total of $370.00 for one year besides pasturing ten head of cuttle one month in the fall. I also raised pine ton of good potatoes (ff one acre of ground which sold for $20.00' per ton, - C. K. siicoy. Nliwp and' Cattle There are at least 35.00Q cattle In Malheur county, about 2or,niiO sheep, and something over lO.Oim horses and mu.lcn. Malheur conn lias been the banner sheep county ol tho United States for many years and one of the leading cattle pro ducing counties taking second place only to its neighbor, Harney county. Fivo million! aors government range land in this and even a larger am ount in Harney county make a vast empire that God made especially for the stork men. These lands are na- turally adanled for imstiirn and for '.. grasses and will intiinl ain . ovun fcri;-,' itop hn for tho-inosl iaiT thi'(Tlv : vr hmrilyoM ot.rntll. alK-ert anl otlj r I.ir ..iiMmitawliiR'. IWu" ,llifoti)r lit HvoBtock whcii It hcronics nercHKiiW ' (IIhu K-I .-f liriilshtli' lnout tiV to properly iarn for Ihom. Tim e- tfuellvo mill nuliimr drvlimco cliiiu- lei3lal valiio of lliu ranee lei tlio IrX . licatlou farmer Is that It Is a Prr-, . petual Rtiamntee of a ready market ...forhis -liay. a-nd -f7MUu4ui4ai.-Urtfo factor for prosperity in the eoinniniu lly at large. KeliiMon of Livestock to running III writing. of the possibilities of Malheur county I will start with thu water. located 4 miles from Vale on state highway, graveled. Price $25,000 and $'5.uuo cash tvlll han dle I'- Terms to suit on remainder at 7f,i interest. 'No. i 1 60, uereH all fmiced and ctohs fenced. (Jood soil. Level. All uu dvr Irrigation, Warmsprings water. 100 acres in alfalfa balance In grain and .garden, upd building grounds Abundance of waler, has good 4 room house, ntabte and other out buildings. Good well water. Locate! ; miles from Vale on county road. It. F. 'ii. Price $25,000 and $5,000 cash will handle It. Good terms on remainder. No. 5 ,120 acrns all fenced and enets fenced. 2TtO arrra in rurUvlion, most all level fitiQ soil. ' Sandy loam Oood alfalfa and grain land. Corn and atf kinds of vegetbles. Abun dance of water for Irrigation. This Is a good slock 'and dairy farm, joining good outside range. Oood Spring and Fall rang-. Han smaIl well house; Just fair buildings. Good Kleh creek bottom laud, tho very Estate Dealers SECURITY LAND La Otiinik N'a(.i'Jiii Bunk JJIiltr uudisputable stuleuieut that the most prosperous counties on the facu of tlto earth aro those combining agri cultural and llvu stock productions. Wo havo ween fads and fashions change until tho high tide of pro-, gross has left its shores strewn with the wreckage, of outgrown and dis carded industry, while primary pro ducing sections havo Weathered the ages. . After all the lands of Malheur county aro reclaimed that Is possible under any Irrigation project, there will remain five million acres o( pastun( lands. From these vast areas thousands of cattle and sheep are annually proudced, which has In the past represented the larg er portion of our earning capacity. We havo been short on agricul tural products and lop heavy with livestock, therefore, our annual in creaso has gone from us in an Im mature condition to bo finished y other states, that were top heavy in agricultural products. We are constructing tho Warm springs project to raise the agrlcul ural production until the two come nearer to a balance. Wlh the wateing of an empire oT now' land that in ' productiveness seems to bo unlimited; surrounded with H pasturo that for years has produced the livestock to consume tho surplus and make wealthy sev eral of the .western states; with a climate ideal for feeding; tho future of Mnlheur county Is safely assured. gko. w. Mcknight, president Malheur County Woolgrowers Malheur county's standing as com pared with ot her counties of t he statu gives us first in corn, alfalfa, shoep, wool, hoiiey; second In area, cattlo, forage; high in fruit, grain and all staple products. Soil nml lny of fm lentil TIlO Bdlls of 111!) lliHllIrt Hri! Dl'lll- fiilnry In I'lianii-liT. Th prunill- inlt tcxhiro Is a f I no km nd y louni, conViRtlnff oT volcnnli: iihIi nml Kill wllhV busalt hid! griinlto content wlilejl in vory rlrh Willi koimI inotn luro ivtainhiK n'r. Di'iiIiihkc limy ! tti-ct8Hr-y In iionti parts or Ihu "valli-y fbr tlio iirinlin tlon of tlio hi'Bt lift. .The luniltis Kvuorally level with it ';Kmrl slopu yiward the river, (lehtly -ftjoplnff lifm(aiidfadjlu the -villi ley except fop' th! Vale anil Malheur it foil' the Unites. The 'Warmsprnigs district includes praikically all of the 'valley proper whlelil extends about twenty vighft. miles (roiu the head of the r well water. Located 8 miles from Vale on "county road. It: I. Price $125.00 per acre. This is a good buy. A reasonable cash pay ment down and good terms on the remainder at 7 interest. No. 0 160 acres nil fenced and cross fenced. 70 acres under the dfleh. IbilancM on the, hill sV-ded to alfalfa 'and !i-aln. Free water for Irriga tion jitHt tho upkeep of the ditch. Kach, one keeps up his ditc h. He has or owns a one-fifth Intercut lu the ditch. This Is a very rich i reek bottom soli. Has good well built 5-room limine, 2 cellars, good well water, stable, blacksmith (thop, and other out bill Id Iocs, good fam ily orchard, shade all around the houn." All farm machinery and tools p.o with the place. price $s. 500; half cash, good terms -on remainder at TA IntereKt. Located 11 miles from Vale on county foad. Good school close, m. 7 1 JiO acres nil feuVcd, and cros fenced. AH (4el laud aud v""d Kl"'- for further information regarding these lands . & SAVINGS CO. valley twelvo miles west of Vain to Ontario and varies Irani two tu fivo miles lu width. Alfalfa' Mnlhniir eounty ranks first III al falfa production in Oregon; It has lieen the prlneipat rrop in the Mal heur and Rnuko valleys for many years. Altaira leads all other ftirano VlantH for feedlnt; pnriosea. prows continually from March to Novem ber and produces from cir.ht to ten tons per aero with full Irrigation. It does n double duty as It also per meates the soil with nttroKcn, thus lucreaalni; the fertility. A plowcd undor field of a I till fa lit Malheur enmity will produce n fifty liushel wheat crop or u hundred bualiul corn, yield. (il'lllll Malheur county produces mure corn than any other county' In the statu and ranks lilKh us a successful producer of all the small grains. With propcr.crop rotation and Irri gation, wheat will produce 40 bu shels to tho aero while corn with proper care will aVeraije over 75 bushels. In tlio higher hill lauds of the county considerable grain Is raised by dry farming methods yield lug about half its much us thu Irri gated lands. 1'iult Whlla wo represent tho Wnrm sprlugs project as a hay and grain producing region thero la no disput ing the fart of Its adaptability to thn growing of fruits of nil varieties known in the temperate' climates. A fuw miles up lliu Willow Creek Val ley from Vale Is the famous llroguu section where theru has been no fruit falluro since It wan changed from a sHgobrush flat. Kxtendtng east from Ontario to Nyeisu and on ' up the Kiiaka river Is one of tho largest commercially producing fruit sections of the Northwest, hun dreds of carloads being shipped an nually to all parts of tho earth. Tho Malheur valley lands ralso good crops of watermelons, cantaloupes, grapes, strawberries, rasphcrrlca, etc. In the larger varieties, Die ap ple, peach, and prunes Me for su premacy 'all yielding faithfully ex cellent crops. tMierrles, apricots mid pears also do-.e'tially. -woll c '"Vi r:n-r,linu fur linlli. 11i1llnV4 e' tti, eouimerclul purioses nro excee,diuit- ly produeilvii and profitable null the Hiinkii river valley' of w hich, l.ltv Mal- heur Is a part Is beeomlng VnuWu ;is - tlio world's greatest )rfdirelnir''emr - - ler. rotaloes, onions, puiiipkins, sweet com, spring vegetables apd root varieties respond to but little cure and attention. One farmer wrilvs that he produced sixteen tons best in the country. All In cultiva tion, belli K cropped to gruiu this seiirion. Abundance of water for Ir rlmttlon from the Warmsprings Pro ject. This is fine alfalfa, grain, corn, blue grass, sudau gniHH, vege ttihle and melon land. Has small house and oilier out buildings. Lo cated U miles from Vale on John I'ay highway, graveled. This can be cut up lu 40 and K0 acre tracts, all to face the road. Price $25,000 and .$5,000 cash will iihudlo. Terms to suit on remainder at H'c inter est. No. N 1 60 acres all fenced and cros Jen red, all in cultivation -except n acres. All level and good soil. 50 in; re In alfalfa, balance In grajn and 20 acres of bine grsiH pasture that renin for $X00.eneh season. Ab undance of water for.'irrlgatlon. Has 'small dwelling house, stable, gran ary and other out buildlnus. Tho main dwelHug burned down, iJeop we of soft water, shade aud a few fruit .trees. Ideated rude. ropuTHTH Vale and six miles from Ontario) Ore., on coitnly road- K. GEORGE Next Door to . Next Door to City Duildilfjr : .. , . t ... . of onions On one sere while twelve ton potato yields are not uncommon and beans aro grown quite exten sively unci yield abundantly. . Dairying Dairying Is a rapidly Increasing' Industry of Malheur county aud one that la proving exceedingly profit aliln besides giving) thn) farmer a monthly pay cheek. The : prolific yields of such crops as corn, alfalfa beets, carrots and grain assure au biiiidant supply and a splendid var iety for bossy's feed. Hood prices a io puid by northwest creameries for butterfut and there Is always, n ready demand for homo mado butter. In -the last few years a rapid 'Im provement of dairy stock has been underway there being several regis tered herds of Hnlstelns mid Jersey dairy cows lu the valley' at present. Itees nml Honey Honey production Is unusually profitable In tho Malhotir Valley on account ot tlio lileul ellinata and Die prevulenro of alfalfa, . clover and fruit blossoms. The bees tiirlro bi ceptlnnlly well, Increase rapidly and have a long feeding season which produces the clear, white honey so much sought nfter In eastern 'ann foreign markets. Kach colony will average around ninety, pounds uf honey annually; aome stands pro ducing ns high as one hundred and fifty pounds. ' ' " I'lilillry an Huffs ' '' ' Additional useful roveuues can be gathered by the farmer in the sclllut ot poultry and pork products. Chick ens, turkeys, ducks and geese thrive well and find rcudy markets, buyoiB visiting this section from several of thu largo coast . eitlosi A floek ot fowls and a bunch of hogs can be kept on a Meinour Valley farm with little or no direct expense, as waste, ulfulfu pasture and fruit, droppings will maintain Iheni. However, a number of people are aperlalUlnir in poultry or hog raising and are msk Ing an cnvlublo financial success, many carloads being shipped out each year. On a well-managed farm a tew hogs -will pay off the water charges and the cows and chlcktna make the family living while the. grain ami, alfalfa, should Increase the bank account ;or buy lu nnH biillrf lnr$'fl 'I . iyre jy,,?, fiwni - .: I HillltUAr VilT VnttwnteHW.' V41ft-.-IVrM.- ' Ron: I bng state Ijiat' on seventy ' . art's of )uy ranch IociJled about HM V uillga Soutli of Vale. Ill .Malheur ..Yal- . l"y, I raised totif Imndred' tohijot IM: lfalfn - Hrr - rrirr - 1iTtRirttTm." l;ay was sold by me fur fifteen dol lars per ton. : . .. Vours very truly, TitiiNT joiinson; February 10, JDI'J. ' Land F. H. One and one half mils lo school. Price $ 125.00 pro acre and will give good terms on part of It. No. 1(10 tiercn most all fenced. 100 acres under ditch. Finn soil, sandy loam, ;i0 acres In cultivation. Abun dance of water for irrigation, lie mulnder of the land Is on tlio hill. . Flue pHslure, This Is good corn and potato land. Vegulables and melons., ' Mont of this Is bench land. Locat ed 4 mllei from Vale on county road. It. F. l. Has small house; no oth er improvements In the way of buildings. Price $6.0oo and $2.GuO will handle It and terms tu suit ou ' lemaliider at . No IO- J 60 Heron all fenced. Ita'w land with Ibe bniNh on It. AH level and good noil. Creek runs through tho place. Abundance of water for Irri gation. Part of this land has been cleared of the bnib. Has small shack, no other buildings; Loch ted s miti ami a half form Vale, Price $62. 50 per aero and a- reasonable cash' payment down and long time ou the remainder at 7't H. - CURRE,Y City Duildil'ir -a a a: ; i i a a a 5 a uiiii . . . . ' ' ?..... ' . ..iJX W
