Annual report of county agent work, 1919: Montezuma County

Annual

Report

of

County Agent Work

1919

Montezuma

County

Colorado

CO*OPERATIVE EXTENSION WORK IN AGRICULTURE AND HOlE ECONOMICS

State Agricultural College of Colorado,

u.s.

Department of

Agr-ioultuee and Montezuma County Co-Operating

AINUAL REPORT INDEX County's Agricultural Resources •

Organization _{• • •} •

Livestock Improvement

Purebred Sires for the Range Hog Disease Control •

Feeding Tests • Crop Improvement Alfalfa Corn • Sunflowers Silos • Sulphur Pest Control • •

•

Threshing • • •

•

•

• • • • • • •

•

• • • Co-operative Marketing •

Boyte and Girl's Clubs •

Statistical Report Summary

Photographs

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•

• • • • • • • •

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• • • •

• 3 - 7

g - 12 lJ - 20 21 - 28

29 - 35

36 -

1+1

4-2 -

43

• 44- - 52

53

·54- - 59

• 60

62

63 - 65

66 -

71

72 - 86

87

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-00 .. I. ro R " Pe t a tr • • T. ~ i T shi D on C -o -4r tiv 2 ... h . _ t .e · v--,nin ;,; tin .. 1 t h uU f tt R ~ ~ 10 1 h .n ho n · C. r-... n n Cec ·1 Secret .. :t •

.A.Jo

J . T . i ~·r h to 0 h. 0 y . T >~0 ,~ . t th a til .. v t i 0 :.J v X n t Co t 11 h .hoc n on TO og. 0 v 1 co t of hr to

re· re ent t e vr n

F'ar; Bu l ·

7

ORG NilJ. TIO •

Jun lOth ~ th' ·ren fee Co .munity or ~n1c.~ d

C1airma nd R. I lston a o t

ry .

Th ollo ng l i n of o k t~ n u Th eah1n . -J.~~rk ~t ing 1' Je .. d G. ·• ·orris

c •.

en!:'l;f~ B. Hcl ··t n f the th rt • . en fe

·• nes y !lifi- t J.1n 1 th . th .. ·1.k 1ata. Grl'!'~.n

re

a· ointed

9. ac ... 1 tt .. a o-r l r e to r ~re ~ ... nt 1 t ~ t the reorg· nization

m·etinb of the F·rm Bu.e-u .

~Jun 13th. tlle Leb"-lH>n Co J unity o~.ga iz rvith N' . T . ttt'""nger 0 atrm n :nd Joe Wedell s~or try . Th~ f llo1ing ~ n:s of 1or.

we-e a.en p n oomni tv m n n~oin.ed .

P t Centro I . A . ~ lly Th.r ahing n; . _, . allr. .. c lf· "a. mn ov ... n n • • w . Glenn Al .., 1 Ce- o r t• Th ·ol nb h lf on3 . G o . l ~: r i ng l • _. oG ~ e

ing y ~h reo g·niz.t·cn ~

n t r ~i c th y r

t .... d . lo

(

(

t t

LIVESTOCK IMPROVElmNT.

PURE BRED SIRES FOR THE RANGE.

Montezuma County has been a cattlemens stronghold since the white man first peeped over the Ridge that is now the dividing line bet"':Veen La Plata and Montezuma -Counties into the little valley of the Mancos river that is now filled with a contented and prosperous people whose-- chief interests are

still centered about Livestock. Only shortly after this in the "early eighties" the first white man came over the next divide and peered into the great Montezuma, Valley covered

with sagebrush and sparse grass and dotted with Pinon and Cedar trees in the upper portion. The northeast corner extends into the Mountains where an abun~~nce of luxuriant and palatable

grasses make the summer range a Mecca for all livestock. Much of this stock is shipped in the fall to the market while 'the

breeding or foundation stock is wintered in these two valleys now irrigated and producing abundant feed of alfalfa, wheat,

cern~ oats and barl~y.(The fr uit industry being no small side

industry).

All livestock that is cared for thrives under these con-ditions and the mild winters ha.ve caused these livestock

inter-eats to grow.

It only took a man of aver~ge intelligence to see that

the offspring of well selected and well fed ancestry brought more money on the market than the offspring of those less favored .

(

LI r ~STOC t I PFO

Uffi~ BRE I ·E

-

'n•

.. GE.

0 Ci 0 1 .. at nc ill u 1oe t bring thi3 m tt r

t on her at re t in the _nc Valley. Yh '

h;;rd by rin~ ·nd St ... v son n th .c _' r obta.i ..,d

fro .n 0 rrobor t y th ,.:.nag

r o

·ncoa

c

-ore ttv tock Shl in sooi .tion. Both ·ll _n

r - goo ju ., e of liv ""toe nd r .111· r ith

con 1tion nd th" tin th t a.ni t

rk t. Th a 1~ t a tab l ·d r tb at 1919. h C 'uty r o eded nd 1. th nr b bl aco r )Y the e t t .... . O·t 0

oru

t r t t e 20 . 00 tt good

"

"

n 1 _{~tl lea~ t ~n}

o.oo

_?39·

₀ Es ted eight

"

ric . ...,r ~)0 d

"

v.~lu 0 o ub goo ecr b t ood G no tl: 0 0 · .rl b go c. ste crub at e good u t ~

"

1 ti'IO t1 n t r OV r our ·· .. r r r t l .. in 00 poun · 250 1.,~ Q

.oo

1

2.5

70. 0 f.:2 -50

a· r ~ r l.ng ( any .!OGt 0 the to tint • T th /d IVEvT C,. I "P. OV · ~ENT .

UR~ BBJE SIR ·~g F,O T :.~ R NGE .

t 70 n tn" b no Q, cl h th· m

d d oona.i io f t two ye. s .

1 11 r nat: l~C · h-d btH~n reviouely obs l~ d ·nd

attlem n have 0 our;.;d exo nt bulla ro t . a

~ s c1·tio s or n z d ·or

of th 1 bus·n r 1 _{l l} tt r tv n

rg ntz ~ io . In the

s,r ng of 1919 this ss oi tton passed a re olution a. in.~ the

For .. st Se io to artnit notl in. bu ... ure r d 1 on the

1:a.ng · cool 1 d by ,h _e men 0 u r ,.J. •. On J

1919

-h 'S 001 tion h:. c llad m ~ tt nd J.no of

0 y- cne ·t furth r th_. t art d 1n 1 r y

s

. ing .

Th .. q tion 0 ho m?.ny 0 ... :t.d t on t~he r :tn :e hL

a is n nd . s ein i cua .. e ~ he .. the Co nty _1l nt took th

or in f*ve ~·nut ·or oon_in1 bulls on th .,.; nge

to t 0 br d _' Sh ·thor ·nd H r Th att c 11 d

to vot an the eting 'I

a

un m us forty-on ... rt in- t

th~ir ·eet

on

t e 0 l of the Preai nt, JAr • Ge orf~ e enef e .

Th Count ~nt a :nthox1z th xov ment

0 1 fro L Pl t Co nty 1~

_j o nt t th nco a r n _• T -1 a ne thr .h County

II

LIVES OC

Th· tt r f br 1 u l 'fl· r· . .lc i au --~n

0 . t on 1 lo t:"

"" n h,~ 1 conve

0 .Hi: ld e eri an. f t ...

a~.t.l·c· ion h

5t

_{1 ·} th ~ m tt OV 1

thoro 11 ag .i

.

!t y d t ~s t tlV

0. .1 of h ·t on t f n ith t e It.., r., t

0 fie .. X l·t tl' foro ·-~V. 0 ly

~f' rt h ~ b .n na # 0 e· _{l. •} A U· t to in )ect th

11 0 't

.

'( 'iOia.t io. o.. r j ot bl T 1

h cl ed. nt 0 in n u Y •

COtt itte .. 0 0 th ob . n<.

t t a t l ';l a·ne . It a a .. n~ll ell,. d tc a.t: ~ r . • •

Gr n ~ki, t•l t -Hug e m·· f •11 ~ M n a iph School ₀

.. c ullt . e id th h ju - n th

·e

_-7

11. t 22nd . h~t v

or

1 b•ll t b ~r itt 0

...

t

rn

.... li;jo e r""'n J n

b~tter n.s 111 ., e a bst ut:.. I Or th n·~ • Tl nt 0

thw 1\ _{tlOO B} ·.n ... n·unced th·t he ul ·:-in' c ·.t

to in nee i . ~lf this u.e b

t t, b ·~ t ₀ h ly h d.va.

-d t n . e tha thi· . 1 ' l e out on th

l t 3. d .... . T 1 _{1~ mu} l to b _d i '1111 rob bly ull

D

13

LIVESTOCK IMPROVEMENT. HOG DISEASE CONTROL.

Five years ago the hog business was so small in

Montezuma County that Mr.N.E.Carpenter,a. graduate of Wisconsin

Agricultural College and ~nager for the Fa rwell Estate

Lands in this Valley rode for two weeks trying to make up a shipment of hogs for the Denver Market, finally succeeding.

In 191~ Montezuma County increased her hog production to

eighty cars and. making the production so large that whe stood

number eight in the Counties of the State. The

1919

estimate

ij ten thousand head or one h¥ndred and twenty-five ca~s.

This industry merits the attention of County Authorities to protect it from Hog Cholera since that disease has · never made it's appearance in the San Juan Basin.

In January

1919

the County Agent received the following letter from Dr.Chas.G.Lamb, State Vet erinarian.

Denver,Colorado.

January 27th.1919.

Mr.G.P.Newsom, County Agent, Cortez, Colorado.

Dear Sir:

I notice with much interest that the farmers in

your County are going into the raising of hogs quite extensive-ly. This is as it should be , for I am satisfied that the hog

industry can be very materially increased in that locality to the very considerable profit of the hog raisers; but I want to warn you. and through you, the hog men of that County, that there is great danger of loss from hog cholera, unless they

r In Fe uo.r ;Lj "LIVESTOCK I MPROVEMENT .. hOG DIS SE C NT OL .

v cc· t·n

r og ra .. t th y truly you , ... d C . G. L S ta in 919 I r c iv t foll win !-en

,c

1 r -nnot I nt u llt .

19·

- . • • • e o Co nty 1 ent, C·r z, C lor1do . r ..,..

1 0 I

l

J

b

LI.ES

_• . t · o · l: t .• -co s t ...

n

. h ont Z"' .a C un y ( a .... d th

R

ol 1o • 0 .. • ur '

'c

ou t

y c

r

r.

( T eao uti on s ·n t f the Ol*d

:r

as f, ue Unite St·:tt r .H

17

u ¥ -tt t D v ion env r & 1 nd y

I ailro A lmin tr tion

n

o.nd Rio G·· nd .. ~ il""oada

d South r ~ilro

'P seng _r

"o LO.Ii n• _I;;;)

!. .. : .. G • P • :r \V , on , C llnt y . ... n ,

Cort~z , Colo ado .

D;;

to

d on

· an. and o.7 ar '""ign d

) g'

( t

.n

r·· . 0 1 ( 't '!':'f . .

...

Oo. .. 1: 0

I

9

Rail ,.v·3, E:~..n. .. sa Qr) • h expr_.·, _{" f!;} nt. the am

I'Ci ,. t

( Th C·unty th. ollo.in contraot (ith Mr .

L"'th·r

Hu

on of cl r r; ₀ r y out _'";.e rori 1 na of

"'

the for )g in.,. 1 )Ul" u·.nce L--

..

(

LIVESTOCK IlviPROVEMENT . HOG DISEASE CONTROL .

Mr . Hudson further agrees to use due and proper care and diligence in maintaining the health of hogs in quarantine and

should a hog become sick to call a competent local veterinarian

to ascertain the cause of the sickness. This expense shall

be borne by the owner of the hog or hogs .

Signed on behalf . of the County Cownissioners of Montezuma County this 15th . day of July 1919.

G.P . Newsom,County Agent .

Signed this 15th . day of July 1919

Luther Hudson .

On September 17th. 1919 after many attempts to secure a . man the same contract was made with Jack Burch of Mancos for the control of hogs shipped into Mancos Station .

So far five hogs have been quarantined and a very

vw'holesome public sentiment exists and 1 t is believed that this

regulation will be continued indefinitely .

From the time that hog cholera makes its appearance in

this County it will cost $5000 . 00 annually to control it and the losses which may exceed that amount .

Also the discouragement of the industry by the ·appearance of cholera will doubtless run into many thousands of dollars . a.nnually forcing activities into other channells of production.

~/ .. to 1 \ b .. -t:' tt: .t til .f. f

r '.

d _.ly

n

o: ""';. M;• _{• ;:.!} n I lt l lQ ! l 'M ', • ~ 1 h ,.,

·:/

FEEDING TESTS.

no

market. for them.

Well fed cows have large thrifty calves, underfed cows have small scrawny calves.

The Writer passed through a herd of cows and oalvea on their . way to the summer range in the Forest Reserve last

Spring. This herd had the markings of well bred or high grade Herefords. These cows were noticeably thin and emaciated. They were very much under the height that we would expect

among average range cattle. Th~ calves were all very much

under-size though bearing the unmistakable signs of good breeding. The na.me of the owner was not learned. Such animals under such circumstances have no market value and continual operations of that chara.ct.~~r will undoubtedly produce a mongrel ra.oe of

stock. Well fed animals have alv;a.ys a market value.

During the summer of 1918 Mr.David Halla at that time President of the Montezuma County Farm Bureau was sick a li:l.rge

part of the Summer and satisfactory help was not available. During September his health began to return and his accustomed duties were resumed. During the next four months

he kept a record of his \Vork w.dth his Jersey cows which is

tabulated as fallows:-Nurilber of co·ws.

10

October

31

days.

Milk Fat Feed.

(

~ EDI-~G ~s !3 , :··r. v .b ....

-o

aya . u ·.'b r

of

0 .Mil~ .. 2 3.~75 b. _" "" c::. b Stub e

.

_{' 1. a. .} <:~Clt e ;.1 t

of

_{0 tll ~} i. D 0_· _.b

31

_{y •} 1.

5375

lb .. •

;on

lb • 811 ,.. _(. ':J pound

.

J·nu ry

30

y itt:;' ·,.·t i l'l ₆₂₃₈ 0 ... 2 lb?. A1~~l (' llfeed)

0 _{11. 13 2·,~} po nd _~On ound _g ra n o. _o~r puns 11- ..

r .H

11 l!l ·he olloi i g "ay, t.,..r

0 t r 9lld t io o L c+ tion

1 t _{" 9}

7

to

r

19

. Fi e . the

OW>.J

.

tw y t:.~ olii t lO r

October

·n

n oth r ~ nt o n tf fiv

. 0 . y • T cows . ·~r very t n 1 l s N

r

1 t . 1-ni

n ... 1 .. · t;JY n 0

X f· t r c: in. J~ r r t~d t

3

a " for th

ont. t·en ou •. :l te t ,. v 0 o tl1e

t lve ... r~ t:; ~ r o a, on '.l n y. r on thr e > h e ... r

Th

Co r.'j

a

.... .

four ,one aix

b.v rtiol..-0 a er h ... 1n · t 1. ..

c

nty :tre ol 1. ont·zum. nt o

D

~~ it u y to

"' • " .J:(. · l.o <# t , h .. '*ct

. '. 6

. l/'

.. ~ t l . l,'lt)' tn ~("· t

n

I c {} tt. n tl'l 1~)

J.lt>[f s 1 ~ ~·. io

.n

Q,

om

rr, t e..41 Jh ) !; y tll.; ... n .r 11 ) n . 0 l ·~·l l 1 a: l H'l c r i IW n ·U it• l 0 n '\ bu Gl f o. oc: h. u 1(;; (J H t ,o

In

t .6( n c h .

.

} r _ton

or

1 _I fi t }',... i.. n 0 _"' h 0 en I 1 <

n.

T t' 1

e

ch t} t r .l ut ".tn ... i .. Q

a

ot ( _to.:, . fi •• r _" t h ac

FEgriNG T ,~-::TS .

three hnndr d .. nd :t"i.f'ty oun,.s . He v:-s f .... exQotly t·

~nty-1ght d· y n ..tt th:* end of the p ... riod i'iei hed four hundreo

·· n· sixty - t No r\oun~M gaining ex.aretly four pounu.. )~r o y .

The g .ins of ~:~.r . Hutohin. on 'N ::.l·a grt,r:-t Jr tha,n tho e

ofrr.

Se1tt; but h:.. -put nH.l£e labor on ·the <.> t1l'awion and still bas to h ul

the rotnur .

The · ·vantafua of Hogging .off corn vhere possible ·pa~·tio­ ul·:t:r.ly in tho 'lxy 1' nt ..J ~ot ion iu t1 :~t th · ork of h 1 king is

~t:J.Ved, the crop is s .. '!i d -: nd . onay received before 'linter

... ther atops or hin ers farmin{~.~ c er"1ti( na, Fall plowing or

listing on be :one c~rli r ·nd f ar 1rs · ho feel it neoelsery

to Nol·k cls;..wh.Jre for th.., «inter rnontlua ,~nd thus ~1mploy

th J ir "timo for the -vint,~r o".n bt3gin so ner tht;~vn if they had.

to husk their corn by lrLna. ·. nd moat ilTiporta,nt of "11 the

fextili ty of the land and 1 t' n )rocluctiveness will be .. n· in-t "lined. .1t · "k ;,t ing c op.~ off the l 'md 1 s aure to d.e }lAte soil

fert · li ty and l"educ ~ ·)rocluotivaness.

r .T·;.lcott hogged. off ten o.crea of wht) t seo1.u:ing a

(

(

FEEDING TESTS .

On Se.t P~r 25th.l919 pig W' s born on ·be far of

J . • 1 t · rs n ... l·ft

mn

orph n . One ox th .. boy took the

pig -·nd began f · ing it corn, slops Lnd itnmilk . On november

6th .1919

at the age

ot

forty-three days th . i g e1 had f ifty

. ound . Mr . Withers h d. recently bo'Ught fl. bu h of pi to

fe d o .t . Host of these i0

thre of tlL .. bunoh ully aix montha ol d ~ould not n .. 1gh to

xc ed tt1rty-f1v~ p s each .

In the pi Club ork of the County nine ni gs were .eli ... r,d

to ight boy 1n one irl n on Octob r ... n • th~s p1 a h d

ho n th41 follo in a a. :rea lt of Fe n

c

re.

~ It of 0"'rn ~r Wt ~ July ;.'2nd . t . Oot . 2nd. Gt· in No .n .. yt .. E .rl LfriThore 4-1

3/4

122 go

l/4

72

... rn L rimore "'.;g 1/2 9o

69

1/

7'r2

. p u _{L ·} rin~ore 38

:;/4

107 6

l/4-

72

Robt . G9.rlinghou.

32

105

₇₃

7'") f-Ja t ,a tt

32

102

70

t

Ch .... a . El r

4-2

1/2 124- Sl

3/4

72

L El .r ~ 1 l/2 123 81 1/2

72

Herro n H npton

32

9g

66

42 p _{l Wol} ~ord

32

102

70

4") Joe I-111

33

. 104-

.. ,1

42

~n verage of bout 1 1/2 poun .e er d y y in for ld

Tl · . ...,-rov ~ nt th?. oro _0.

zu

"' County

b n n 1 1 e·:z, , ,J corn. , f'- lf

..

com , • 1 nd I' i ,.~ _1~ .. r r fit,;

outti g.., r v rJ.l n .at· con t 01. ar~ r h .

Cli .~tic c n 1t on ead b ..

d ... q .- ue onoe of t e lo~ .te· · :tv.;. thou, nd f v l un r d fa c g 3. g::; 1 0

-La Pl ta ou t ~in. .... ra th. Nort t ~! of t 1 t n 0., _{th ...}

c

_{unty in he c}

rn

·" tt 1 on,.l F .. o-t.et ... rJerv 'hat t¥ k s

d n li giv -Lnd 0 c .. i .. d . T n

.

_{t 'th r·n ock} F th, f~. n

v YOd ·o civ.

·n

cr)p 1w 0 t .

tud fr,

f~ev n thou .n five

t.

s

th .. The

a.at corner runnin{. t . b t

on

urt r ~ t e ont..,zu 1n 1 0 n 1. n ~~ an l 1, ievc "' ' larg 0 "'lly h r ~ ~~ n .. , D i ing th to ~h .n in t ly

-d f s e

30

CROP Il~ROVEMENT.

ALFALFA .

The altitude makes cool nights and the heat of the surr®er is never oppressive . Frosts occur late in the Spring and early in the Fall. Though crops grow rapidly during the

summer season yet these frosts demand crops of a hardier variety for this County than in ma~y places ~s far South

as Montezuma County.

~rimm

Alfalfa has a reputation for being the hardiest

variety in general use . The earlier trials here ~ere

satis-feltctory. The Mr . I . 0 . Miller living in the :li·riola cornrnuni ty on the Dolorea,R .E .D. got seed of four varieties of alfe .. lfa

in the Spring of

1917

as follows: - 6orr~on~ Liscom, Cossack ~d Grimm. These were put in plots of as near equal conditions

as to soil, preparation, care etc. o.s 111as -oossible . At fourteen months from the date of sowing Mr .Miller dug the best plants from the fields .

The root system of the Grin1m "V'as much larger and more sprangled in development than the others . The stooling or

til.l-ari.ng ·nas far more noticeable and the oro• n of the Grimm

was entirely belo1 the surface sho~ing that the crown would

not be injured by too close grazing from farm livestock or rabbits and nould not be so likely to injury from snlitting thaw permitting the entrance of blights, betcteria or insects. The comraon pl2nt had fourteen stems, the cossack nineteen,

(

3/

CROP IMPROVEMENT . ALFALFA .

tbe

liscom twenty-one and the grimm thirty-six stems fr;_m/

one seed at fourteen months growth.

~

thirtieth of December 1918 Mr.H.K.Wiley of Springfield Idaho sent .out l etters a.dwertizing pure grinm1

alfalfa seed of excellent quality and referring to Mr.Philo K.Blinn, Alfalfa Specialist.

Experinental Sub-Station Rockyford,Colorado. Correspon-dence from Mr.Blinn dated January 18th.l919 seemed sufficient evidence of reliability and the County Agent bega.n to tell people of the alfalfa seed situation. Among the fi1·st was Mr.S.C.Green,Ex-Representative from Montezuma and Dolores Counties in the Colorado legislature \¥ho gave an unqualified endorsement of the man from personal acquaintance and headed the list to secure seed f~r his own use. In a few days it

became apparent that the pecple would fall in with the proposition to secure this grimrm seed at $. 33 per pound e.nd an order vas sent for one ton.

The following list was made up in order as the farmers

c~ue in to the office.

S.O.Green Cortez 50 lbs.

R.E.Dillon Lewis 200 "

CROP I MPROVEMENT . ALFALFA. J.E.Farmer Cortez 100 lbs. 'r • D. Shaff stall

_"

50

_"

D - ~1 .Longenba.ugh I

"

25

"

W . 111 . Conoley

"

72

"

P.A.McNeel

_"

125

_"

C.W.Thomas Dolores 100 n J. C .Melvin Cortez

_"

_"

G.O.Harrison,Pres. Bank.

_"

600 II R.L.Berryman n ₄

"

Ernest Higman

_"

25

_"

Solomon Lybyer Lewis 100

_"

L.C.Duncan n

40

n

S.J.Smith,Cashier Bank Cortez 200

"

C.R.Hickman,Co.Judge

_"

100 n

Bert Osborn Dolores

50

rt

Allen Hammond Lebanon 20 11

Wedell Bros.

_"

30 n

J.E.Brown Cortez

24

n

Frank A. Taylor Dolores lCO

_"

Fr3.nk Myers

_"

n

_"

H.M.Blanchard n n n

3

s

CROP IMPROVEMENT. ALFALFA . C.H.Canfield Cortez

₃₆

lbs. C.H.Rudy tt ₃₀₀

"

P . A.McCor nick

"

240

_"

A.C.Kittell n _lUO n E.h.Kittell

_"

50

_"

Fred Koppenhaf er

"

100

_"

John n If n f1 P.L.Ma.jors n ₅₀₀

_"

W .R.Le-vvis Lewis _.350

"

R.E.Walker Mancos

90

It tf . W.Stone Dolores

25

n Total. 41+

76

n I

Orders above the first ton came in during .a very

few days and a letter aski-ng fox more seed brought a negative

reply. Some on the list failed to ~'ut up th~ monay in 'tims ,~.nd some decided oth·3rwise. All vrho C( uld n ot (:"et seed v;ere

paid their money back. The seed cost

$·33

per pound plus

the frei ght and sacks.

This s.aed was received April 12th. and some distributed

there. B 2~- lance wa s brought to Cortez and distributed frora there.

In weighing out the following ~as rec

3.

CROP I ~P ROVEMENT.

ALFALFA.

f~ilure to get a stand. Inquiry brought out the statement

that the seed was put in with a drill and with the grain S0Ned at the time to a depth of five inches. No alfalfa

seed has been known to come up. Mr .R.E.Dillon, a neighbor to Mr .Lybyer reported a thin but unifor~ stand. All the others

1'eno1·ted v ery c>c>.t i Hfc.ct ory :·.;.nlt '} The freeze of June 2nd .

di d not ·hurt the young a.lfalfa.Other fields of common seed · v.rere reported as damaged but none lc i~led out entirely.

Ur ~ W . M. .C onoley has bought r aw l and ·from the Sta te a.nd

is clearing thi s la.nd and getting irrigation water as he can use it to advantage . He nut his seventy-t·a-;o pounds of seed on t welve ac:r:es ·.;vhich \Vas the amount recommended to

all for sowing ie.six pounds per acre. He began to irrigate

this the 22nd . of I-Ft.y enr \.~_id not '20W uny nurse crc.p . In

August he cut and stacked one ton per acre, stack measure.

The enclosed nicture shows the stack and the growth that was on the ground October 16th. A. ~ew days after the

hard fre eze.It vas estimated that t here was a fourth of a ton on the ground. Making one and one fourth tons per acre

the

~e

yea r. of

tJ&erlin~.

/:L.

-t,

'ha I

{ 11r . I. 0 .M1.ller ,mentJ.oned above, said th?ut the grit:J'[i plot on his ranch w~s ready to cut t wo weeks earlier than the

c

p

co .. {)D l ... lf' , n. t 1·.~ e bl d lJi to ... t Jl: er i ... .L of

(

thir cutting a..nd th· t th .. etooli en blJ him to _et

N;.;

h y ,.. ... outt ·ng ...

foo

h r ~t· ost co only .. n·io f·:v r le to

Gr m l. tl g.t th · at o 1ng h h t ov r co es t e

th'nn· g ou un' ·1 G 1m· field,~ have the r utat1on f b·· ng

'h

c

~ ith

.

be r r t t

.

n r is.' corn on it

/

th co on f

(

CROP IMPROVEMENT. CORN.

Corn has been raised in Montez~~ County by only a few

farmers up to three or four years ago. It is a common thing to hear ' that people could not raise corn as much as six years ago. Mr.W.A.Jones of the Summit Ridge began raising corn six years ago and has made a good feed crop every year since. Numerous

instances are related of corn crops that either did not get a. start

mr

did not mature so that some of the farmers at present say that their conditions are such that they cannot mature a crop of corn.

Corn growing has developed more rapidly in the dry land sections than in the irrigated section o.f the County. This can be accounted for by the fact that alfalfa could not be gro\m in

the dry land section. June is generally rainless. But ground ~

that is well .prepared and has sufficient moisture to start corn when pl,mted early in May will usually stand through the June drougth and make a good ear though on a short stalk with the July rains. The bulk of the failures on corn have been due to the lack of preparation of the soil sufficiently far in advance of the planting time to have stored moisture enough and have the seed bed in proper condition for the seed to germinate.

Where the soil has been prepared by fall plowing and the Spring growth of weeds stopped by thorough discing just

preceed-ing plantpreceed-ing corn has almost never failed to produce a paypreceed-ing crop. .

(

l

37

Corn.

the most corr~on varieties grown.

A corn has been needed that will produce more stalk and

fol~age as well as a larger ear in short a larger producing

J

varir·

~

/ The wo~k of corn irnprovement in Boulder County, Colorado has brought the attention of many people to Minnesota No.13, a yellow corn This corn has won first for several years in competition with all varieties at corn and other exhibitions in the State and the County Agent began a campaign to boost this variety and farmers subscribed orders ~or this variety to

the amount of eight hundred pounds to be distributed among thirty fa.rmers .

~curing

seed was taken up with H.H.Simpson, County Agent

of Boulder County but at the County Agent conference in March it wcs definitely learned that only two hundred pounds could be secured and inquiry finally located seed at the Dakota Improved Seed Co. Mitchell South Del.kOtfJ,, Six hundred pounds was ordered which arrived rather late and some of the fields planted to this corn did. not give a satisfactory growth. Some farmers were able

to secure seed from other sources and these were mostly

satisf~

Mr . W.H.Olin,' Agricultural Supervisor of the Denver and Rio

Gran.de sent the County Agent t?n ears or corn asking that it be .:-14-aced in good hands. Mr.E . H.Ki ttell, County Assessor, who had secured also some seed from the ~oulder County shipment

~~)

Corn.

The,.---aceen p(.xnying hot og:ra h aho·He i{r . Kit t '111' a son, J. p . Ki tt ll rtho 1 th f·:Lrmin~ , by uhe aic e of hi f ... 1 .. of corn .

Fath r r-ind son · re bo·th ~ 11 p · · sed i h the corn · n their

or

for ov r · n th cro b ... fore 1 t s g~th~red. This

cor gre r on 1 nd .h t c t.n b irrig ted )Ut ' as not 1r:r1 .... ted

th1a year . The r l ti tu e of Ml" . Ki tell • a f rm 1 'f bout six

th and fe t . r . tte 1 h t eently bouFbt a tr ct r n 1s

f~: 1 lo ting hia "lry cl ~i n on h e :; i e of Uta Mountain h Jre he ho ee to ·x-ai ae more th tn . ne t undre acr s of · inneaota. l~o

.13

c.rn next ae-s n. Ir .E.H. •tt ll aa.ys thi 1 · the corn th· the

ha~ h-- n looking for .. ver ·inc~ b o·1: to tb1 s va ley ·froth

Ne br , uev ~ra.l yeo.ra ·go.

{ur.'

. t . Glann of L lb n n lanted hie inn $Otli. No. lJ · n

unirr g. tad 1 nd t more th v ... n thousand feet ·:t.lti tude ..

Th1 1 nd th ye·~r r o~ ing n as in exce 1 nt

con 1 tion ·1.t 1 ting ti.. , ahout 1 •:ty l~t . 1919. I t a oubl

d·isced just previous to ;:,lantin ,n1 ~aa ,l··.n..,.ed "on. to " t~ 1 th

t o ro·. pl nt

r)

The County A t vi it this f1eld f corn

Set ... ber 25th.l9l9 n · he l nter mark ere till la.~nly

v1a1bl ~,.. no cultivation h·' h n given tlis corn since 1 nting.

(On

ere

o·~

th a corn ti ·• e to r

:l.uo~

forty b s· lG

~nd

it tl. · 'n ,·~.rly ll 1··.tur anou, h for see tho '".lh -r u.ch of the

.· n not .... 0") not ~ h _ 01

Of the roc:~n 1 o 1 nte ed

entir · 'r t · ;jf ction e+(.Oe t Mr . J •. 1. 1 there of the Swr1m1 t t R ge

-Corn.

ment vJho planted

i·c

:.-long rid~. of fJ, Ya11o ~v Dnn"ii on:t."TJ. and tb. inks .

of cob are apparently favorable to Minnesota No.13. The request that samples of these two varieties be exhibited at the County Fair was not carried out.

~r.E.A.Elder

of Garrett Ridge planted Minnesota

No.13

May

lst.on Spring plowing. On September llth.l919 this corn was

mature and ',.vas be ing put into S1.lo. Hr.Elders Silo,a pit,ia

thirteen feet and a half in diameter by twenty four feet deep. His yield per acre was eight tons Silo measuxe. Last year he ha.d the same acreage of White Australian and it filled his Silo only eighteen feet deep. The yield of Minnesota No.13 was f~lly

one fourth heavier on the same ground and same treatment

meas-ured in the same

Sil~

Mr.Elder did not get his corn through

the County Agent.

The f ollovving farmers secui·ed corn frozn the shipm:JnJc fror.n

Mr.W.J.Opicer of Superior,Boulder County,Colorado through the efforts of H.H. Sinlpson, County Agent of Boulder County.

W.L.Glenn,

Lebanon,Post Office.

₅₇

pounds.

R.H.Bs.ilay, Cortez, n ft 20

"

G.L.Knight, ft n n 56

"

. · 0 .H.· Q.fin:f~ ield

"

n

"

35

n L.D.Seitz n

"

~

14

ft W.M.Conoley,

_"

n n ₁₀

_"

J.P.Kittell,

_"

n n

₇

_1/2 n

Corn.

Of the lot from the Dakota Improved Seed Company the following were supplied.

F.J.Hutchings Ackman, Post Office

Taylor Wilkerson, .Dolores, n n

T.D.Shaffsta.ll, Cortez, n n

James

&

Downey, Lewis

·

a·.~ .Knight, Cortez, tt

"

S.P.Thomae,

_"

_"

n Elmer Millard n u 11 W. L .Hay, G. A. Gr3 ~n:nood Richey Bros. J.N.1lJithers, S .N .Lowe Paul Balsiger

Experir{H3ntal Mil~(We ed plot.

Cortez,Post Office Dolores n

"

It " tt n n n 117 pounds. 100

25

110

50

2S

50

10

5

n

"

"

n

"

"

u n 39 1/2 "

30

tt 12 1/2 " Mr.G.L.Knight of near Cortez has a large amount of corn for sale and has filled the requirements of pure seed.

A record cov ering the following points has been secured in some of these tests.

1. Source of seed. 2. Date bf Plowing.

3·

Pulminary Cultivation.

4-.

Date Pl.s.nted.

5·

Date all up.

6.

Nunmer of times cultivated.

Jj-/

Co

·• I r on t r' .

o.

t oth.r

v·r

ty .

...

() '

..

• / " ' • .• Ql t 1 ' ·n '1 ~ tl

..

0 1 e~· e

(

CROP Il!PROVEMENT • · SUNFLOWERS .

The Mancos Valley has r~ised some corn for . siJ,. .. ige for

several years but on account of the altitude (7000 feet) this does not always mature and Mr .David Halls became

inter-ested in the grO'ifing of sunflowers for si l age because of their

rank growth producing ·a heavy tonnage and their reput~tion for

maturing under very adverse conditions.

M:r .Halls planted ten acres of sunflowers the last of May._ His corn vas pl anted previously. The ravages of the cut worms took ten acres of corn which was replanted early in June.

Much of this planting was also taken and then the worms

attack-ed the sunflowers that were coming up reduc ing the stand.

Photograph number ~ shows the growth of sunflowers made on dry land planting a nd thinned out by cut worms .

Photograph number

3

ehovvs how the heads of isolated sunflovvers

Photograph number

4

shows the char:=.tcter of the groiwvth where the ~lants were growing as pl anted.

Photograph number ' shows the char~cter of the growth as

com-pared with corn both under irrigated conditions~_ .

0 / 1 _{1 •} 71.-'-! 1

f)uJ fo ~ J'UA_ /~ /J-;1 ~ ~ ~ I'Le. ·' {-a ~~- ~ /"L):/

l These sunflowers : u~r .Halls said, i7ere the occ:1sion of a .

lot of hard work as I had to build another silo .My first one should have held the cro9 if I had not planted sunflo!1ers. 11

The corn crop on this ranch was more than two thirds taken

by cut worms ~nd the feed problem woul d have been a serious one

CROP IMPROVEMENT.

SUNFLOWER~.

David Halls O\ms a nine hundred acre ranch . more the.n half is under irrigation and he feeds his products except wheat on the ranch. Sunflowers were the means of him saving his entire bunch of livestock up to it's normal siza.

The analyses of corn and sunflower silage as published by ·the Montana. Experiment Station .are as follows

:-Sunflowers. Corn Tassel Corn Glazed.

Dry Mattar 12.24

14.9

26.2

Crude Protein

1.24

1.6

2.

Crude Fibre 2.86

4.3

6.2

Nitrogen Free Extract

_7·87

_7·6

16.2

Ether Extract

_·37

_·3

.6

From this table it i s anparent that corn doubles in feed ·value from the t assel stage to maturity . Also sunflovJers are

about equal to corn in the tassel stage and about one half the value of mature corn. Hence sunflo.vers must be rated either a s a valuable catch crop or that it \tVill produce double the tonng.ge to make it a valuable silage crop. For Montezuma County conditions sunflowers are not reco1nmended except where corn will likely not mature.

The feeding of sunflo·w·ers has not begun in Montezuma

(

CROP IMPROVEMENT. SILOS.

~

the close of the crop season in 1918 there were nineteen silos in Montezuma County. The universal testimony of the owners of these silos was that they were valuable to the production of

liveetoc~All

testified that they would

make co'fls give a large increase in the flov; of milk.

Reascning from this farmers concluded that other animals

vrould give more milk under the 'same condi tiona for the same

reason.

The sheep men were early to grasp the idea that ewes at

lambing time '/f'Ould give more milk, would own thei1~ lambs and

raise a much larger per cent t:tla.n \TVi thout silage. Hence the

value of silage appealed to men who realized that their cows and ewes had not produced the young that they should produce.

Also cattle oaru1ot be taken to the Forest Reserve in the Spring befcxe the green alfalfa appears in the fields in the va.lleys. Hence it i s found almost ir.upossi Ol.e to fence cattle out of these _f ields under dry hs.y and sage brush

feed-.ing conditione. Many of these cE .. ttle are driven out of the valley and many losses are reported as the result. Several of

our calllemen have followed the lead of the sheep and dairymen s,nd have added silos to their equipment and have filled them.

CROP IMPROVE£i1ENT . SILOS.

~ere

are several types of

Mann Brothers of Dolores,R.F.D.

silos in the county .

near Lebanon built first a stave type of silo made of 2nX4" held in position by Hire. Each

summer following these two silos would fall down and had to be rebuilt. In the Fall of 1918 press of vork and shortage of labor made weli nigh impossible for these to

be erected again so they hitched a team to a 9low and scraper and scraped out a hole in the side of the hill

s.nd put their corn into this hole. Photograph number ") shows this "Trench" in the fall of

1919

after being filled

and the . silage· covered with dirt to prevent losses from

such a. large surface exposure. This silo cost app roxir~ately

. ~~75 .. 00. Kr. Jim M~-nn said it saved him $350-00 in the 81"1ring

of 1919 for they kept the.ir flock of sheep tv;o months after

tl-:.eir hay· crop Other hay could scarcely be bought

at all and the nrice was $35.00 to $40 . 00 per ton in the stack.

~ann Brothers opened their s ilo by backing a wagcn up to

t he end and forking the silage into it. This feature has

appealed to several men who have done the same thing. After di gg ing dovn for two feet they found ~ater which had seeped

in filling the trench full to a depth of four feet. They

(

CROP IMPROVEMENT.

SILOS.

Q;f insufficient feed. So a trench was dug from the lower side dr!:lining off · the 1va.ter and feeding was continued as a matter of necessity watching !esults. No ill effects wexe noticeable in the feeding. The color of the silage was browner than that

not unier -rvater. How long this could have continued under v'iater

is not determined.

This is regarded as important information provided drainage is possible in putting corn into the silo after it is dry and the addition of water is necessary to make the silag~. An

excess of w~ter will do no harm if it can drain away in course

of a few days or perhaps weeks.

/

(John N.Withers put in the first Trench Silo in the County using it one year, then nutting in the first concrete silo

in the Count!,} This silo . is shown in Photograph number

't

Mr ~ Withers,the owner, appears by the side of the silo. Thls

silo w~s erected in

1914

using the forms for concrete silo

construction ov7ned by Fort Lewis School of Agriculture at Hesperus La Plata County,Colorado. The cost as reported by Mr.Withers is $200 . 00 and the size

14'

X

30'.

Mr .W. A.Jones was one of the first if not the first m3.n to r::tise corn on the Summitt Ridge. He put in a silo in

the form of Box dug back. into the edge of a hill. The front was built up of concrete and a board railing to hold silage

(

Jf7

CROP IMPROVEMENT.

SILOS.

a.p.ove the concrete part for "settle" photograph number

q

shows .the fxont of this silo. Silage is taken out in vertica l

l ayers an d thr O\Vn into a \Vag on and hauled to feed racks.

Mr .Jonea is not well satisfied with this silo and plans to erect a concrete round silo in the near future .

Photograph number Jb sbows the concrete silo of John W. Claflin who filled with nBloody Butcher" corn which he

expects to feed out t ·o "feeder" steer.s. He will finish these for the April Market,feeding silage and alfalfa hay. This silo

14'

X 28' cos t

$350 .00.

He has shed room for all and will ·water from a l arge cistern reducing the feed necessary to w~rm ice water.

The same set of forms used by Mr.Claflin were used by

Mr.Chas .A.Campbell,Dolor es R.F.D. and photographs number \\

and \~ show vie vvs of this building out fit. These forms

are'made of

3

inch flooring

5'

long held in place by iron

bands . These haJve g iven better satisfaction the~n the metal

forms used by Mr. w. w.Dunlap as the silo was kept in better shape and five feet can be built at one time inBtead of three

feet . This is said to be a decided advantage over the shorter

forms a s five f eet ca.n be filled in each day and this accelerates the rate of building .

CR P I

_•

0 d l"tt v ilo . oost o .~

o. .

I 1 G on in

photogr :ph numb~r

/3

It a ltl' X Ef t he fix st o t is

(

_{··bo vh' t 0 ooncrete s 1 o ~hi}

T r o· 1, in ont ~u.a Count nd.

t ir ers cl i ied ~r ·Sf 1 Or

!-Box .

oat 0 f oe ty .

• • 1\ . J

.

.

Su· tt id .. , .

w

. ~'(T D l Dol r:. .Do or.

-e

llJy.

Ch·,.

.

c

11 _•

.n.

n .

Jo _• 1 Leb· n

'

.

J n • ffii t _·r D l re

,R.F.

Sun t d. e .

El

J .

.L

c

rte 3

.

.n.

eEl 0 0 n n.

.J • •• "-t r 1 lor ;;I olo.r a V ·,,lley .

it

-.• B. m (R nc· ) olo

R.F.D.

J .D.

_{" "}

1t A. B . C. 1 Dol·.

_"

11 Su _t• itt •t n ... D nt .,2 n ...., 1 T..te _11.· • • :r Co t.nZ J

.F.D.

" i

e.

;vi H 11~ 2 I.- c

(

(

lr ~

CROP IMPROVEMENT. Roy HalrJ.tr.~.ond M.Jackson J.L.Krinininger,2 J. E. Lar in·~ore Ben Lea.vi tt E.C.Mallett Frank T.Milligan N . M .• McGee Carl Noble Oliver Peterson Jacob W~Plemons A.M. Puett John Schaaf T.D. Shaffstall Harry Dyer James H.Ha.mmond John Nel son James M. Smith Taylor Wilkerson J .E.Barrett R.oy Camp SILOS. Lebanon Dolores Lewis n

"

Mancos Cortez,R.F.D. Dolores Star Dolores,R . F. D. Dolores Renaraye Mancos Lewis Cortez,R.F.D. Stave Mancos,R.F .D. n

"

R.F. D. Dolores,R .F. D. Trench Cortez,R.F.D. Mancos," n " Lebanon . Dolores Valley. Lewis

"

u Point Lookout. Redlands. Narraguinep Res . Arriola Granath Mesa. Goodman Point. Wattles . Le~ris Redlands . SUI!l.nli t t Ridge . Y1ebber . Summitt Ridge. Webber Lakevista Garrett Ridge Suw.rr.itt Ridge .

A.W.Dillon S.N.Lowe Mann Bros. CROP IMPROVEMENT. SILOS. Dolores,R.F.D.

"

" " ft

"

11 n n Arriola. Sumrui tt Ridge. Mildred

R.E.Walker Mancos " " " Summitt Ridge.

{the Trench silo of R.E.Walker is

~orthy

of mention. It is sbown in photograph number 1

Y

In the fall of 191S

this silo wa filled but on account of short~ge of heln,

inexperience, and the large surface area

(56'

X

16

1/2') the silage was not well packed. S:.-.. :;S.ust r~as spread over this

surface. Fully one-third of the silage was spoiled and

the results from feeding the remo.inder were not satisfactory. However Mr.W~lker filled again in the fall of 1919.

The silage vas sr.>read ·;i th a scraper and one large horse. This

packed the silage rr:uch better and thirty days after filling fourteen feet deen it had settled about three inches only. Mr .Walkar covered the entire surface with roofing paper putting a string of dirt along each joint which ' as not

sealed This matter ~ill be latched with

consid-erable interest a s feeding begins and progresses.

?~

rw

/j -

t-UIL~ LUX~~

jJ /

~ ~

(

CROP IMPROVEMENT. SILOS.

In the Spring of

1919

several farmers asked the County Commissioners to purchase silo forms for the use of the County to be rented to such persons as desired to use them thereby encouraging the raising and feeding of silage. At the M~y meeting of the County Connnissioners this matter was

called to the attention of the County Agent by the Commissioners who asked hiill to t_)_ring it to the attention of the organized

communities of the County for an expression of their wishes in this matter. During the month of May this was presented to seven communities of the County. Six voted to ask the Commiss-ioners to purchase these 'forms and one voted against it. This report was made by the-County Agent along with letters from the

secretaries of these community meetings at the June meeting of the Board. Through some inadvertant circumstance the matter was not acted upon at this session but was taken up at the

July meeting anrt on July 8th.the County Agent was authorized to . secure prices from the Ball Foundry

&

Machine Works. Forms

for twelve foot silo building three feet at a time were priced at

$154.00

F.O.B. Durango. They were ordered constructed at

once. This fi~ was delayed in the manufacture of these,forms.

They arrived in Dolores August 27th.l919 to late to be of service for the season of 1919. They vvere stored at Cortez-anaiting call to be used.

CROP IMPROVEMENT. SILOS .

At the present tinte there are three sets of forms in the County and further agitation of silo construction vtill

thus be easily rewarded with success . Four cattlemen now

own the forms owned by Fort Le"ie School of Agriculture.

A contractor Mr . Neeley of Mancos 0\'1ns one set and the

.CROP I1-1PROVE1:EUT .

SULPHUH.

In Deaer11bar l91S ~r . w .r1.Gl :1nn of L~b 1.non ca lled tl1e

County Ag nt • •1:tt :ntion to 'Jt; e ::r.~ 1u1~. of th .. " dition

of S·ulnh 1r to the Alf. lf l "";.nds ot" the Deaohut~a Valley

Oregon · nd rror oatu a tri 1-l for thin County.

t r .ior.ae months Sulphur W"":t.S loo ted in co ~!n :rci•tl qu

n-ti t i 'o·a with Bw: n }!:;t,nutacturing Oomp .ny K>'ln .1a.s City ,Missouri

:Mr . Geo . Bo··;m·.n o· .. Cort ez ord.ere:l one hund.red poun~ u

ot

sulnhur }k~y 5th .. 1~')19 4;· nd. Vi . 1~ . 01 nn,r ... ob·· n fn ·:md J .-T .McDill La.kevia1~a.

or·_ar·,t fif·ty ~' oun.rtt3 · .. ch .K.ay 8t: • t919. \lh n the e shipmen a~

·~rriv :l rntch u ·$<. hia J.. ortion on pl t~ of ro.un ho.t ~ ~ .. r

markt'i ~ Th(Jae men ob Eh~ l'V 't~ th ~1s e ·nlotf3 through0ut tht.

season n . no 'li . e "a nee 'u.:.l. .• not1c ~ · ble. It 'II" u j,Jiuggeatad

to th ... :en t h· t 1. no d 1 ·erence ·~· .~3 ob~3 .rve th t the

PEST C0N'fROJL PR_A IRIE DOGS •

The Prairie Dog C ~~paign for Montezuma County for

1919

was started in August 1918 when James Silver of the

u.s.

Biological Survey visited the county and arranged for the poison bait for public lands that had not previously been provided for. This arrangeoent was that the Biological Survey should furnish the poison bait to adjoining land owners or

others va-ho would treat these la.nds at the same time that they

treat their own lands with poison bait purchased by themselves. It was further arranged that the man who mixed bait for the

public public l ands should also mix bait at the same time and yl ace with out expense to the county, save for materials, for the use of the people of the county.

During tha month of February the county Agent held meet-ings at nine community centers where s. commi tteernan vvas

appointed for each section of l and in the community. These commun-ities varied in size from nine s·ections (640 a) to 22 sections

of land. On account of bad roads the County Agent mR.de these "POints on horse back. 01Ie of these points was six miles from headquarters and the Toads were so bad that it took three and one half hour~ to travel the distance . However twenty people

were pre sent and the organization was c on1plet ed in good shape . At another meeting twelve miles out on returning the horse slipped, fell and slid do'un an embankment dismounting the

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t n un y .c l .:. Jun·., 0

PEST CONTROL

~R.AIRIE DOGS.

one

hole in ten

by

actual count showed signs of containing a live dog.

The third one was treated with poison bait at numerous

interv~ls throughout the Spring and Summer and the. number of

dogs reduced very materially. The Prairie dogs had become so

b~d that the ranch produced sixty-five tons of alfalfa hay in

1917.

Mr.T.W.Wark began work on this ranch in the Spring of 1918 and so reduced the number of dogs that one hundxed and twenty-five tons of alfalfa hay was the result. The second year of

strenuous campaign has not eradicated the doge from this

ranch though the work done has been well worth while as is shown

by the hay yields. The hay yield for

1919

has not been estimated

jet.

In the prairie dog poisoning campaign of the Spring of

1919

thirteen hundred and twenty gallons of bait was mixed and dis-tributed to the people :for use on deeded lands and one hltndred and two gallons on public lands.

In August

1919

one hundred and ninety-si~ gallons of poison

bait mixed on oats, as that he~ proven to be the b~st carrier,

was ~repared by Mr.Boyd for subsequent use on deeded l~nds and

seventy-eight gallons for use on public land ~: .

The work of prairie 1og extermination has not been as

PES'L' CONTROL. PRAIRIE DOGS.

of thi~ are very apparent . The large areas of deserted and

public lands that occur at such frequent intervals in these pest distxicts have more than kept up the losses of dog life upon l ands that are in cultivation. The season of

1919

is

tha first one in which there has been any concerted action in this direction . There are several different varieties of prairie dogs in the state and the one in Montezuma County is known as the Arizona Prairie dog which has proven to be the haTdest dog to ext 3rminate of any in the state. He does not take to grain feed readily. Prebaiting with bait with out -ooison on it has given the best results after the green

~eget-3.tion appears in the SDring.

We are nlanntng to re· eat the ·.vorking plans of last Spring and will be ready for a much earlier start if the weather conditions will permit .

A v e,xy large amount of clerical \vork in the office has

been necessary to be sure tha.t all the infested lands were provided for. Plata were made of all l ands in the seven pest districts and a record kept of every gallon of poison bait that went out and the tract of land that it was to be used on In this way no pieces of infested lands were missed . Some of these lands got a very successful treatment at two or three tiues over . Other tracts were treated as much as sixteen or

(

(

seventeen times.

PEST CONTROL PRAIRIE DOGS .

The Co- operation among the people was very· good indeed

~nd much valuable work was done outside of the Pest Districts.

Many ranches are reported as being clear of prairie dogs after these two seasons of organized work .

Those who have watched the work speak in very satisfied

words of the work accomplished. Mr .J.M.James, the chairman of the Pest Ccntrol work of the Executive Comr.u.i ttee estimates that

65%

of the ~rairis gogs of the County have been destroyed .

One notable feature is the unanimous support of the large land

owners of the County .

It i s estimated that the saving to the County will equal about $20000.00 in crops and pa.sture grown that the -)rairie dogs formerly destroyed.

Ten thousand head of hogs consume a vast amount of alfalfa 1:asture but it is estimated due to Pest Control and improved methods generally that there is a surplus of five thousand tons

of hay in the County over prasant nEL3d3. The increase of stock

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Tb ry n· stctlon ln · ho No thte

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COJtnU t ro -e th .t ssi nee i n 1n ·r t1ng

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th or. 0 t 1e a Cou ty r Bur a. at i f s

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oir~ e E :.. c t i v C 01 . itt . ar.t f o the

r •• , . Clark of th Co or o A~riau

. it in re te p r n t the C urt

ft rnoon ~n 17th . t tli e ting t ··

o:r ·-· nization f

c

-en m· e for Cort n to ae r ·e d y or th A ·SOOi

by .1 ctin . O..i.;r . of irector and e~ o )tin t e .:·t

g

oon~tituticn nd by-1 or or nl~ tion· of thl ch- · c .

The

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:-i ent 1 oa I,~ b9.. 1on ..

Vio nt. J. ~cG D lo :"1 •

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J . T .-. 1 I D lor R.F.D. on

CO-OPERATIVE MARKETING.

The Shipping point of this Association was design3ted as Dolores, Colorado.

The following day a. meeting was held for interested

persons at the Club rooms at Mancos and a similar Association was formed ~~th the following

officers:-President David Halls,M~ncos,R.F.D.

Vice President E.C . M.allett " " " "

Secy -Treae.

_"

F.B.~edford n

F.H.McGregor

_"

n n "

The Shipping point for this Associa,ti'on was de·signated

as Mqncos,Colorado .

On Friday August 22nd.l919, E.E. Wallace, N.M.McGee and E. A.Elder met in the County Agent's office and completed the articles of incorporation by securing the services of J.J.

Downey, Attorney for that purpose.

At this meeting W.L. Glenn of Lebanon was chosen as Manag3r.

The m~tter of secu~ing bond as left with J.J.Doimey to

secure information and re~ort .

. The M ~:1ncos Association was incorporated in due form in

accordance vvi th th.e State' laws and on Tuesday, October 14th.

the County Agent· put in ' the day Yti th. the Board of Directors

soliciting members for the Association with results almost equal to those when the work was taken un with the· Montezuma Association.

CO-OPERATIVE V~RKETING •

. On Wednesday October 15th. a meeting of the board of

directors was held and Mr.F.B .Medford was chosen aa Manager

whereupon he resigned a s a director. Mx.David Halls resigned

as President of the board and was succeeded by Mr.F.H.McGregor . To date these associations have bot been fortunate enough to secure a Shipment as the dem~nd for Stock~rs in the Channels

already establiahed was great enough to keep the price up to or

a little above prices to be secured otherwise.

It is the common belief among farmers that the as sociation

is a help in getting better prices and since it costa nothing

(

)

BOYS' AND GIRLS' CLUB.

At the reorganization meeting of the Montezuma County Farm Bureau June 14th.l919 Mr .S.C.Green,Ex-Representative from Montezurr~ and Dolores Counties was selected as

chair-man of the Boys• and Girls' Club work. Pig Club work was thought to be the most ireportant and work was started to get a number of boys to raising registered pigs.

~ys

of

~ig

Club age were found who could finance themselves or could get their backing from their Father.

Some .;veJnted Duroc-Jersey and some Poland-Chi~

Those who ;van ted Duroc pigs were Harry Longenbsugh ~

Glenn Wallace,F.Corbett,Lee and Charlie Elder, Earl,Fern and Paul Larimore and Robert and J e..rces Garlinghouse.

On July 17th.A.W.Dillon,E.E. and Horner Wallace and the County Agent went to Durango by Auto to m~ke selections of

pigs for this 'Fmrk.fhe second dE<.y pig., ;;,3-ra fouml in the

Red Mesa Country and the County Agent got nine of these

pigs on July 21st.

1919

and delivered them by Ford Truck .July 22nd. As these pigs were delivered directions were given for feeding milk,grain,alfalfa,hay or pastuxe were given.

The importance of giving enough was emphasiz~

Some of the pigs were put into a pen and fed all they

~auld eat with plenty of skirrJnilk while others were ~ut on