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Show April, 1968 UTAH FARM BUREAU NEWS Page How Meaningful Are Soil Tests? by Dr. Paul D. Christensen Utah farmers should take more advantage of the soil testing sered vice offered by their Agricultural Experiment Station and the Extension Service . Soil tests are designed to give practical Information on fertilizer needs, salt and alkali problems, and the need for soil state-support- Is not an exact science. Any good chemist can determine the amount of a plant nutrient extracted from the soil by a given chemical; no one can say how much Is avail- b-u- WHO IS TH ...IN TH6 IS IT MISTER INTO THE farmers should send their samples to the Utah State University Soil Testing Laboratory. Those who run the tests and interpret the results have nothing to sell and are, therefore , not biased In their recommendations. Soil camples can be taken with a shovel, auger, or probe. Each sample should be a composite of to 15 samples taken In the 10 area Involved. The sample should represent a uniform situation: Stay within field boundaries - - dont sample a grain field and alfalfa, Avoid peculiar field together. spots, or sample them separately. Number the samples and Identify them according to the fields or areas Involved. Fill out a sheet giving information on each sampled area. This Information should Include crops grown the past two or three years, fertilizer or manure applied, crops to be grown next, and problems or peculiar conditions encountered. Soil testing kits are usually not satisfactory for several reasons. The chemicals and methods used have not been correlated with local field research. Those who inthe results have no terpret basis for making recommendations based on the tests. Soil testing FlK-lT;W- HO SINK? May Travel to Europe Teen-Ager- s Intercontinental jet for Brussels, Belgium on June 30th. They will Farm Bureau has taken steps toward closing the "generation gap which teen-ager- s, parents, and counselors have been talking about. From June 30th to August 12th the Farmer-To-Farm- er program is adding a High School Students Tour of Europe - - a rewarding and educational activity for the summer vacation period. The tour is a type of traveling breakfast club for your young farm people from 16 to 18 years of age. They will meet, have breakfast, and chat with high school age farm youth in Belgium, England, Holland, Germany, Austria, Italy, France, and Switzerland. visit London, Oxford, Vil-lac- -- fa Stratford, Amsterdam, Bremen, Berlin, h, Wurzburg, Linz, Vienna, Venice, Florence, Rome, Pompeii, Naples, Vlaregglo, San Remo, Nice, Grenoble, Berne, Brunnen, Lucerne, and Parish - -then return on August 12th. In the meantime, they will have made dozens of friendly international contacts, seen the sights of Europe, and added immeasurably to their knowledge of geography, history, and world affairs In agriculture. Students, parents, youth leaders, or counselors Interested in the tour are asked to send in the The youth- - - with parental consent - will board a Sabena Belgian World Airlines Boeing 707 THE HURRYING HOUSEWIFE,, WHO WASHED BACON FAT This means that the farmer should, first, sample the soli propUtah ? POURED PAINT THINNER DOWN THE BASEMENT DRAIN? search. Second, VILLAIN.,. CASE OF AMERICA'S POLLUTED WATERS must present the the sample field or soil condition you are the concerned about. Second, chemist who tests the soil must use chemical methods adapted to the local soil conditions, and correlated with local field re- erly. t. flliBlM3lj amendments. The soil test can be very meanor almost valueless, de ingful two factors - - both on pending controlled by the farmers. First, able for the crop. A lot of training, field and laboratory re -search, and experience Is needed to design the tests and Interpret the results. 7 coupon below. THE NEARSIGHTED FARMER; WHO MISREAD THE LABEL AND MISAPPLIED , ? ' THE CARELESS EMPLOYEE, WHO SPILLED ACID AND OIL-j- Jj AND FLUSHED IT AWAY ? VTHE SLOPPY BOATMAN, WHO TOSSED GARBAGE OVER THE THE INADEQUATE SEWAGE PLANT, WHICH IMPROPERLY TREATED SOME WASTES SIDE I ? Xftt fc 1 ? AN5WER,0F COURSE, IS AIL OF THEM. WE'RE ALL VILLAIN- SAND VICTIMS AS POLLUTION PLOT THICKENS. IN POLLUTlON,LKE CRIME, PREVENTION IS MOST IMPORTANT! TO MEET A COMMUNITY'S DEMANDS FOR GOOD WATER, IT TAKES MONEY, ADEQUATE TREATMENT FACILITIES & COMBINED EFFORTS OF INDUSTRY, GOV'T USDA t EVERY CITIZEN Predicts Heavier Leaf Hopper Migration Surveys In the sesert breeding grounds Indicate that movement of beet leaf hoppers to cultivate areas will be heavier in the 1968 crop season than in 1967, the U.S. reDepartment of Agriculture ports. The beet leafhopper is the only of curly top, known carrier a destructive virus disease of sugarbeets, beets, beans, tomatoes, spinach, melons, and other as well as ornamental crops, flowering plants, and many weeds. The insect favors arid andsem-iari- d localities. Its breeding grounds are abandoned and over-graz- ed lands on which weed hosts occur. Such areas are also reservoirs for the virus. Beet leafhopper surveys were 1 to 15 on the Feb. southern breeding grounds - - 50, 000 square miles of desert in central Arizona, southeastern Calisouthern Nevada, and fornia, southern Nevada, and southern Utah. Entomologists of USDAs Agricultural Research Service and States recooperating and that fall port early winter rains resulted in development of annual weed host plants in much of this area. If present conditions prevail, spring movement of beet to cultivated districts of central Arizona, southeasternCal-lforni- a, southern Nevada, southern and eastern Utah, and western Colorado is expected to be moderate to heavy. Movement to central Utah is expected to be moderate , while movement to northern Utah Is expected to be light. NOW for made Borrowing a car for a joyride isrft the biggest crime in the world. But its a start. Don't help a good boy go bad. Lock your car Take your keys. Utah Farm Bureau Insurance Co. 629 East 4th South Salt Lake City, Utah 84111 lef-hopp- ers EGGS: Egg production in 1967 totaled 70.161 million eggs, a new record. This was six percent above the previous high set in 1966. HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS Fa rmer-- T o-F- a rmer STUDENTS' TOUR of EUROPE breakfast club tour for farm family students. Young farm people 16 to 18 years of age will see Europe and meet around the breakfast table and on the farm A Farmer-to-Farm- er with rural students in Belgium, England, Holland, Germany, Austria, Italy, France, and Switzerland. Only responsible students elegible. Qualified, experienced adult counselors. June 30 to August 12. MAIL NOW to: Utah Farm Bureau Travel 629 E. 4th South Salt Lake City, Utah 84111 Please send complete information on the High School Gentlemen: Students' Tour of Europe to: Name Address City State Phone Zip Area Code v |