AN EXAMPLE OF SUCCESSFUL FARM MANAGEMENT. 7 



As explained later in this bulletin this farm produces much excel- 

 lent silage and very large quantities of clover hay, which are fed 

 in the dairy. Better cows are bred and kept than formerly. They 

 receive good care, and a large production of milk is the result. In 

 these ways the dairy problem was solved. 



A LESSON IN DIVERSIFICATION. 



When the present owner first took the farm, clover and timothy 

 were raised for hay and corn was put into the silo. Barley was 

 grown and ground for the cattle and some oats were raised for the 

 horses. A little hay was sold under this system. This method of 

 operation is the common and often the only method in the section, 

 except that some farmers attempt to make summer milk on the poor 

 pastures. 



Mr. English found that with this method the cows were the limit- 

 ing factors in the profit. No matter how large the crop or what 

 it was worth in the market its value was measured entirely by what 

 the cow could make out of it. If the price of the milk was low, so 

 was the price of the crop. If the cow was a poor one, the price of 

 the crop was still lower. Moreover, there was much time on this 

 farm when the labor was not fully and profitably employed. The 

 distribution of labor was so poor that the men could not be given 

 steady employment by the year, and some difficulty was experienced 

 in getting satisfactory labor. So this farmer wanted to add to his 

 income without cutting down the income from milk, and by this 

 means to secure a better distribution of labor. 



Sugar beets were first tried, as a factory was then in operation at 

 Binghamton. It was found that an average of from 15 to 20 tons 

 of beets could be raised per acre, which brought $5 per ton. An 

 average income of at least $75 an acre could thus be obtained, be- 

 sides saving as many tops as there were beets sold. These were of 

 considerable value as a succulent feed for the cows. It was also the 

 custom to return from the sugar factory with as much beet pulp as 

 the weight of the beets delivered. This material was an excellent 

 supplement in feeding the dairy cows, and cost little to handle. 



These methods permitted the selling of more hay, so that the in- 

 come, instead of being principally from milk with a little hay, was 

 added to considerably by the sale of beets and more hay. Labor 

 was more fully employed and better distributed throughout the 

 season, and the additional expense was very slight in proportion to 

 the increase in the income. 



The sugar-beet factory was soon closed down, however, and in 

 that same year a canning factory was established at Binghamton, 

 so that the opportunity to grow sweet corn, beans, and peas for it was 



