Show BEAR RIVER SOILS comprehensive TREATISE AND DIAGRAMS ISSUED ED BY BIT REAU OF SOILS by charles A jensen and A T i continued from f rora last issue agricultural conditions the farming class in the bear river valley are evidently prosperous and there Is every indication that this prosperity will continue in the future the homes and farms on the eastern side of the valley which was settled first are generally free from debt but the farms ta on the western side of the valley especially in the northern part of this section are yet quite heavily mortgaged many of them being entirely bew ew or of only a few aars years cultivation the farm farin 1 dwellings are neat in appearance and well built but are often without good out buildings the twelfth census reports the value of farm lands and improve ments buildings for box elder county in which the present soil survey was made as 26 3 0 farm bulI buildings dings and farm incle ments and machinery the census of 1900 also shows s that SO 80 per cent of the farms of the county are operated by their owners the average size of farms along tile the be eastern astern side of the valley east of bear river is less than that of those on theP the Vest side the eastern side being the first settled was subject to the restrictions in id size imposed at that time and so generally practiced during the early mormon occupation of the state the average size of farms in the county according to the twelfth census is acres and the number of farms Is 1020 this however includes much land not yet cultivated as the acreage of improved farms is only 20 per cent of the entire acreage owned as farms farms the data mentioned above however refer to conditions existing in 1900 and at I 1 the present time theer of improved land is undoubtedly greater owing to better facilities tor for irrigation and for marketing crops especially ally in the northern part of the valley the farming population is composed chiefly of whites including many nationalities there are very few negroes or chinese in the valley during the last two years prominence has been given giren to the sugar beet industry and the labor in the beet fields is largely performed by japanese the expenditure tor for labor in 1900 for the county was an average of per farm on many farias ayr rm however dulc or no lag labor ic employed the welk being done by the tha family labor is hired principally for the harvesting of cf the hay and grain crops of the general farm products the largest acreage Is in wheat followed by alfalfa there being only a small difference in fit the acreage and value of 0 each of these crops there la Is a large acreage tn in wild and cultivated grasses and also in barley it is now claimed that acres in the area are planted to sugar beets wheat yields from 25 to 40 bushels per acre all under irrigation alfalfa by tar far the most important hay bay crop yields three or four cuttings each year amounting to from 5 to 8 tons per acre depending on the seasons and there is usually good pasturage after the last lasi crop is removed it sells at from 3 to 4 in the stack in the fall from 4 to 5 during winter and when baled and shipped to salt lake city at from 7 to 9 a ton considerable early truck is grown along the slopes of the wasatch mountain range earlge especially in and around brigham orchard and small fruits are also important crops on the gravelly delta orf which balg brigham rn Is located the small fruits ripen early thus being assured of a good market until a few years ago the orchard fruits were confined to the eastern mountain slopes but recently the people in the western part of the valley have become interested with the result that baay many orchards are being bang set out while i ot others heis started a few I 1 years ago are jusa beginning to bear apples const constitute itule the principal fruit and peaches and apricots are next in importance bears pears were extensively set out when interest was first aroused in this industry but unfortunately the pear blight has killed nearly every tree in the western part of the valley this disease does not attack so readily the fruit trees on the east side of the valley on the gravelly mountain slopes it is estimated that the annual sales of orchard fruits small fruits melons and cantaloupes ta produced in and around brigham amount to about and in the whole county to about tomatoes are an important tan t crop and many of these together with orchard fruits are canned there being two canneries in t the b e area one at brigham and one at Willa Wll lard td s to be continued |