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Show A joint publication of the SpanishFoA Press and5pringyjUe Herald Farm & Agriculture February 12, 2004, Page 19 rge Washington: America's firsfl farmer George Washington is called the father of the United States for numerous reasons. He was the military mili-tary leader of the Revolution. He was the political head of its constitutional constitu-tional convention. And he was the country's first president. But he was also a leader in another arena: agriculture, the economic eco-nomic basis for the country's prosperity pros-perity and the basis of its sustenance. suste-nance. George Washington in fact, has been called, "America's first farmer." Washington owned four farms and was committed to their productivity, produc-tivity, according to the historians at the Mount Vernon Estates, the 8,000-acre plantation where Washington lived for 45 years. He began his farming career as a tobacco farmer. But Washington soon learned that tobacco ruined the soil, so he switched to wheat, which became his cash crop. He also grew corn and other crops to support his farm and the slaves that worked there . Washington, historians say, was committed to the productivity of his farms and was constantly seeking seek-ing and trying out new agrarian techniques. The president read agricultural books, wrote letters to "Our welfare and prosperity depend upon the cultivation of our lands and turning the produce of them to the best advantage. " George Washington leading farmers throughout the world and tested more than 60 crops. Some of the innovative methods that Washington used on his farms include: Grop rotation system. Washington was among the first farmers in the late 1700s to employ extended crop rotation plans, which prevented the soil on the fields from losing nourishment. He had seven-year rotation schedules for wheat, corn and potatoes, among other crops. Except for grasses, no crop was ever planted in the same field two years in a row. Fertilizers. Through trial-and-error, Washington determined that soil "amendments" could improve the quality of crops. He used fish heads, dark mud from creeks, ashes, plaster-of-paris (or gypsum) and animal manure as fertilizers. And they worked. He was, in effect, one of the first people in the nation to use compost. For example, he took animal manure which improves soil because of its organic nature and built one of America's first dung repository, or stecorary. The unusual-looking structure literally lit-erally composted manure and cured it into usable fertilizer for his gardens gar-dens and orchard. Archaeologists at Mount Vernon have excavated this building and have found that the stercorary was a long, narrow building build-ing held up by posts and built on brick. Inside, there was a cobblestone floor, recessed nearly two feet below the ground surface, likely to promote composting. Flowing and planting. Washington's farmers plowed eight to ten inches into the ground, as opposed to only a few inches. Seeds for crops were laid out in rows for easier weeding, which helped consolidate consol-idate space, allowing more crops to be farmed. Tools. If Washington didn't think a certain tool was doing the job, he would modify it or invent a new one. He invented a new plow and adapted a barrel seeder. He even implemented the use of a cultivator, a shovel-like plow pulled by animals, ani-mals, which conserved human manpower. man-power. Washington's commitment to farming was more than a personal interest. He had loftier goals that were linked to the love of his country. coun-try. He wrote in a 1788 letter, "Every improvement in husbandry should be gratefully received and peculiarly fostered in this Country, not only as promoting the interest and lessening the labor of the farmer, but as advancing our respectability in a national point of view; for, in the present state of America,our welfare and prosperity depend upon the cultivation cul-tivation of our lands and turning the produce of them to the best advantage." " k X . Mil I s. t i T - I ( -a "I have often thought that if heaven had given me choice of position and callings it should have been a rich spot of earth, well watered and near a good market for the production of the garden. No occupation is so delightful to me as the culture of the earth, andnocul -ture, comparable to that of the garden. " Thomas Jefferson il Mil "- 111 r ; 1 m - ft ff "0t j,J$, .Yi4 , )X"" if 1 |