i WINTER MONTHS are now at hand. The leisure hours of the long evenings 
are the time for the farmer to make his plans for the. coming spring’s work. The 
harvest is over and the stock are in their winter quarters. The vegetables of the 
garden have been gathered. The fields have been plowed, so the winter freez- 
ing will make the preparation of a spring seed bed easier. The young trees in 
the orchard have received their protection, and the raspberry and blackberry 
bushes have also had their winter covering of straw. These and other prepara- 
tions for the long winter must give to the industrious and active farmer a feel- 
ing of satisfaction. 
The farmer can.look back over the year’s work with a feeling that he did his 
best with the knowledge he then had. The lessons learned from the experience 
of the past year will assist in planning the coming season's work. He knows that 
the abundant harvest was not the result of a single plowing and planting. It 
came from years of careful preparation and planning. Also the thought comes 
to him, now stronger than ever, that his part in the production of the crop was 
to provide, as best he could, the conditions under which the materials and forces 
of nature could function to the best advantage. With a possession of some 
knowledge as to what nature has done and will continue to do toward the 
production of his crop, the farmer is in a position to devise ways and means to 
utilize to the best advantage these forces of nature in helping him to produce a 
crop. The experiences of the past year teach him that there are many forces and 
conditions over which he has no control, so he is content to let nature work out 
her own course. These experiences also teach that there are many things he can 
do which will improve the quality and quantity of his products. 
He gathers around him, for evening reading, the best and latest books on 
agriculture. He has three or four of the best farm papers most suitable for his 
system of farming. The bulletins from the State Experiment Station dealing with 
the best methods of dairying, poultry raising, livestock and orcharding are on 
his table. Also the latest books on the care of the home garden. These particu- 
larly attract his attention, for he remembers with pleasure the many fine vege- 
tables that came from his garden last year. 
He reads, plans and is eager for the coming of spring when the field work 
can begin. He has decided to use greater care in the preparations for his crop, 
utilizing the latest information on fertilizers and insecticides. He will use greater 
care in the selection of varieties of plants and the quality of seed. He will give 
THE ROCKY FORD CANTALOUP 
