From Corn*t< 



This Article Brings You Some Essen- 

 tial Details of the New Soil-Conserva- 

 tion Progrann. It Will, Assist You in 

 Determining How the Plan Can Be 

 Fitted Into Your Farming Operations 

 in 1936. The New Plan Offers an Op- 

 portunity To Hold the Gains Made 

 Under the Crop Adjustment Programs 

 of Previous Years, — Editor. 



I 



< The following information is based on latest of- 

 ficial statements available at time of going to 

 press.^i 



CONSERVE soil fertility! Put 30,- 

 )00,000 more acres in clover, al- 

 falfa and grass! 



Avoid producing soil-depleting crop 

 surpluses which nobody wants except 

 at price levels ruinous to the farmer. 



These are the objectives of the new 

 soii-conservation plan. 



Every right-thinking farmer will 

 want to go along with this program. 

 first, because it is good farming prac- 

 tice to improve and conserve soil fer- 

 tility by keeping a substantial percen- 

 tage of rotated acres in legumes and 

 grass. Secondly, because no one wants 

 a return of the low price levels of 1932 

 caused by big crop >;urpluses. 



How does the federal government 

 propose to encourage soil conservation? 



First, by paying a fixed amount 

 (averaging about $10) per acre for 

 "shifting" acres from soil-depleting to 

 soil-conserving or soil-building crops 

 in 1936. The amount of payment de- 

 pends on fertility of the soil. Higher 

 payments will be made for richer soils, 

 lower payments for poorer soils. The 

 most acres you can get paid for is 15 

 per cent of the base acreage of soil- 

 depleting crops for your farm. 



This soil-depleting base on your farm 

 will be established with the help of 

 your community and county commit- 

 tees. The soil-depleting base for any 

 farm will be the total acreage in soil- 

 depleting crops on that farm in 1935. 

 modified to take care of unusual situa- 

 tions. 



May Adjust Base 



These modifications will include al- 

 lowances for (a) acreage planted to 

 soil-conserving and soil-building crops 

 in 1935 because of AAA adjustment 

 programs: (b) for unusual variations 

 in plantings in 1935 because of drouth, 

 flood or other unusual conditions. Ad- 

 justments in bases also will be made in 

 instances where a farmer's soil-deplet- 

 ing or soil-conserving acreage is ma- 

 terially out of line with that for simi- 

 lar farms in the same locality. 



To provide county committees w^ith 

 a guide showing the average propor- 

 tion of farm land devoted to soil-de- 

 pleting and soil-improving crops in the 

 county, the AAA will establish the 

 ratio of soil-depleting acreage to all 

 farm land in each county. As a rule 

 the average of all individual bases es- 



tablished in the county is to conform 

 to this ratio. 



There are to be two types of pay- 

 ment — "soil-building payment" and 

 ■■soU-conserving payment." 



The soil-building payments will be 

 made for 1936 seedings of soil-building 

 crops on crop land, and for approved 

 conservation practices on crop land or 

 pasture in 1936. Farmers will be given 

 an opportunity to qualify for soil- 

 building payments up to $1.00 per acre 

 for each acre in soil-conserving and 

 soil-building crops in 1936. 



An exception is made in the interest 

 of small producers who may qualify 

 for payments up to $10 without regard 

 to acreage limitations. 



Soil-conserving payments will be at 

 a specified rate for "shifting" acreage 

 from soil-depleting to soil-conserving 

 or soil-building crops in 1936, or to ap- 

 proved soil-building practices. The 

 rates of this payment are based upon 

 estimates that 80 per cent of farmers 

 eligible will participate. If less than 80 

 per cent go along the rates may be in- 

 creased. In no case, however, will rates 

 be increased or decreased more than 

 10 per cent. 



I. A. A. RECORD 



