500 CONSERVATION 



banking, tile drainage, deep culture, sub- conserves the moisture so that it is suffi- 



soiling, sodding, and planting to crops, cient for his crop. 



The reclamation of washed soils is con- The dry farmer recognizes that land 



sidered. Terracing is highly commended commonly regarded worthless for agri- 



for hillside farming. culture, frequently receives sufficient 



Methods are also discussed for the rainfall per year to meet the needs of 

 prevention of the drifting of soil under farm life, much of which rainwater, 

 the influence of winds. Among the however, is permitted to disappear 

 methods advised are frequent rotation through evaporation. The dry farmer 

 in long, narrow lands, increasing the devises plans, some of which were ex- 

 water-holding power of the soil, leaving plained in CONSERVATION for March 

 the ground uneven after seeding, the (page 173), whereby this evaporation 

 preservation of wooded belts in north may be reduced to the minimum. In 

 and south strips, and the planting of addition, drought-resisting plants are 

 windbreaks. Says the bulletin : sought the dry world over, and intro- 



Considered in its general aspects, the work duced. 



which the agricultural experiment stations The success of dry farming means 



have done along the lines of preventing the the bringing into use of millions of acres 



washing and drifting of soils is of great r j.t-i i j 



economic significance. Means for preventing of now almost worthless land in the 



the further waste of the natural resources semi-arid West, not to mention similar 



of the soil have been discovered. If these l an d s in other places. In fact, the Dry 



o?"St now 6 uTeleis'^bfbroulK '"< F "g Congress announces that there 



cultivation, and if these lands are worked are _2po,ooo,ooo acres of arable lands 

 in accordance with methods of restoring and awaiting development by the dry-farm- 

 maintaining soil fertility, which the stations j nt y method. 



and this department have discovered and ^ri i j r *-* 



published, the extent of the wealth-producing Though dry farming is in its infancy, 



power thus conserved to the farmers of the the results already reported are most 



United States will be enormous. encouraging. Land once sold for taxes 



% % % is even now producing every variety of 



cereal, vegetable and fruit. From a drug 



Dryland Farming Qn the market> at SQ cents an acre; to 



"TWO practicable methods for re- active market value, at $25 an acre, is 



1 claiming semi-arid lands have been b X no means an unusual advance, 



found ; the first is irrigation, the second Among these results, may be mentioned 



is dry-land farming. the following: 



Dry farming has been defined as One farmer exhibited at the Dry 



"farm operations under limited rainfall Farming Congress a sample of rye 



in districts where irrigation water can- raised without irrigation. It stands 



not be obtained or where the supply of three feet S1X mches h S h and 1S fllll 7 



irrigation water is inadequate to meet headed Ollt ' Chough plucked before it 



the requirements of the acreage." had matured. The same farmer has 



Under irrigation the water is stored fort y acres of dry-farm wheat which, 



in reservoirs and turned upon the land he sa y s > promises to yield a banner har- 



when needed; under dry farming the " est - Another farmer claims to have 



water is stored in the soil itself. rai?ed a wheat cr P last y ear > a11 on dr - v 



Dry farming demands the establish- land ' yielding him $35,000. He now 



ment of a natural reservoir in the soil hcs 3-836 acres, and a comfortable for- 



by the conservation of the limited rain- tune drawing interest. Another farmer 



fall or other form of moisture through raised fifty-one melons on one square 



methods by which waste and evapora- rod of dry land. Still another dry-land 



tion are prevented. 'farmer quoted has 1,320 acres, repre- 



A dry farmer is a man who, in a re- senting the investment of part of his 



gion of rainfall under twenty-five inches profits from dry-farm wheat and oats, 



annually, cultivates the land that has. In addition he is reported to have nearly 



in the past, been deemed worthless, and $100,000 in cash and other possessions. 



