Show wheat growing G S L CITY feb 10 1859 EDITOR OF THE DESERET NEWS aa As the time is 18 near when the farmers of utah will be busily engaged in putting in their spring grain perhaps the following remarks on the subject of raising wheat may not be out of place from the yearly increasing quantity of smut in our wheat the prospect is unless something is done to check its increase that in ir a few yeara years there will not be sufficient wheat raised raise d in this territory to supply the people with bread Ii iStead of our soil being considered a first class one for this grain it will soon be ranked with that of some of the old states of the union unions the capacity of which to raise a profi profitable tab e wheat cropis only known in the history of the past it cannot be presumed that oun our soil will bear constant cropping 0 without taking some reliable measures to return to it those elements which bich are yearly extracted in grain and vege table sany more than others where this unwise and slovenly course bourre has impoverished the earth and its cultivation I 1 think it only requires a little observation and reflection to discover that the majority of the farmers of utah are blundering along in the same old beaten path which has so materially teri ally checked the growth and prosperity of other sections of the union the results are being made ade manifest in ir the annual detoria tion of q wheat ea t and unless the course is chan changed ed and mother earth treated with more gener generosity 8 ity it will soon be found that other crops wi will 1 1 gradually become less remunerative remu remunerate if the general principle touched upon in the foregoing remarks is ta taken ken as a basis it will necessarily follow that when rhen the elements which enter into the composition of wheat are extracted from the soil to any considerable extent it must become deficient in both quantity and quality it is believed by some intelligent practical men that it will so far degenerate in quality as to produce chess or cheat smut ac the first step to take in order to check these growing evils is to pursue a course to reclaim the soil keep up and if possible increase its fertility by deep plowing to bring to the surface the under soil in which the elements of vegetation have been accumulating for ages without being disturbed the careful bavin savin baving saving and application of nian ulan manures ures a judicious rotation i of f crops and summer fallowing following fal lowing to cleanse the soil from foul weeds pulverize it and give it an occasional season of rest and then great care in the selection of af beed seed grain and preparing it for sop sou sowing ying some farmers raise fine samples of wheat in localities where great quantities of smut are produced by washing the seed in water or in E brine rine which is better rolling it in al blacked slacked lime and sowing the following day if smut is caused by imperfect seed that causa cause is in a great measure removed by the separation of the light wheat from the sound and the lime stimulates n the plant lant to a more vigorous grow growth 1 th thereby enar enat enabling ling it to bring the berry er berf perfection that this process of preparing seed wheat is very beneficial and will repay the labor many feld fold fold foid there can be no doubt I 1 have coil coll conversed versed with a number of farmers who thus us prepare their see bee beed seed drand and they are unanimous m in testifying that it produces a more luxuriant growth of the plant and much less smut in general and often none to injure tiie the crop when sown side by side in the same field with the bime sime same bame kind of wheat not prel prepared iel in this way farmers should take care to select g good rood 0 0 d sound seed and abd try this and other methods t h 0 dof dot of preparing it and take taice some measures to make the results known for the general good in an agricultural meeting held in farmington davis co on the ad dinst thomas smith made some pertinent remarks on this subject the tenor of which it might habe be useful to insert here he stated that held he had tried many experiments himself in raising wheat and hai had also been a careful observer of many tried by others othera he perfectly r leuly feuly agreed with the remarks wh which ich had bad been e p previously maddon the degeneration of wheat and other crops which must necessarily result from constant cropping for a series of years without returning to the soil the elements extracted from it ft ile he believed a great preventive of smut an and cheat would be found in thick sowing sa so that but few heads beads would be produced from one kernel in which case the pl pt had bad a stronger root in proportion to the number of heads drawing on it for sup portana por tand would then fore fora ore develop a more berf perfect act growth this be argued from a fact patent to all observers that when wheat was sown th inmany heads beads would often be produced from one berm when this is the case almost invariably those in the centre of the cluster will be the most vigorous and produce the best wheat while those ose farthest from the main root will 11 generally be found lighter and more chaffy he was aware that a comparative large increase of wheat might be obtained from a certain quantity of seed by sowing ng thin or planting in drills but it was his opinion that pro producing duping the seed in the same way afew years in succession ion lon would materially degenerate it the most satisfactory experiment he ever knew made in order to discover the cause of smut and cheat was one in which the heavy and light wheat was separated by throwing throwing g it forward on a floor with the hand that which went the fart fari farther berest est because the heaviest was sown by itself and produced a fine crop free from smut and chess the light light wheat was also sown by its elfand the pro produce uce was mixed with considerable quantities of both the washing of seed and throwing it on a floor it will be seen are only different methods of accomplishing comp lishing the bammie saffie bame same object the separation of the perfect from the arif inferior brior wheat in a conversation with several intelli intelligent ent farmers in north willow creek box older elder co they stated that just before the general move south last spring several had bad sown wheat before plowing with the intention of plowing it in but in the midst of tb their air labors the counsel calpe came camb for them to put in no more grain and only a portion of the fields field so sown were plowed 1 I understood that without an exception the parts of the fields which were plowed produced a great excess of smut over that portion where the seed was left on the surface th the tha generally received opinion as to the nause cause of thi thib this a difference appeared to be that the soil when newly plowed lay so light and loose that the lateral roots of the plant could not get a sufficient stronghold to with stand the effects of the wind became loosened and consequently the plant in a great mead measure lost the nourishment which was necessary to its perfection I 1 think the experience af pf joithe the pasi past past sear seap reason season n will be the means of f brigine the roller ol 01 er into general use in that settlement to follow the thle harrow after sowing wheat probably ith ill general use on light and dry soils in the tern tory would prove very beneficial it would leave the surface more compact so that the roots of grain would have a stronger hold break up the lumps and leave the ground in better condition tor harvesting there The remay may te be different causes for foy smut in ill different soils and localities or even in the same neighborhood and afi a universal cure has beer beeri discovered I 1 P know knok of oenone none which ch has beil beeb proved to lo be such by a general application I 1 believe if the farmers of this territory will lay holda hold hoid of this thia subject with the interra in interest teres terea which its importance demand demands study and ex pediment peri ment and give others the benefit of sue experiments that the evil which luu lub 11 destroying our bread may be greatly checket chec ket kei it if not almost entirely avoided 1 I 1 will close by inserting the following r receipt for the prevention of smut in wheat from the california farmer and which it states s wab was never known to f fail fall ail all r 0 o V one otone quarter pound of ot bluestone orblee or blue vitriol pitr io 1 called copperas by many to a bushel of wheat this is the correct quantity dissolve the bluestone in water sufficient ruffic ent to cover the wheat and let it remain from eighteen to twenty four hours according g to the condition of the grain some farmers also roll it in dry lime but this is unnecessary the soaking in vitriol is a sure remedy and the knowledge knowledg e of this should be scattered everywhere it should not be permitted to lay after soaking braking so is as to sprout but planted immediately JAMES SADIES A LITTLE liptia aj |