By C. M. LINSLEY, 



Asst. Prof, of Soils Extension, 



University of Illinois 



PIATT COUNTY farmers realize that 

 hard farming to grain crops with ht- 

 tle or no clovers is causing their crop 

 yields to slip downhill. 



They know that they have to get back 

 to clover in the rotation and for real 

 clover stands much of the land needs 

 both limestone and phosphate. But these 

 materials have been hard to get during 

 the war. However, Piatt county farmers 

 will be sure of at least 50,000 tons of 

 limestone this year in spite of war and 

 weather difficulties that held their ton- 

 nage down to a bare 11,000 tons in 

 1943. This did not just happen. Farm 

 Adviser E. O. Johnston and the Farm 

 Bureau directors were determined to get 

 the limestone that their farmers wanted 

 and needed for soil improvement and 

 were willing to tackle the many tough 

 problems of organizing and carrying out 

 such a project. 



This county has contracted for 100 

 cars of limestone a month for nine 

 months in good weather and bad. The 

 limestone is being stock piled at ten 

 convenient shipping points in the county. 

 A fleet of 18 limestone trucks hauls and 

 spreads this limestone when the weather 

 is favorable and the fields are ready. 



The buying of limestone by the farm- 

 ers' cooperative has solved problems other 

 than those directly due to the war. When 

 the individual farmer ordered his own 

 limestone, he was frequently forced to 

 cancel the order because of bad weather 

 or, if he did ijot cancel, he often had to 



pay demurrage because the fields were 

 too wet. Buying a large tonnage under 

 contract and providing a trucking and 

 spreading service also make it possible 

 to insure a good quality limestone and 

 a more dep)endable spreading service. 



Piatt county has not stopped with the 

 limestone problem. Farm Adviser John- 

 ston and the Farm Bureau directors have 

 recognized that much of their soil is 

 seriously in need of phosphate, as well 

 as limestone, for clovers and alfalfa. 

 Here again, testing the soil and advising 

 farmers to use this material, but sitting 

 back and complaining that phosphate is 

 hard to obtain, will not get any phos- 

 phate on the land. To make it possible 

 for farmers to follow out the recom- 

 mendations of the farm adviser and the 

 University of Illinois Extension Service, 

 the Piatt County Farmers Cooperative has 

 ordered 90 cars of rock phosphate. 



Farm Adviser Johnston and his farm 

 leaders realize that there is not much 

 point in urging farmers to improve their 

 soil if they cannot get the limestone, 

 phosphate, and potash that is needed to 

 do the job. 



Illinois is the leading state in the 

 use of limestone — three to four million 

 tons a year — and has made worth- 

 while progress in the use of clovers, 

 phosphate and potash. However, there 

 is still a tremendous job ahead in build- 

 ing up and maintaining the fertility of 

 Illinois soils, and there is a desperate 

 need to speed up this program if it is 



to be accomplished before it is too late. 

 With wartime prices, farmers want to 

 put their extra money into the "soil fer- 

 tility bank" as a security measure for 

 the years to come. So now is the time 

 to get the soil-building job done, but it 

 cannot be done unless the materials can 

 be made available. 



The bottleneck of short supplies of 

 phosphate and potash is much more seri- 

 ous than in the case of limestone. The 

 Illinois Farm Supply Company is tackling 

 this problem and has made some real 

 headway. New sources of rock phosphate 

 have been uncovered for Illinois farmers, 

 and in spite of war difficulties, the sup- 

 ply company has been able to get an al- 

 location for this year of about 7,300 

 tons of muriate of potash for Illinois 

 farmers. This material is badly needed 

 on many farms and is one that has been 

 very difficult for the farmer to buy. 



Making good-quality limestone and 

 plant food conveniently available at rea- 

 sonable prices is a field of service that is 

 wide open and offers the farmers' co- 

 operative an opportunity to make an 

 outstanding contribution to Illinois agri- 

 culture. 



Piatt county has done an outstanding job 

 in handling limestone. Picture No. 1 

 shows a tractor scoop bein^ used to load 

 limestone from stock pile at Mansfield. 

 Picture No. 2 shows stock piling at Gales- 

 ▼ille. one of the 10 shipping points in the 

 county. Picture No. 3 shows one of the 

 fleet of 18 trucks spreading limestone on 

 the Geoff Beazley farm near Mansfield. 

 Farmers appreciate this service. 



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L A. A. RECORD 



SEPT 



