Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (June 1, 1952)
MEDFORD (OREGON) MAIL THIBUWE SEVEN Conservation Practices Encouraged by PMA Grants to Farmers of County Sunday. June 1. 1951 Maximum Usage 01 Farm Acreage s Aid of Program Local Budget Totals $54,600 This Year ' Are you a "producer who operates as either owner-operator, landlord, tenant or share cropper a bona fide farm In Jackson county in 1052 . , .?" If you are, you are eligible to participate In the Agricultural Conservation program which is carried on in Jackson county through the Department of Agri culture s Production' and Mar keting administration office in the courthouse. This is one of the programs with which the department Is working to achieve its basic physical soil , conservation ob jective, or the use of each acre of agricultural land up to its full capabilities, and the treatment of each in accordance with its needs for protection and improvement. Said "Partnership" The conservation program is described in the county hand- book as i." . . . government- farmer partnership not only for Improving our sou and water re sources, but as insurance that those resources will not be de pleted. The government's contri bution through the program rep resents a small part of the total cost of conservation activities carried on by the farmers. It is a means by which non-farmers as well as farmers invest in the future of America." In general, conservation meas ures approved under the pro gram are to oe performed by in dividual farmers on their own farms. Assistance payments froVi the PMA are limited to $750"for any individual. However, pro ducers In any local area may. with the approval of the county and state committees, formulate a written agreement to perform certain practices affecting sev eral farms by a pooling agree ment and gain the maximum payment for each cooperator. During 1932, the total alloca tion to be used In the county is 934,600. Responsibility for ad' ministration of these funds lies with a three-man county com mittee. This committee is made up of Jackson county farmers serving on a yearly ' basis. The BEFORE AND AFTER IN PROGRAM Shown above Is an illustrative example of the practice of preparing land for Irrigation. Pictured (left) is a portion of a 50-acre tract which, according to estimates by the Jackson county extension service, was only supporting five or six head of cattle for a period of two months. After the project was okayed for federal as sistance, which was United to 50 per cent of the cost or $15 an acre, under the Agricultural Conservation program, the Job was contracted to the Tru-Mix equipment company which went to work with a carry-all and ripper in leveling the ground. The picture at right shows the results of the leveling work which took the top soil off the rises and covered up the rocks. After all the ground Is leveled, seeded to permanent pasture and applied to irrigation, it Is esti mated it will support 100 head of cattle for elgha months. elections, held each fall, are open to all eligible farmers and their wives. In addition to the county committee, a three-man commu nity committee is also elected at that time to represent each, of the seven communities into which the county is divided. " An off ice is maintained by the county committee and all office personnel are hired by it. Includ ed on the local staff is an assist ant secretary, engineer, one full time stenographer and one part time stenographer. The county committee is made up of David B. Lowry, chairman; Albert L. Straus, vice chairman; Chester H. Wendt, regular mem ber; Robert' B. Fleming, first al ternate; David S. Blair, second alternate; Talbert D. Sehorn, as sistant secretary (administrator) and County Agent W. B. Tucker (ex officio), secretary. Committee members for the individual communities are as follows: Applegate F. H. Smith, chairman; James F. Corson, vice chairman; Lewis T. Buckley, regular member; W. H. R. Nos trand, first alternate; and Fran cis A. Krause, second alternate, Ashland ClaranceC. Wil liams, chairman; John S. Bil lings, vice chairman; Ben Daw son, regular member; Joseph M Rapp, first alternate; and Philip Feddersohn, second alternate. Central Point Homer A. Con ger, chairman; Robert O. Wolff, vice chairman; Dixon Saltsgaver, regular member; Ray Vogel, first I : ' alternate; and John Bohnert, second alternate. ' Eagle Point Robert B. Flem ing, chairman; F. H. Moody, vice chairman; R. L. Conger, regular member; K. L. Oliver, first al ternate; and R. i R. Bitterling, second alternate. Jacksonville-Medford Paul Culbertson, chairman; John Dun lap, vice chairman; and W. H. Arnold, regular member. Rogue River David S. Blair, chairman; C. H. Tjoelker, vice chairman; F. R. Sanders, regular member; Vern Orr, first alter nate; and William Krauss, second alternate. Sams Valley R. E. Nealon, chairman; Earl Peffley, vice chairman; R. A. James, regular member; and C. W. Duggan, first alternate.. The practices for which money Is allocated in Jackson county this year were . chosen by the county and community commit tees, soil conservation service, extension service, and represen tatives of other agricultural agencies, from a list of practices approved by the national PMA office. Local approved practices are the ones this group considers to be the most needed in the county and from which the greatest benefit could be derived in view of the size of the county allotment for this year. The practices chosen include construction of diversion . ter- LEVELING EQUIPMENT Shown above is a 10-yard carrv all being pulled by a caterpillar from the Tru-Mlx Equipment company which contracted the leveling job under the conserva tion practice of preparing land for irrigation, described in the accompanying article. The carry-all scoops the dirt off the high points and dumps it over the lower places which in the accom panying picture were covered with rocks. This implement is fol lowed in the leveling procedure by a "ripper" which evens up the ground consistency so it will ail settle at the same level rather than unevenly at the soft spots. . The ground is then land-planed and ditched before seeqlng to permanent pasture. races or ditches to collect or di vert excess, water, .establishing permanent sod waterways to dis pose of excess . water without causing erosion, and constructing erosion control dams to prevent or heal the gullying of farm land and to reduce run-oft of water. Others are constructing perma nent riprap; stream or shore con trol to prevent erosion or flood damage to farm land; seeding or reseeding of permanent pastures on cropland for erosion control; completed, controlling perennial weeds as a necessary step in soil and water conservation; artificial reseeding of grazing land; controlling com petitive plants and shrubs on non-cropland; reorganization of farm irrigation system; prepar ing land for irrigation; construc ing or enlarging dams, pits, and ponds for irrigation water. Construction and enlargement of drainage ditches; installation of drainage tile; and installation of. permanently located mainline pipe and stand pipe for sprinkler irrigation, are others. In no instance does assistance for any of these practices exceed 30 per cent of the cost, and usual ly it, will fall beW this figure as a result of various restrictions applied to the practice. One use of the program in this county is called "Individual Practice, Prior Approval Meth od," and under it the producer is required to file a request for approval with the county com mittee for each practice just be fore performance is carried out. An inspection of the proposed work Is then made, and if the committee approves the practice It will give formal notification to the producer of the units ap proved (In acres, feet, or other measurement), a date when the practice is to be completed and reported on, and the amount of money set aside for assistance. As soon as performance Is the farm operator must submit a report of comple tion to the county committee, and the farm operator must sub mit all necessary evidence, such as sales slips, Invoices ,and re ceipts, to substantiate the report. The accompanying pictures show work in progress on a job approved by the committee un der the practice of preparing land for irrigation. Following through oh this particular pro ject will serve to illustrate the step by step procedure to be fol lowed by farmers, in obtaining PMA assistance. The operator in this case con tacted the local office at the time he decided to do the work. There the requirements for this type of project were explained and it was pointed out that as sistance for this practice is lim ited to 80 per cent of the cost or $13 an acre, whichever is less. Arrange Inspection After the application was made, the office arranged for an on-the-farm inspection. As a re sult of the inspection, it was de cided that the proposed work was a needed practice and would meet with all committee re quirements, and a prior approval for 30 acres was issued. The farmer was free to make what ever arrangements he pleased for equipment to do the work, so long as the completed Job met with PMA requirements Ip this Instance, the . Tru-Mix Equipment company contracted for the Job. When work la com pleted, the operator will report back to the office, and a final in spection will be made. If work has been completed according to specifications, the committee gives final approval. The project Illustrated will cost approximately $33 an acre to complete, or a total of $1,750 for the 80 acres. Of this amount, the farmer will receive the maxi mum assistance allowed by the committee ($750), and will pay the rest himself. Increase Estimated According to rough estimates by the county extension service, this acreage which previously supported five or six head of cat tle for a period of two months, will, after leveling, seeding to permanent pasture, and applica tion of Irrigation, feed 100 head of cattle for eight months. In addition to administering the conservation program, the county PMA office has three other activities. These Include the price support program, other specialized loan programs, and defense activities. In the price support program, loans, purchase agreements, and other aids are available to the farmers. On the loan basis, the farmer is loaned up to the sup port price on his commodities. For satisfaction of the loan the farmer can forfeit the commodi ties. If the price should happen to raise above the support level, the commodities can be redeem ed and sold and the loan paid off at the agreed interest rate. Special Loans Another program set up Is for specialized lions. Here, loans are available for the construction or purchase of storage facilities for certain farm commodities. This loan program for storage facili ties has "been extended through June 30 of this year. The county PMA committee t also responsible for carrying out certain defense activities dele gated to PMA by the secretary of agriculture. It has been nam ed the claimant agency for agri culture to the National Produc tion authority, and, as a. result, the local committee works with problems of supply .and psiorlty requirements as they relate to farming. Provisions of the operation of PMA in the county are set forth each year in a handbook issued by the county committee. Copies of these, as well as any particu lar Item of information concern ing the programs, are always ' available at .the county office. KMQ CQKBAY'lhe Mew i errace:5lhi 307 North SBarileti Featuring o Outdoor Furniture o Patio Covers o Awnings-both residential and commercial o Complete Canvas Line OP .U Umbrellas Chaise Lounges Opening $Q95 Special y Let Us Recover Your Chairs; Pads and Chaise Lounges in Your Choice of Colors Summer Special LAWN SWINGS With Canopy Famous ' Deeco Furniture The Finest in METAL Lawn Equipment Metal and Canvas Chairs iiu. uaiuGii Next to Selby Glass Co 1 HAMMOCKS
