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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 1901)
THE MOBNTNG OKEGQNIAN, TUESDAY, JAOTABY 1, 1901. ?ijflj9HHiY--.r ESSIBKBIz jBBf q jPiBllBMfllB m y '- ' rr 4 hr-,3ryM'L-BBl &falUmFri -r -i L--L - iSSt- 'uikMwiMiaMHMiM A a '-. f yfWfeai ""rgttiMiftWSiffi'j?i yMliMyiji 'JW BfcBAtaejy. juMt sk ,0 sBt .JffrlBHyiy rwBC'jW j C7 B xt' teHjt y ! BB-8ttl-S-. a v MfjBfeWWlBgwftBK faWWIHP T---MffarrflTTffFff"r irf . i i ' ..--r f ''tt t7BXMKMZr??!(L u2aJiKLw T'-wr1 '.I'&aieriWfcfcBBlBHt-rTiBK.iBr'JI . -BBLg.il.-. iti r "AiiKttfcSttSMBiMlnftK 1m'' ,t rftoJjfet&MMJiiiifcmH llM ' . . . -TTK- .'. j. JMBtyi- ? f3B- lWPfft'M-OBwB-lK--S--- Kr-B-B-Lt iJ3yrM. w XlOBv---B9H-BBHB------H 5 GRICULTURE In Oregon is confronted by a number of problems, chief of which Is di versity of production to restore fertility of the soil "West of the Cascades and to maintain It Bast of the Mountains. Continuous planting: of the staple crop, -wheat, in the Western section has so drained the soil that the average yield has fallen to the lowest level In the history of the state. For a while In. the growing season last year the Indications were that Oregon would break its record with a crop failure. Eastern Oregon has not yet begun to feel the evil results of wheat, as It has not been so severely taxed by the one-crop Idea of farming. "Western Oregon was growing wheat when, East ern Oregon was down on the maps as a desert. Conditions as to fertility are pret ty much the same In Eastern Oregon now as they were "West of the Moun tains In the latter part of the '60s and early in the '70s. Today the Eastern Or egon farmer, particularly in the choice areas of the Umatilla Valley, can harvest SO and 40 bushels to the acre -without any more effort than the planting of the -seed and rotation with the summer-fallow. Thirty years ago the producer of the "Wil lamette could do equally as well and take a lay-off now and then and let a voluteer crop come up and All his granaries. - number of antiquated notions will has to be got out of the heads of the pricing classes before the necessary reiurms can take firm root. Diversified fart"'.iff means work every day in the year and It Is going to make gradual headway In the "Willamette Valley among people who have long been accustomed to earn a living with the smallest -effort. The whole amount of work necessary to harvest a wheat crop does not occupy the farmer to exceed three monthly In the year. The first task In. the Spring is to haul In the utensils that have been left In the field all "Winter, and clean tnem of rust. After that, plowing and. seed- lng, an eye to the fences in the growing season, harvest that is all. If the farmer rinAB anv PTtra. work It Is generally In the line of a trip to the nearest town to buy bacon, and fresh and salt beef, articles of food which he can produce on his own farm If he so wills. But the limit of exclusive wheat production has been reached West of the Mountains ana ?etn,? .St e 5! &JSS2. S JZnLw. ,fl i maklnir gratifying I SoJf gre In Eastern Oregon the chief of the old j notions, tenacious in some localities, is I that the country is fit only for stockrals- lng on a large scale. Irrigation in the Yak- Ima country having demonstrated what cin he done for aseml-arld region. Eastern Oregon, too, looks forward to the day when It will be a garden. Already the agriculturist is crowding the stockman in regions where the land is more val uable for production than grazing. In Crook County the tendency Is away from the large stock ranch and towards the email farm. In the John Day Valley the end of the big range Is In sight. Rail road communication will settle the case there In favor of the tiller of the soil. Stoek companies tlll own entire valleys In Grant County for pasture, and control enormous areas in Malheur and Harney Counties. The settler already has his eye on such of this territory as is productive or can bo made so by irrigation, and will have his day. before long. Barbed-wire fences will not keep him out. In East ern Oregon the climate is more rigorous than In the western section and it re quires more work to earn a living. Con sequently, the large farm does not find much favor. Old-timers show a greater inclination tc divide their holdings than old-timers in the Willamette Valley, and newcomers as a rule ask for small places. The old settler's faith in his ability to make the soil respond to his wishes Is remarkable.) When sugar-beet culture was first begun In the Grand Ronde Val ley some farmers readily accepted con tracts to plant 600 acres, more than they could take care " of with all the help It was possible for them to engage In a growing season. Recent arrivals are going Into the business on the basis of 5, 10 and 20 acres. Methods Mnst Be Remodeled. Economists emphasize the fact that ag ricultural methods In Oregon must be remodeled. The one-crop system of tho "Willamette Valley has steadily reduced the humus contents of the soli, and as a result the land, is harder and more ex pensive to work. The soil has lost Its old-time mellowness, become soggy and compact in wet weather and cloddy In dry BONANZA A' IBfcteyk '.(; fllm: weather. At a meeting of dairymen at Whlteson, last July, Dr. James "Withy combe, vice-director of the Oregon Agri cultural College, said that there Is no excuse for this condition of affairs. "With an Intelligent .system of mixed farming and proper rotation of crops, there is no reason why agricultural pursuits should not prove as .successful and remunerative Ijere as In any part of the world. The farmer must make better use of his brain and depend less on his brawn. "Stop the leaks on the farm," said Dr. "Withy- I combe. "Abolish the senseless- system of the bare Summer fallow. The large area of Summer-fallowed land, with a few half-starved sheep , roaming over It is a travesty upon ISth century agricul ture. This system adds nothing to the soil, but. Instead, hastens the destruction of the most valuable element of plant food. Instead of the bare fallow, grow rape and leguminous crops. These will add humus to the soil, thereby Increasing i its fertility and improving Its character. This system will enable the farmer to carry much more stock and prepare the soil for larger yields of grain." The nutritive properties of clovers and other leguminous crops both to soil and stock, are well known, but as rape is a new plant In the "West, it is not so well understood. 'Probably the first crop of rape ever, grown on the Pacific Coast was gathered by John B. Stump, of Mon mouth, last July. He got 10. bushels of seed to the acre, worth on the average $3 60 per bushel. A 30-acro field was planted In June, 1S99. On It Mr. Stump pastured 300 sheep and many goats, and hogs until the Spring of 1900. At Guelph, Canada, In 1890, 54 acres of rape were sown after a crop of rye, a portion of which had been made Into silage early in June, and the residue cut In the green state with a binder and cured for "Winter fod- der. In the Autumn, 537 sheep and lambs were fattened upon the rape, 18 head or steers fed upon It for 59 days, and several acres were still left uneaten, when Winter came. Raoe nossesses remarkable fatten ing properties. When sheep and lambs J are turned upon It, they soon weigh like lead. Rape has another quality which ought to recommend It to Oregon farmers, in view of the great growths of blue but- tons and tumble-weeds that diminish the eraln ylelds- As a cleaning crop It has but few equals when it is grown In drills. ?fwing ftoK the season of the year at which it must be 50wn to obtain good yields and to the cultivation which it then requires, When rape is the only crop grown, the ground may be managed as a bare fallow from the preceding Autumn until the time" of sowing the rape. Neariy all kinds of weeds can be sorely harassed in this way, but more especially those whloh ripen their seeds early. The cultivation which METHOD OF follows while the rape is growing Is fatal to weeds of a later habit of growth. When rape folllows a-crop, of rye cut green, it Is also helpful In destroying weeds. The rye tends to smother the weeds, and - Is cut before they mature their seeds. The plowing and cultivation which come later still further tend to complete the work of destruction. Growing rape In drills after a grain crop has been removed la also serviceable in destroying weeds, though not. quite to tho same extent as when It is grown by one or the other of the methods mentioned above. The rape also recommends Itself, to dairymen. An FAR3IING IN EASTERN OREGON- average crop grown In drills should fur nlsh not less than 10 tons per acre,. and' when the conditions are all favorable, it is quite possible to produce at least '20 tons of green fodder per acre. Aside from wheat, general agricultural conditions In Oregon are favorable. The situation of the wheat agriculturist would not be so disheartening if-he would only do something for himself. Horticulture. and hopralslng are almost completely dis associated from general farming. "They are recognized as special Industries and followed as such. In. both the tendency is. for quality, for production that 'Will pass the closest inspection and com mand the highest market price. Dairying, too, win in time become an Industry by itself. Conditions favor Intelligent direc tion In all the branches of agriculture in this state. The wheat farmer can harvest, 25 bushels to the acre, Instead of hunt-' lng for them on two or three acres, If he will diversify. There Is abundant prcs- V JTJ basis of the cow giving 6500 pounds of milk a year. The horticulturist can save 90 per cent of his fruit if he will spray, and otherwise care for his orchard. Mill iard O. Liownsdale, of Lafayette, lost but one-half of 1 per cent of his apples last I year. In a crop of 30,000 boxes. Others can do Just as well if they give their trees, the attention which Mr. Lownsdale gives his.- The hopgrower can get the best mar ket price if -he will produce good hops, and such is his aim nowadays. Coat of "Wheat Production. In all -parts of the state there -Is ar dent discussion of the cost of raising an. acre of wheat, and of the cost per bush el. Farmers in a section of Wasco Coun ty, from" which a' stiff price Is charged for a -short 'haul to-the railroad, make money when wheat is at 50 cents, where as, Willamette Valley farmers complain that there is -nothing In wheat at that price. Cost of production, selected at ran dom from different parts of the state, is epitomized below. i In one sense, Crook County's long Iso lation has been a blessing: It has taught farmers to depend upon themselves for many articles which could not be Im ported except at considerable cost. On this account, diversified farming Is quite general. The lack of transportation and the prevalence of stockralslng on a large scale have restricted farming operations and the wheat grown has been princi pally for home consumption. The average lands of the county have yielded in the past six years from 21 to 43 bushels ot wheat to the acre. , These crops were raised without irrigation, on lands that -were Summer-fallowed. Where Summer fallowing Is not practiced the crop falls as low as 12 bushels to the acre. The av erage yield for six years Is about 20 bush els to the acre. On this basis the cost of raising a bushel of wheat Is 42 cent's. TRANSPORTATION IN THE ISOLATED In Linn County, in the neighborhood of Talent, the cost of raising 100 acres of wheat, taking 15 bushels per acre as the average, Is as follows: ' " ; Flowing, -at $125 per acre S125 00 Harrowing twice, at 25c pen acre.... 25400 Seed. 200 bushels, at 40c SO 00 Binding, 50c per acre 50"00 Shocking. 15c per acre 15'00 Twine, at 12"c per pound IS -75 Threshing, 5c per bushel 75 00 Sacks, 750,-at 4c SO 00 Hauling to market, 2c per bushel.... 20 00 Storage, 4c per bushel 6000 Total $521 23 This Is an average per acre of $5 21; per , tuuiiinciij iiaivii9iciiv aiiu iuuc9ar.il bushel .'-nearly 35 cents. But-it doe3 not include capital invested in land and implements-, the cost of 'boarding the farm er andf his team when they are not em ployed. In the eld, taxes and other inci- dental-, expenses. J Dairying has been permanent industry In Linn County and t'manyifarmers add to their revenue' by keeping a few cows. The price at which wheat can be raised at a profit In .'Linn County ranges from I 49 to 52 cents, a bushel. The following CUTTING table prepared by Cyrus H. Walker, of Albany, on the basis of an acre, gives a fair estimate along this line. It has its foundation In actual experience, and, ac cording to Mr. Walker, shows the least possible outlay of labor and expenses Plowing 3125 Harrowing twice ,... 40 Seed, well cleaned And vltrloled 100 Sowing average between broadcast and drilling 20 Cutting with self-binder '. 50 Twine 4 25 Shocking : 15 Photo by Georgo M. Weister, Portland. SECTIONS OF EASTERN OREGON EIGHT-HORSE TEAM FREIGHTING TO THE RAILROAD. Threshing on the basis of 100 acres per day '....100 Feeding of teams, same basis 05 Hauling to market, average yield .of IS bushels 60 Interest on land, $30,' average price at 8 percent ..'..........' ". 2 40 Total- -. $7 70 With a total cost per acre of $7 70, and an average yield of 18 bushels, the cost per bushel Is .found to be 43 cents. No account is taken of the wear and tear of machinery, the Insurance that many farmers' carry on their grain, and the Phofo by W. A. Raymond, Moro, Or. at tvuiiiv. loss .that accrues "when land Is Summer fallowed. Umatilla County's soil ranges from the almost worthless sand and sagebrush of, the Columbia and Umatilla River low. lands, gradually increasing in fertility until the great growing belt of the county is reached. This extends about 35 miles -northeast and southwest. Is about 30 miles wide, beginning at the base of the Blue Mountains and follow ing their, contour. "While Umatilla Coun- GRAIN IN EASTERN OREGON FIELDS WHERE THE YIELD BUNS 40 BUSHELS i ty has stock and other Interests, wheat is the great farm product. In ordinary years the yield Is from 40 to 50 bushels per acre within a few miles of the Blue Mountains, decreasing at the rate of about a bushel to the acre for each mile as the foothills are approached, until the sand-drive and sagebrush lands are reached, where no paying crop has been raised more than three or four seasons In 15 or 16 years. To obtain a proper under standing of areas of production In Uma tilla, let two Imaginary lines be drawn, one beginning at a point six miles west of Pendleton,- and the other six miles east of Pendleton, both running In a northeast erly direction parallel to each other and terminating 20 miles from the starting point.. In a normal year the yield per acre of the territory within' the 'lines approximates 30 bushels. In the terri tory to the right, or next to j the mountains,-the average Is 40 bushels, while in the region to the left, the farthest from the mountains, the yield drops to 18 and 20 bushels per acre. While the cost- of heading and threshing varies In other parts of the county, the figures given for those Items In the following estimate per acre for the county are unlformfor the section mapped out: Plowing $100 Cultivating 50 I Seed '. 40 Seeding ,.... Heading 125 Threshing .'..". ISO Sacks and twine 1 00 Hauling 50 Insurance 30 Total .S..?. $7 00 The cost per bushel, taking 30 bushels as the average yield, and Including poi son and vltrloling, reaches nearly 23 cents. Profit In CO-Cent Wheat. , Summer fallowing has become general In Wasco County In the past five or six years. Occasionally there Is a farmer who would rather have his 35 bushels spread over three op 'four acres than to have It on one acre, but "he inevitably pays for his lax methods. His system Is not considered In the following Itemized statement of the cost of production of a bushel of wheat In the Dufur section. Each service can be done for the figure named and' in some instances for less, so that the cost of machinery may be properly considered as Included: Plowing $125' Cultivating 75 Seed and seeding 75 Heading 125 Threshing 1-75 Total .' $5 75 Farmers of the Dufur country hold cul-. tlvatlng to be as Important as plowing. It is done with" specially made machinery, and In the Summer weeds are not per mitted to sap the moisture needed by grain planted In the early Fall. The av erage yield per acre on land treated as above is 35 bushels, but allowing for loss from hot July winds, 30 bushels would be a fair compromise. This makes the cost per bushel 19 1-6 cents. To this must be added 3 cents for sacks and 7 cent? for hauling 15 miles to market; still the total cost per bushel stays under 30 cents. Wheat farming pays at Dufur when the market is at 50 cents. Nearly every farm er raises some barley, which, when sown ort Summer-fallow ground in the Spring, averages about 50 bushels to the acre. The. majority of farmers raise as many .hogs as they can wall care for and sev eral head of cattle for the market. In the Balls ton section of Polk County -farmers are beginning to understand the 'value, of diversified farming. " Field corn. Kafflr corn, popcorn and broomcorn have beeu tried In a small way without suc cess, as thoy do not mature sufficiently to keep in that climate. Clover produc tion has been successful. The average cost of- raising a bushel of wheat in this sectlonestimating'lS bushels to the acre, is: Plowing .'.. H CO Harrowing twice 40 Seed T 75 Seeding' , 35 Rolling 20 Twine 12 Cutting and shocking 1 25 Threshing '. 103 Delivering at station 36 Sacks 54 Interest, 8 per cent on land, at 330 per acre 2 40 Total .4 i J8 45 The cost per "bushel in this section is nearly, 47 cents, 'Diversified farming is the rule In Baker County. No producer depends upon wheat alone. All. have hogs to sell In 'the Fall, some make butter, others raise cattle and sheep, 'and all have poultry. Wheat, barley, and oats are grown. If wheat 13 high, it is sold and barley is fed to hogs. If wheat Is low, it is converted Into p'ork. Baker County farmers have a good home market for all they raise and as a rule are well-to-do. The cost of raising an acre of wheat is: Plowing $150 Harrowing 50 Seed . 75 Drilling 20 Irrigation ......' 20 Threshing .:..: 2 40 Twine , 45 Sacks - 1 00 Cutting S3 Interest - ';.-. 100 Taxes f 35 Total $9 20 In Sherman County farmers recognize the advantage of diversity, but still stick to .exclusive wheat production. Cost per acre in the vicjnlty of Grass Valley Is: Plowing $123 Harrowing 50 Seed and seeding .1 ..... 75 Harvesting 110 Threshing 80 Sacks and twine 50 Hauling to station 30 Storage ; , : 20 Interest ,." .-100 Total $G40 The average yield per acre is 12 bush els; average cost per bushel, 53 1-3 cents. France. Oregon. ANALYSIS OF FINE'EARTH, "' "n J? ' p 5 : ; r ? 3 a : : : p ' ' : - : : ' - . J Insoluble matter ...V.. ....';..: 81.80- 82.50 C6;59 ' 65.18 62.45 67.83 Soluble, silica .7:.' 31.80-, '8250 '13.12 6.02" '8.74 8.93 Potash (K20) ...'. '...:: 06, -.14 .43 .23 .34 .64 , Soda (Ni20) 09 .14, .23 .18- .21 .28 Lime (CaO) ."......' 51' .42 1.22 .83- 2.22 1.08 Magnesia (MgO) .'....' 75 .79 .80 1.'49 Manganese (Mn304) .. , .... .10 .03 .25 .05 Iron (Fe903) ;.; 2.83- 2.18 10.69 16.45 15.35 15.02 Alumina (A1903) " 7:24 " 8".62 "10.69 16.45 15:35 1S.03 Sulphuric acid (S03) 04 .03 .01 .05 Phosphoric acid (P205) 09 .08 .14 .21- J3 .CJ Carbonic acid (C02) .' 40 .70 Water and organic matter- '.. :B.60- -4.84 . 6.21" 10.77- 8.52 4.40 Other matter .'. 85 . 1.52 Humus .' ..( ..... 1.44 I 1.63.1 -2U5 .75 The cost of raising an acre of wheat at Mayvllle, Gilliam County, is: Seed .' . $-20 Plowing w., :.- 100 Harrowing 15 Seeding .. 25 Heading, including board of -men .'115 Threshing - 72 Sacks ,. 36 Hauling to railroad at Arlington. 144 Total ...$5 2T At 12 bushels to the acre, the' average, per bushel Is 44 cents. At the same cost per acre the Mayvllle farmer can harvest from 30 to 45 bushels of barley. - Snjrnr-Bcet Culture. , Oregon soil ' and - climate - haver - long been known to be favorable to beet-sugar culture, but several years of experiment ing were required to convince capital and get the first factory In operation. Be tween lS92,and 3896, the State Agricultural College furnished seed to a number of persons Interested in the industry who sent beets to the experimental station for analysis. The average of the results of 23 analyses made from 1892 to 1S93, showed. 15.05 per cent of sugar and a purity of 89.8 per cent. In 1837, tho -ex- Photo bjr W. A. Raymond, Moro, Or. TO THE ACRE. perlmenta were continued. Everythll was not so favorable as it might be, me grouna naa oeen prepared in Spring, and the seeding was late. N withstanding, the following excellent ; suits were obtained: Weight Per Ct Peri county. Grains. Sugar. Pur Washington 439 15.3 Clackamas 4SG Union 609 Jackson 503 13.7 16.6 15.6 15.3 Average 509 The La Grande factory was built Ihj Considering the haste with which thi terprise was started and' the tnexperl of farmers Ingrowing beets, the first palgn was quite satisfactory. Mar the farmers thought that beets cou grown like wpeat, in -tracts "of hund of acres. Instead of confining tnemsp to 10 or 20, or possibly 40 acres, they tractea to grow 100, 200 and In some as high as 600 acres of beets'. The of sugar per ton was large, the av ;e being 15.72. per cent, with 84.6 per it purity. These Tesults Impressed He Myrlck favorably and In' his book 01 &o "American Sugar Industry," he rs: "An average of -within a fraction 18 per cent sugar In the beet and 85 p Ity is absolutely unprecedented in theleet sugar Industry of the world. Ifuch results can be obtained during jflrst season with unusually unfavorab cli mate and- all other -conditions agmst a good crop, certainly the Indus trWought to-be "a 'success In future yearsas Us agricultural details become beter and better mastered." The season for th growth hi beets may be divided Into three perloisr germ ination, plant formation jinl sagar stor lpg. -The ' following comparative state ment shows the temperature averages of Germany and the -principal; sections of Oregon In these periods: 53.352.5 fti-flltyt.4 Third (56.3 64.554r863.3 ,. The best soils for quality, as well a quantity of production aTe those that consist of mild, mdlst loam, about 20 Inches deep, the loam or -marl three to six feet, and under this,, sand. Such' soils are easy to cultivate, have a high degree of absorbtlon, can combine nourishment and give a plant physically a good start. They are called natural sugar beet solfs. So far as vthe chemical constituents of the, soil are concerned, phosphoric acid seems to bear the closest relation to the amount of sugar. If this be wanting sugar will not be provided, while lack of lime could be replaced -"by potash, soda, or magnesia. Oregoq soils are abundant ly supplied, with phosphoric acid. They surpass those of France in Ume and equal them In potash,. Below are contrasted analyses of some of the French sugar beet soils wfth those of the natural di visions of Oregon and of Collfornla: -The'-success of the-La Grand factory has caused several sections-of-Oregon to put forth efforts to get factories. Early last Summer.' Newberg raised, money to pay. for a 60-acre site on the Willamette River and pledged 5000 acres of beets to get" ah" $800,000 'factory. Several towns in the -Southern and Southeastern parts of the state are trying to interest capital in beet-sugar manufacture. - Opening: Up Eaxtera Oregon. A -number of Irrigation enterprises are projected in Eastern Oregon. Powder, Burnt,'' John Day, ' Des Chutes and other rivers -have an abundance of water and First ...t 49.150.01 Second 63.3 (X.o