•Ihe RURAL NEW-YORKER 
1013 
General Farm Topics 
Farming Possibilities in Alaska 
We do not suppose that many of our 
readers would care to emigrate to Alaska 
for the purpose of farming. Yet many 
of us will be interested in knowing what 
can be done in that northern country. 
There is an experiment station in Alaska, 
and its report for 1919 recently reached 
us. Most people have come to regard 
Alaska as one big iceberg, with here and 
there forests growing out of the frozen 
land, or else a country given over largely 
to coal, minerals and fish. It appears, 
however, that in parts of the territory 
there are large tracts of laud which are 
well suited to growing grain, potatoes, and 
similar crops. Around Fairbanks, which 
is located near the center of the territory, 
there were grown in 1919 over 5.000 
bushels of wheat and much larger crops 
of barley and rice. It appears that the 
retail price of wheat at that time was 
.$5.40 a bushel. The people of Fairbanks 
and adjoining territories imported during 
the year 3SG tons of flour, and it is said 
that all of this and more could be easily 
produced in that territory if a small 
.flouring mill were established. At the 
present time the wheat grown in the ter¬ 
ritory is made into graham flour, there 
being no facilities for bolting flour. 
It has been found necessary to develop 
special varieties of grain for this north¬ 
ern section. This has been done by plant 
breeding, and some of the hybrids are 
Winter Rye Grown in Alaska 
very useful. It has not been possible yet 
to find a variety of wheat which can be 
seeded in the. Fall. Winter rye. how¬ 
ever, is a success, and the variety known 
as “Ilogot” has proved very satisfactory. 
The picture above shows a shock of 
this “Hogot” rye as grown in the interior 
of Alaska. Oats grow well, and usually 
make a fine crop. Many sorts of forage 
plants have been tried without great suc¬ 
cess, but there are several native grasses 
growing along shore which are quite sat¬ 
isfactory. Practically all varieties of Al¬ 
falfa have been killed out, except the yel¬ 
low flowering kind. The Semipalatin.sk 
Alfalfa has proved hardy, and has with¬ 
stood four Winters. We have grown this 
variety in New Jersey and found it ex¬ 
ceedingly hardy and productive. It has 
the habit of spreading op the ground al¬ 
most like a vine, and for that reason is 
difficult to harvest and cure. The Canada 
field pea is apparently not a success in 
Alaska, although it is hoped to develop 
hardy strains of it. The garden variety 
of pea known as “Alaska” in this country 
has proved hardy and is largely grown 
for food, although it does not make 
growth enough to be very satisfactory as 
a forage crop. 
Apples and most other tree fruits are 
killed by the severe Winters. The straw¬ 
berry thrives and gives a good crop, and 
one or two native bush fruits are well 
grown. One curious feature about farm¬ 
ing in Alaska is the use of the frozen soil 
for irrigation. When first cleared for 
farming purposes it is found that the 
ground has been frozen to a depth of 
many feet, and the lower part of the soil 
remains frozen through the entire year. 
When the land is cleared the upper part 
thaws out and is cultivated and seeded in 
the ordinary way. As Summer progresses 
more and more of the soil thaws, and the 
moisture rising through the ground pro¬ 
vides abundant water for the crops. There 
is but little rain in that country, the 
average fall being about 12 in. during 
the entire year, so that the thawing of 
this frozen’soil yearly takes the place 
of irrigation. After a number of years 
of culture, however, the land thaws out 
completely, and thus can no longer pro 
vide moisture from below, as when put 
under cultivation it does not freeze again 
to the original depth. Thus after a time 
it becomes necessary to provide moisture 
in some way for carrying the crops 
through the dry Summer. It is proposed 
to do this by filling the land, if possible, 
with organic matter, through plowing 
under green crops, and leaving the land 
roughly plowed in the Fall, so that it will 
hold and absorb as much snow water as 
possible. It is hoped to fill the land with 
the moisture in this way, and then by giv¬ 
ing thorough surface cultivation to hold 
most of that moisture in the soil. It 
will hardly seem probable to this genera¬ 
tion, but those who have spent some years 
in the territory and studied its possibili¬ 
ties are sure that in the future it will be 
developed as a grain-growing country, so 
as to add materially to the food crops of 
the world. 
Making Potato Flour 
M hen taken from the wagons the pota¬ 
toes are run over a screen to take out the 
dirt, and are then stored in large bins. 
Anything sound is taken, regardless of 
size or shape. When ready for the 
process they are shoveled from the bins 
to a kind of sorting table, which pours the 
potatoes on an endless belt conveyor, 
stones, sticks and decayed spuds having 
been removed. At the end of the con¬ 
veyor the potatoes are dumped into a 
large cylindrical tank and thoroughly 
washed in water by revolving paddles 
which work them to the end of the tank 
and then into hoppers above the peeljng 
machines These machines, holding about 
one bushel, scrape off the skins with re¬ 
volving carborundum disks A conveyor 
runs from this machine to another hop¬ 
per above a cooker. Here the potatoes 
are thoroughly cooked for 20 minutes 
with live steam and conveyed again to the 
flaking machine, which has a system of 
hollow steel cylinders filled with steam. 
The now well-mashed potatoes adhere to 
the exterior surfaces of these rollers. Two 
small rollers, about 4 and 8 in. in dam- 
eter. revolve about a larger revolving 
drum about 4 ft. in diameter. As these 
cylinders revolve a thin film of the 
mashed potatoes leaves the smaller rollers 
and adheres to the large one, which turns 
very slowly. The heat in the large drum 
removes all moisture, and a knife at the 
bottom, the full length of the drum, 
shaves off a very thin sheet, which is 
broken up into flakes and milled, much 
the same as is wheat flour. The small 
percentage of skin left on by the peelers 
is practically all removed by a kind of 
scraper placed next to the large cylinder. 
Peelings in the mashed potatoes work to 
the outer surface and are thus easily re¬ 
moved. 
The potato flour factories, located most¬ 
ly in the Far West, offer a good market 
for cull stock. In some seasons they have 
paid as high as $1 per 100 lbs. G. b. f. 
Woolen Goods from the Producers 
Can you tell me where I can obtai 
the virgin wool horse and bed blanket 
mentioned on page 909? I would like t 
buy some, and think other members r 
our Grange would also. I think the Nei 
York 'Sheep Breeders’ Association coul 
develop a market for much of its wool i 
manufactured form, if reasonably pricei 
by advertising in The B. X.-Y. and not 
fying Granges that they had it to sel 
New ,Tersey. p. s. w. 
The statement about these woole 
goods was made by FT F. Robert 
son, manager of the Wool Growers’ As 
soc-iation, Ithaca, X. Y. There is n 
question about the demand for fine woe 
goods among farmers. All they want t 
know is where to get the goods. 
.Mr. Newlywed : “What a peculia 
dish !” Mrs. Newlywed : “It is. rathe 
In turning the leaves of the cook book 
turned two at a time and cooked herring 
in chocolate sauce. But von don't mini 
do you, honey?”—New York News. 
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Write our nearest office for illustrated booklets. 
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THE BARRETT COMPANY, Limited 
Montreal Toronto Winnipeg Vancouver 
St. John. N. B. Halifax. N. 8. 
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«m 
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The “Success Junior” plow leads for fast clean 
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Also Engines — Sawmills — Threshers, Etc • 
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MILLER & GLEASON, OLEAN, N. Y. 
THE HOPE FARM BOOK 
^ This attractive 234-page book has some of the * 
best of the Hope Farm Man’s popular sketches 
— philosophy, humor, and sympathetic 
human touch. Price $1.50. 
For Sale by 
Rural New-Yorker, 335 W. 30th St., New York 
