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About The gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 13, 1914)
6 Drainage of White Lands By Prof. W. L. Powers, Department of Agronomy, Oregon Agricultural College. BiSw. BBS5 I rE greatest problem connected with the drainage of our so-called white lands and other lands of similar texture, aside from securing com munity outlet ditch, is that of making title "draw," or receive the water from the surrounding soil and carry it off. The typical white land surface soil is of a fine ashy colored silt day with large percentage of potential plant food. Underneath at a depth of 10 to SO inches there is a change to an im pervious, sticky bine clay, spotted with iron rust. The blue clay stratum runs from 6 to IS inches thick, and below that the soil shades off into yellow lilt clay sub-soils. The water table re mains close to the surface over this blue clay stratum until June, delay ing cultivation and growth. A careful soil and ground water sur vey of any of these flat areas will how' that only part of the (oil in the area is typical white land. A sec ond portion is near white land, or in termediate between white land and brown silt loam, while a third portion is slightly undulating brown silt loam that has fair natural drainage. Location of Under Drains. When it has been determined that an outlet for the farm drains is avail able, the next step is to go over the wet areas with a soil auger or post hole auger, making a thorough study of the subsoil and the soil water condi tions. Beginning at the outlet frequent borings should be made to a depth of at least four feet. This will reveal the Brains Applied To Farming By R. M. Rutledge. IS a FTEB all, home life is the main point," said Harvey W. Currin, a 1909 graduate of the Oregon Agricultural College, who is a firm believer in judiciously double cropping his orchard, as is shown in the accompanying photograph of his baby, eighteen months old. His hearty out door laugh greeted the question, "Did your agricultural education and the four years spent at 0. A. 0. payt" To which he replied as follows: "Upon graduation I accepted a posi tion as foreman of a Eogue Kiver orch ard at a monthly wage of $50, and was taised to $75 within six months. Nine ITOME AND FARM location and extent of any impervi ous stratum and also the more free working strata from which water will feed into the auger holes or into a tile drain most readily. Any seepage water can be traced to its souree by the auger method and a tile line located bo as to intercept the seepage water. In draining saucer-like areas with re tentive sub-soil it is best to nut laterals over or under or around these sticky sub-strata, and, for the most part, cut off outside water before it gets on to such strata. This leaves only tne excess rainfall of the area to be handled and ercatly simplifies the problem. How Drains Should be Placed. In order to drain the bulk of the root rone for ordinary field crops quiekly, the lateral tile drains Bhould not be plaeed far into a retentive sub stratum, even though the main drains may need to go into or below this layer. For field crops on white land 23 to 36 inches is a good average depth for laterals and 42 inches for main drains. For good thorough drainage of typical white land flats the laterals will need to be as frequent as about every two rods, for the intermediate type of soil about every four rods; while for the brown silt loam a few strings of tile placed up the draws will give sufficiently thorough drainage for ordinary field crops to pay a fair re turn on the investment. The water is taken into tiles moro easily before it gets out of this loam soil to the white land. months later I was placed in charge of a 2,100-aere bay, grain and fruit farm near Drain, Oregon, at a salary of $1,200 a year. At the end of six months my salary was advaneed to $1,G00 a year. In addition to the salary, we are fur nished a home with water, telephone and office supplies, a horse and buggy and their upkeep, fruits and berries, garden, pastures and buildings for our eows, hogs, chickens and turkeys. "This is a point worthy of considera tion in chocking an occupation. Other vocations pay as imich as this for the samo skill, knowledge and work, but often the items of rent, water, iuel and MAGAZINE SECTION" other living expenses tike several hun dred dollars from the salary. This is a very desirable position and I attribute my rise from $600 to $1,500 within 20 months to the college training. A col lege course puts a man on horseback in the race for success and makes his work easier, more interesting and more profit able." Since being graduated Mr. Currin has been taught much by practical experi ence that he could not have gained in any other way. Among other things of great value be has perfected a system of handling teams which is exceedingly interesting and successful. When em ploying a man by the day, he pays him $2. If the man has a team he pays him Ruth Currin. $2.25 for his own labor and a sum for his horses determined by their size. For the average size horse he pays $1 a day; for a medium heavy horse he pays an extra 12c, and fof a heavy horse he pays $1.25 a day. He has found that three big horses at a eost of $3.75 will do the work of four ordinary horses at a eost of $4. This is a small item but when multiplied by many teams quick ly counts up. It not saves 25 cents, but also saves on feed and housing expense, for three larje horses will not eat so much or require so much stall room as four ordinary horses. This is brains applied to farming. Through his influence on the com munity this farm-college bred man has developed a change in the system of farming in his community. His orch ard required extra team work in the spring, but when Mr. Currin first came in 1910 every farmer in his vicinity had his hands full putting in his spring crops. Quick advertising among the towns from Portland to Ashland brought outside teams. Seeing so much money go past them, the local farmers began Get the Facts Erery young man and woman in the North west, who thinks of business at a career, hould tend for osr free booklet "The Step ping Stone to Sneeeu." Get the facts about the QENTRAL Commercial UJJollege The mot modern methods of Infraction and the beat teachers obtainable, both In ability and experience. Efficiency the watchword In modern bolt iei ii the watchword In thii aehool. Rapid progress combined with thoronghneu. In a nutshell-crar courses are as short as anj good courses can be and completing a eoorse guarantees getting a position. Writ today to a K. CARLTON, Principal. CENTRAL BUILDINO Portland Oregon iHllll ' .. - - i . . . ;. Gillespie School of Expression VOCAL, PHYSICAL AND ESTHETIC CULTURE LITERATURE, WITH ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETIVE RENDERING RHETORIC, ORATORY AND DRAMATIC ART A STUDENTS' CLUB FOR DRILL IN EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING DEBATE AND PARLIAMENTARY LAW CONTINUOUS FORENOON CLASSES INDIVIDUAL WORK AFTERNOON AND EVENINGS A PUBLIC CLASS EVERY MONDAY EVENING Fall Term Opens October 13, 1914 Individual Work Begins September . EMMA WILSON GILLESPIE, Principal, (34 Morrison Street Phones Main 5034, A-4S78. Portland, Oregon. to get Interested. Gradually they changed their uTain planting from spring to fall, until now the supply of local teams for spring work is more than sufficient. Today very few farmers in this neigb borhood sow grain in the spring. This allows them to work on other crops in the spring, provides a more uniform dis tribution of work, permits the farmer to work more days in the year with a consequent increase in the year 's salary, and raises the standard of agriculture in a whole community. Before entering the Oregon Agricul tural College, Mr. Currin lived on his father's farm in Clackamas County, near Kcrnsvillo. Work was no new thing to him, and this experience was necessary, for he had to be 50 per cent self-supporting during his college year. After graduating he married a domostie science graduate of O. A. C. Today he has a home, an excellent position, a 12- acre prune orchard of his own, and en joys a high standing in his community. He also is a director in the Drain cannery. Did his agricultural education pay! THE STORY OF A STUDENT No. 4. He graduated with honors and the BEHNKE WALKEE BUSINESS COL LEOB promptly obtained a position for him in a first class firm. What the BEHNKE WALKER BUSINESS COLLEGE did for him, It can do for you. BUSINESS COLLEGE Portland, Oregon. I. M. WALKER, Pres. Write o. No trouble to answer. We help yoa not only to get the edn eatfon. but a good position. TDE LIFE CAREER "BchooHag la youth should Inrarlnbty be directed to prepare a person in the best way for the best permanent occupation for which he is capable.'' President C. w. Kliot This Is the Mission of the Forty-sixth School Year Opens SEPTEHBER 18th, 1914 Write for Illustrated loo-page Book let, "The Life Career," and for Cita log containing full Information. Dtgrtt Courses AGRICULTURE I Agronomy, Animal Husbandry.DalryHuv bandry, Poultry Husbandry, Hortkulturs. Agriculture for Teachers. FORESTRY, LOGGING ENGINEERING. HOAE ECO NOMICS: Domestic Science, Domestic Art, ENGINEERING: Electrical, Irrigation, Highway, Mechanical, Chemical, Mining. Ceramics, COMMERCE. PHARMACY. INDUSTRIAL ARTS. Vocational Co-Agrlculture, Dairy ing, Home Makers' Course, Industrial Arts, Forestry, Business Short Course. School of JlfusicPliLno. String, Band, Voles Culture. Farmers Business Course by Mail Free. Address TUB XROISTRAR, (rw-T-18 to t-t) Conrallls. nregsa University of Oregon Thirty-Ninth Tear New Buildings New Equipment Additions to Faculty Liberal Arts Journalism and Sciences Law Commerce Architecture and Finance Teaching Medicine Graduate School For Catalogue and Literature Bend Postcard to Registrar, Eugene, Oregon.
