170 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



of nitrogen, and vice versa. A chain is 

 only as strong as its weakest link, and a 

 fruit crop will be measured by the prod- 

 uct due to the smallest amount of any 

 needed ingredient which may be present 

 in the soil. It is, therefore, of the great- 

 est importance that a well-balanced ration 

 of fertilizer be used so that the best re- 

 sults and no waste shall follow its appli- 

 cation. If the soil be deficient in any one 

 ingredient, putting on the others in excess 

 will not bring a fruit crop. Most of these 

 things are fairly understood by the fore- 

 most orange growers in Florida, but in 

 California, owing to a richer soil, growers 

 do not generally comprehend the science 

 of fertilization. It is a common custom 

 to apply nitrogenous fertilizers, such as 

 sheep manure and that of dairies and 

 horse stables, without much regard to 

 other substances which a proper orchard 

 fertilizer should contain. These things 

 will all be learned in time, no doubt, but 

 the object of this article is to call present at- 

 tention to the great need of intelligent 

 action along the line of fertilizing or- 

 chards, and if greater interest in the sub- 

 ject shall have been aroused the purpose 

 of the writer will have been accomplished. 



THE EASTERN STOCK FARMER 

 SHOULD GO TO THE IRRI- 

 GATED WEST. 



THE more I see of farming in the irri- 

 gated West the more I am convinced 

 that our Eastern farmers have failed to 

 appreciate the great advantages which 

 irrigation offers to the producer of butter, 

 cheese and pork, writes F. C. Barker, of 

 New Mexico. In the first place, more milk 

 and pork can be raised from an acre of 

 irrigated alfalfa than from an acre of any 

 other crop and at less expense. In the 

 second place, dairy products and pork in- 

 variably sell for more money out West 

 than they do in the East. For instance, 

 in the town where I live fresh ranch but- 

 ter is never worth less than 30 cents, and, 

 although doubtless pure, will fall when we 

 have a better supply, yet throughout New 

 Mexico large quantities are still imported 

 from Kansas, and it will be a longtime before 

 butter will sell for less than Kansas prices 

 plus cost of express. Enterprising East- 

 ern farmers who understand dairy farm- 

 ing ought to take advantage of this state 

 of affairs and make their butter where it 



sells for the most money. That butter, 

 cheese, pork, poultry and eggs sell for 

 more money in the irrigated West than in 

 the East requires no proof at my hands. 

 The immense shipments from points far- 

 ther east prove this beyond any doubt. 



The question which will naturally be 

 asked by the farmer is, whether butter 

 and pork can be raised as cheaply on an 

 irrigated farm as in States like Illinois, 

 Iowa, etc. Personally, I feel more cer- 

 tainty upon this point than I do upon the 

 question of prices. The latter are liable 

 to fluctuation and beyond the farmer's 

 control, whereas the only variation in the 

 cost will be in the direction of further 

 economy as the farmer gains experience. 

 Enough has already been done to show 

 that no crop is so suitable for dairy cows 

 and pigs as alfalfa. Under irrigation it 

 produces at least three and often four or 

 five cuttings, making a total of three to 

 five tons of hay for the year, the feeding 

 value of which is at least equal to the best 

 timothy hay, indeed it is considered supe- 

 rior by every one who has had experience 

 with both alfalfa and timothy. I give the 

 estimates in hay because they are more 

 easily compared, and after all hay must be 

 the basis of all stock feeding. But alfalfa 

 is not the only stock food raised here. 

 Corn, sorghum and cattle beet can be 

 raised with the greatest ease and under 

 very favorable circumstances to the stock 

 feeder, and bran is always obtainable at 

 reasonable prices. And last, but not least, 

 the open winters make stables quite super- 

 fluous. 



Dairy Cows' Rations. Experience by 

 practical dairymen in each of the States 

 mentioned show that the following are 

 good rations for dairy cows: In Pennsyl- 

 vania, 10 Ibs. corn fodder, 6 Ibs. hay, 3 

 Ibs. wheat bran, 1 Ibs. cottonseed meal, 

 1^ Ibs. oil meal, 2 Ibs. corn rryeal. In 

 Illinois, 7 Ibs. clover hay, 7 Jibs, timothy 

 hay, 12 Ibs. corn and cob meal, 8 Ibs. 

 bran, 1^ Ibs. linseed meal, 1 Ibs. cotton- 

 seed, meal. In Colorado, 30 Ibs. silage, 

 10 Ibs. alfalfa hay, 10 Ibs. clover hay, 5 

 Ibs. wheat bran, 2 Ibs. corn meal. 



Kansas Fruit. As a fruit-growing 

 state Kansas is making a record. During 

 1895 there werein bearing?, 529,915 apple 

 trees, 186,874 pear, 3,790,692 peach, 883- 

 874 plum, 1,451,716 cherry, making a 



