HAMPSHIRE COUNTY FES i 



FARM BUREAU MONTHy^^ 



Published by the Hampshire County Farm Bureau 



PRICES 50 CENTS PER YEAR ; $1.00 PER YEAR INCLUDING MEMBERSHIP IN FARM BUREAU 



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Vol, 2 



Northampton, Mass., March, 1917 



No. 3 



GRAIN PRICES 



Farmers the county over, wheth- 

 er they meet at the grocery store, the 

 church, or the grain mill, exchange 

 remarks regarding the high prices 

 of feeds. Some grains are unoljtain- 

 able while practically all of them 

 are selling at prices that almost pro- 

 hibits their use. The prospects arc 

 that these conditions will continue 

 for some time to come. How can 

 these conditions be met and still 

 keep the livestock on the farms at a 

 profit? Without question, the only 

 solution is to grow more of the feeds 

 on the farm. 



A silo is found on nearly every 

 dairy farm, and all agree that silage 

 makes one of the best and cheapest 

 crops to grow. If there is any farm- 

 er In the county at the present time 

 who is keeping over ten cows and 

 does not have a silo, he should se- 

 riously scrutinize his system of farm 

 management immediately and decide 

 if it would not be profitable for him 

 10 build a silo and grow some sil- 

 age this season. 



A practice that many farmers 

 are following is to grow only enougii 

 corn to fill the silo and grow no 

 corn for grain. Horses and hogs re- 

 quire corn and it should be grown on 

 the farm. Some farmers break off 

 enough corn from their ensilage 

 field to feed the horses and hogs a 

 part of the year at least. There is 

 no advantage in this practice as a 

 ge,neral rule, it is only a case of rob- 

 bing Pet€r to pay Paul. It will, 

 without doubt, be profitable this sea- 

 son for some farmers to grow soy 

 beans to put in the silo, along with 

 the corn. This increases the pro- 

 tein content of the silage and de- 

 creases the demand for grain. 



As a supplement to silage, clover 

 hay or alfalfa has no equal. Good 

 clover hay or alfalfa will go a long 

 way toward decreasing the grain 

 bill. A well drained soil, lime, a 

 good seed bed, and plenty of strong 

 viable seed, are some of the require- 

 ments for a stand of clover. Al- 

 falfa has passed the experimental 

 stage and more farmers should at- 

 tempt to grow It. A farmer who can 

 grow clover is qualified to try al- 

 falfa. 



/ 

 The feeding value of the two crops 



are about equal, but alfalfa has the 

 advantage, if properly started, of 

 producing a crop or a greater num- 

 ber of years. Clover can only be 

 counted on to produce a crop for one 

 year and possibly two. 



The farmer who enters the win- 

 ter with a silo full of ensilage, a 

 crib full of corn, a liberal sprinkling 

 of clover through Ills hay, and a bay 

 or two of alfalfa, has taken a big 

 step toward meeting the high prices 

 for concentrates. The dairy farmer 

 ought to think of these crops when 

 planning his season's work. 



BOYS' AND GIRLS' CLUB WORK 



The interest among the boys ana 

 girls in Hampshire County in Agri- 

 cultural and home-making work ha-^ 

 steadily grown until it has now 

 readied the stage where It is abso- 

 lutely essential that it be organized 

 and given direct supervision. To 

 meet this need, the members of the 

 the advisory board of the Farm Bu- 

 reau at a recent meeting voted to 

 engage an assistant county agent 

 who would devote a large share of 

 his time to boys' and girls' work. 

 By the time this paper is distributed, 

 the new agent will probably bave 

 been engaged. 



The work will be organized in 

 all the towns in the County that de- 

 sire to develop work of this kind. 

 The plan of organization will be for 

 the county agent, cooperating with 

 the Massachusetts Agricultural Coi- 

 lege, to interest the children in the 

 schools by talks and illustrated lec- 

 tures, these to be followed by meet- 

 ings with the parents and teachers 

 to insure support from the homes 

 and schools. Boys and girls will 09 

 enrolled in the different state clubs 

 as the corn club, potato club, mar- 

 ket garden club, pig club, poultry 

 club, etc.. and then for the children 

 under ten years of age or for the 

 older ones who do not desire to eu 

 ter the state clubs, local groups will 

 be formed of those who will start 

 a home vegetable or flower garden. 

 Town exhibits will be held in most 

 cases where the children can show 

 the results of their summer's work, 



prizes to be offered by some local 

 organization or group of organiza- 

 tions. 



In order to insure the success ot 

 the work, it will be necessary to 

 have several voluntary supervisors 

 in each town, each supervisor to 

 have charge of the work of the chil- 

 dren in his or her district under the 

 direction of the Farm Bureau Agent. 

 The gardens .should be visited twr> 

 or three times during the summer 

 and assistance and encouragement 

 given the children. 



During the first week In May, 

 Prof. G. L. Farley. State Leader of 

 Junior Extension Work and Mr. V. 

 A. Rice, State Pig Club Agent will 

 visit as many schools in the county 

 as possible, explaining the work and 

 assist in the organization of the 

 boys' and girls' work in the County. 



THE FOOD SUPPLY 



The Committee on Food Supply and 

 Conservation, serving as a part of 

 the Committee on Public Safety, ap- 

 pointed by Gov. McCall, is urging 

 the following as a possible help in 

 the solution of the food shortage 

 and high prices that are bound to 

 prevail the coming season. 



1. Increasing the production of 

 staple crops, mainly, corn, beans, 

 live stock, market gardens. 



2. Garden work among the boys 

 and girls. 



3. Family back-yard gardens in 

 the manufacturing towns. 



4. Canning and preserving vege- 

 tables and fruits that otherwise 

 would be wasted. 



The food supply will grow more 

 serious as the year advances and ev- 

 ery individual should do his share 

 with what he has available toward 

 supplying the wants of his commu- 

 nity or district. For the people in 

 the factory towns, it is almost nec- 

 essary that they should plant back- 

 yard gardens in order to meet the 

 increasing cost of food products. The 

 boys and girls can be of unlimited 

 assistance along this line. On tbe 

 farms where livestock is kept, it is 

 quite possible that the Imports o£ 

 grain will be checked and that they 

 will have to rely, to a large extent, 

 on home-grown grains. This means 

 Continued On Page Three. 



