FARM AND DAIRY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 300, 15 December 1908, Page 4

FARM AND DAIRY.

REMARKABLE RESULTS. ill'. John McLennan, in an articlle contributed to the iliual New Yorker, says:—With a view of seeing what could actually be accomplish™ on ".i little farm well tilled," 1 purchased, four years ago, a little farm of 00 acres near the village of FXiyettevillc, N.V., of which about 40 acres are under cultivation at the present time. The farm, when 1 took possession, was so poor and run down that it would not keep goats; ami certainly it would not raise white beans; 1 know, because I tried if. I had the heartfelt sympathy of all my neighbors, freely and often expressed, on the evil day which made luc tile owner of such a farm, and they generally volunteered the advice that it was a good place to get away from, until seereilv i began to Icel sorry tor myself. HoweviT, 1 had a theory, and went at it. i first purchased a team of big farm horses weighing 28001bs, nail hired a sccoad team and man, ami we literally turned that faint bottom side up. In tiding so we put the ploughs down to a depth of 10 incites, and .exposed to the sun about four inches of soil which had never seen the light of day since the world began. Prior to this time 1 had made arrangements with the Commissioner of Public Works of the city of Syracuse, N.V.. to furnish a convenient dump for all the city manure removed from the streets of tli" city, which dump was located upon the bank of the Erie Canal. The result of that arrangement was thut we loaded three canal boats with 500 loads of manure, and brought it to within a quarter of a mile of tile farm, anil the two men and learns drew it up on the Jaml. The cost of that manure was about 300 dollars alongside the canal near the farm. I then applied ISOOlbs of slaked lime per acre, and sowed the whole in oats. Well, talk about oats! When harvest time came neither men nor teams could be seen when cutting those oats, mid I thrashed that year something over 1800 bushels of oats, weighing nearly 401b per bushel. While the oats were growing we built the barns, silo, and stables, and followed tlie next year with the house and 800 fruit trees.

f now maintain a lionl of 43 pure-bred llolstein cattle and six horses, and purchase not one dollar's worth of feed except a small amount of balanced rations used to feed some of the cows while hoing ofliciallv tested for milk and butter-fat. Next year I propose li» increase my herd to 50, <vnd oxpoct to raise plenty to feed all. The only products sold from the farm are milk, stock and potatoes; of the latter T have usually from 300 to 500 bushels to sell, ami t have sold 2300 dollars' worth of purebred stock since October 1, 1007. -My milk brings me about 100 dollars a month, besides feeding whole milk vo every calf born for at least six months. Of course this system of farming eliminates all pasturage and requires two, and sometimes three crops from the same laud each season. The alfalfa, of course, produces three crops, and wo j generally manage to get two and soma-

times Hi roe crops for soiling purposes. -Ml animals arc fed in the stable Hie year round, with outdoor exercise evevv day. awl all manure is drawn and' spread upon the ]jiml every day, and it may readily be imagined ihat the land is rapidly inecasing in fertility. It may be nsked. of what particular advantage is all this? To me Die answer is plain. I keep a stock that wonhl lax Hie capacity of the ordinary 100-acre farm, and do it with half the ploughing-. harrowing, seeding, and cultivating". I grow upon one acre nearly or quite as much as is ordinarily grown upon threer Th'. 1 question of fences up-

cm n farm in a serious problem; to mi' if is liosniiiiil. Two men uiiil Iwii teams do aII |hi> work and do if, well, except occasionally ! help them by mowinir. inkiiijr, dr.. with my loam, 'I IH'IV ill'c IICI lonjr sll'l'tellCS of pasture l«nils lo U |, („ weeds and hrusli, Imt e\"|-y fool, of In ml is kept coiislanlly ctillivated inn] clean, I!til more impnrtanl than all else is the faet I'lial every year Ihc la ml is becoming richer liiid si router. livery year I am able tn keep a larger slock, livery year Tam i,i- ---} crcasinjr, lull my labor account remains the same. I cannot uiulerlake in tliis [ sliort article l„ set down all of tin- d"-

(nils mill requirements of this system of farming: Hint is another ami longer slorv. 1 liiive tried, however, to give in a general way my experience in putling iato practice 'my theory, letting von judge of tlm results as yon will; but for myself I am fiinily convinced that fanning in Hie near future, if successful. iniKt lie conducted alon.r similar lines, mill when that (lav conies our count rv can main! lin 300.000,0110 people as easily we ;ihi v main Ia in 5n.1100,000, our preseiii |>optiliil ion.