-t-tC«* 



HAMPSHIRE COUNTY ^^ 



jA^K rlo«^! t ti.tral 



FARMERS' 



Vol. VII. 



NOKTHAMPTON, MASS., JANUARY, ]!»i>l' 



No. 1 



CAN'T RUIN NEW 



ENGLAND SOILS 



But Outside Capital Necessary to 

 Reclaim Run-out Land 



Massachu.setts Experiment Station 

 starves soil for thirty-three years and 

 brings it back with single manuring. 



Just how badly may soil be treated and 

 still be worth reclaiming? How long- 

 may the fertility be relentlessly drained 

 from the land in successive crops and still 

 leave something on which future farmers 

 may build? 



These questions have puzzled soil ex- 

 perts ever since there have been experi- 

 ment stations. They are always upper- 

 most in the minds of those farm enthu- 

 siasts who buy Soil-depleted farms in the 

 New England States in the expectation 

 of bringing back the land and main- 

 taining their families on the products of 

 the soil. 



A definite answer is returned by the 

 termination of an experiment of thirty- 

 three years standing at the Massachu- 

 setts Agricultural Station. 



Dr. Charles Goessman, first Director 

 of the State Experiment Station, began 

 a systematic depletion of soil fertility on 

 an experimental plot in 1888. The feasi- 

 bility of reclaiming run-down soil was as 

 vital a fjuestion then as now. Certain ex- 

 perimental plots were given worse treat- 

 ment than they would ever receive in real 

 farming. The meanest of tenant farmers : 

 would not have given the land poorer 

 treatment than did the Experiment Sta- 

 tion. 



The men who began the experiment 

 had long since died. E. F. Gaskill of 

 the Experiment Station, who has been in 

 chai-ge of the plots the last few years, 

 reviews the significant soil test as fol- 

 lows: — 



"On land which for thirty-three years 

 has had no fertilizer, yields as low as a 

 half bushel of corn per acre and 700 

 pounds of hay have been obtained. On 

 adjacent plots where acid phosphate alone 

 has been used all these years, the last 

 three crops of corn have yielded at the 

 rate of 2, 2.3 and 6.6 bushels per acre. 

 On another plot where acid phosphate 

 and potash have been used, results have 

 been much better, the yield per acre being 

 as high as .53 bushels of hard corn. With 

 Continued on page 7, column 1 



EXTENSION SCHOOLS 



Demonstrations Planned for 1922 



The One-day Extension School in 

 Chesterfield while not largely attended 

 gave the farmers up to date information 

 in Soil Fertility, Orcharding and Com- 

 mercial Potato Production. At this 

 school demonstrators were signed up for 

 the coming year. Eight men will carry 

 on demonstrations in pasture improve- 

 ment, potato culture, fertlizing and 

 spraying orchards. From these demon- 

 strations it is hoped that the farmers of 

 the town will become intere.sted in im- 

 proved methods. Those who attended 

 this meeting felt amply repaid for their 

 time and will try to get out a larger at- 

 tendance at future meetings. 



At Middlefield Extension School eight 

 definite demonstrations showing improved 

 methods in potato culture, pasture fer- 

 tilization and top-dressing of hay were 

 signed up. Middlefield farmers are 

 more interested than ever in potato pro- 

 duction and practically every potato 

 grower in the town is planning to use 

 .some certified seed this coming year and 

 orders have already been placed. Three 

 farmers will conduct pasture improve- 

 ment demonstrations which should prove 

 of value to the community as all agree 

 that bru.sh is becoming more abundant 

 and feed less each year. 



Extension schools have been .scheduled 

 in January as follows: January 11 — 

 Plainfield; 12 — Cummington ; 13 — Gran- 

 by. 



COMMUNITY MEETINGS 



New Program Proves Profitable 



In the past the Extension Service has 

 perhaps taken itself too seriously in 

 some respects. The agents decided after 

 attending the annual conference of Ex- 

 tension workers in Amherst that our 

 community meeting program consisting 

 of a long dry talk by the Club Leader, 

 followed by a longer drier talk by the 

 Home Demonstration Agent and finished 

 by the longest driest talk by the County 

 Agent was absolutely a fine way not to 

 get the people of any community in- 

 tere.sted in a program of work. 



We realize that few human beings 

 make the most of their gifts and after 

 deciding that something diflFerent should 

 Continued on paj^e .5, column 2 



FINAL POTATO REPORT 



Revised and I inal 1921 Figures make 

 Some Important Changes 



The United States Bureau of Markets 

 and Crop estimates is revising its pre- 

 liminary estimates on crops in 1919, 1920 

 and 1921 upon the basis of the U. S. 

 Census of 1919 which has lately become 

 available. It announces the following 

 revised estimates of Potatoes. 



The United States crop 1921: .346,- 

 823,000 bushels, or 9,2.53,000 below the 

 Nov. 1 estimate. Revised estimate of the 

 1920 crop; 403,296,000. Thus the 1921 

 crop is 14% less than the 1920 crop; and 

 77f larger than the revised estimate on 

 the 1919 crop of 322,867,000. Five year 

 average: 373,417,000. Ten year average: 

 368,164,000. Final estimate of the 

 Maine crop 1921 is 37,152,000, the same 

 as Nov. 1, 1921 estimate. 



New England's total crop is 49,191,000 

 compared with 49,236,000 the estimate of 

 Nov. 1, a decrease of 45,000 (less than 

 I'/r ) . No change from Nov. 1 estimate 

 in New Hamp.shire and Vermont. Mas- 

 sachusetts decreases 145,000; Rhode Is- 

 land, 3,000, while Connecticut gains 103,- 

 000. 



Compared with Nov. 1, 1921 pre- 

 liminary estimates the revised figures 

 show these changes in per centage: (a) 

 Decrease : New York 8% ; Pennsylvania 

 177r ; Wisconsin less than 17c United 

 States 2.6%. (b) Increase: New Jersey 

 less than 17i ; Michigan 2.6%; Minnesota 

 21%; Colorado 8.5%; Idaho 7.5%. 

 Changes from the Nov. 1, 1921 estimates 

 are due mainly to revision of earlier es- 

 timates of acreage and to correction of 

 average yield estimates upon the basis 

 of final yield reports and record of ship- 

 ment to date. 



Up to Dec. 24, 1921 the 18 leading late 

 crop states had shipped 94,710 cars as 

 against 75,099 to the same date 1920 and 

 total for 1920 of 140,638. Shipments 

 from these states to Dec. 24 are thus 

 67.3% of their entire shipment from the 

 1920 crop. After Dec. 24 last year they 

 .shipped 65,539 cars. Shipments to Dec. 

 24, 1921 from the 18 le.ss important late 

 crop states are 17,947 cars as against 

 23,893 to this date last year and their 

 entire 1920 shipments of 25,966 cars. 

 Totals for all late crop states: (a) to 

 Dec. 24, 1921, 112,657 cars: (b) to 

 Continued on pa^e T. column 1 



