Show Immense Task of Soil Rebuilding Faces Managers b of Nations Nation's Six Million Farms I Land Being Mined 1 by I 1 Excessive Cropping Will Till Need Fertilizer I American farmers face the most gigantic soil rebuilding job in all history when World War II is fought to a successful successful successful success success- ful conclusion That is the considered opinion opinion ion of farm economists soil conservation experts expert sand and leading agronomists of state agricultural colleges throughout through through- out the country What this job will cost no one knows yet but It will be considerably considerably consider consider- ably above the to million dollar dollar doltar dol dol- dol- dol I lar tar expenditure farmers have been making for fertilizer in recent years Virtually all of the nations nation's farms will need serious attention Two 1 major reasons are cited by soil coil experts for this situation 1 Wartime I-Wartime crop gO goals necessary to produce foodstuffs meat dairy dairy dalry dai dai- dal- dal ry products oil and fiber crops for victory are eating up the soils soil's resources of nitrogen phosphorus and potash much faster than they can be replaced today Steps to correct this must be taken immediately the war crisis Is over over- 2 The 2 The range long-range job of soil conservation conservation con con- must be stepped up scale Big operations can be p post post- st- st no longer The Win mm fth column column col- col col cm- attacks of erosion are arc becoming becoming becoming be be- coming more menacingly seri seri- ous oos Wasteful farming practices over a century and a half halt have squandered precious topsoil to toa toa toa a dangerous degree Farmers recognize that the present present pres pres- e ent nt wartime drain on their soils' soils f fertility level is a necessary contribution contribution contri contri- b ution to victory But they should b bear ear In mind the Imperative fact tact t that hat wealth borrowed from the soil soilo t to o help win this war must be repaid repaid reaid re re- re- re paid p aid later on Dr George D. D head of the agronomy department of Purdue u university summed things up when h he e said Farmers in the Middle West and e elsewhere throughout the nation are making a sacrifice in the war production production pro pro- d program to an extent not f fully ully realized by the world Soils t that hat have had to produce war crops b by y fertility exhaustion practices will n not ot have dividends to pay after the war but will require their own kind i o of f taxation in the form of fertilizers In reality farmers are in the manufacturing business the same a as s munitions makers or steel pro pro- d They are turning out essential essential essen essen- t ial products for our armed forces They are manufacturing foods f feeds eeds fibers and oils out of the raw materials of the soil the soil the nitrogen phosphorus potash and lime Fortunately all our soils are not exhausted of their inherited riches But exhaustion is on the way even with our best soils and we face a f future where these raw materials must be added to the soils as fertilizers l in greater amounts than inthe in inthe inthe the past Unless we do this the productivity of the soil will sink toa toa to toa a dangerous level Concerning the future outlook he said Our war debt wont won't be only a matter of taxes and maturing bonds Our farmers are asked to mine their soils because fertilizer materials are scarce But crops must be made on the fat of the soils This means that thata a farmer of the future will have havethe havethe havethe the handicap of a more exhausted soil and smaller crop yields to pay the taxes that this war Tremendous Drain Just how big a drain on the soils soil's fertility resources does this extra crop production impose The answer is plenty Take one single crop corn for example Agronomists estimate that the 1941 1041 I corn crop in ten mIdwestern states I removed pounds of ot ni nitrogen nitrogen ru- ru trogen phosphorus and potash from the soil Increasing wartime yields boosted this tax to 1 pounds in 1942 and pounds in 1943 Large as this removal was it represents represents represents rep rep- resents but a portion of the fertility loss from a single region Add t to It the fertility drain caused by producing pro pro- producing huge yields of wheat soybeans soy soy- beans potatoes alfalfa clover oats and other crops and you have some idea of the depreciation of fertility resources But that doesn't tell teIl the whole story either for the job of ot producing livestock and dairy prod- prod requires heavy amounts of plant food o The plain fact is that every time a crop is harvested and hauled to market market mar mar- ket or livestock are shipped to a packers packer's yards some of ot the farms farm's fertility goes with them Those essential essential es es- es elements nitrogen ph os- os and potassium in various compounds have been drawn out of the soil by the plants that grew on It The bigger and better the crop the more vital minerals ex cx- I Ordinarily much of these elements i Is replaced by rotation fallowing or application of fertilizers fer ers but during these war years when every field must be made to yield to the limit there is an annual annual an nn- nual loss Also the scarcity of fertilizers fertilizers fer fer- and shortage of help and machinery have conspired to impoverish impoverish impoverish im im- im- im the farmers farmer's land There is still another important factor In this present soil exhaust ing problem That Is the matter motter of z cv 4 4 4 L' L F An aerial view of a large Georgia farm on which several soil conservation conservation conser conser- methods are arc used In the upper part of the picture appears a i large meadow strip which serves as a safe water disposal area for surface surface surface sur sur- face runoff from adjoining f fields elds The curved bands are arc contour strip p cropping and terracing The owner Dr A. A C. C Brown of Royston also als 0 follows improved rotation practices increased acreage In order to produce produce pro pro- duce the extra crop quotas not only do existing acres have to do a bigger bigger bigger big big- ger crop yielding job but more and more acres have to be tilled Much of this land represents a lower strata of fertility level and hence it is not notable notable notable able to bear the burden of heavy cropping effectively A glance at acreage figures tells the story In 1941 the total harvested acreage of principal crops in the United States was In 1942 1042 it rose to and In 1943 to acres New production goals for 1944 1044 propose the use of some million acres neros Twelfth One-Twelfth of Land Ruined Whon ve we turn to the range long job j ob of soil conservation that has been a accumulating since the pioneer settlers settlers' settlers settlers' set set- t plows first broke Americas America's virgin irgin v farm land we find an even more serious situation Hugh H. H Bennett chief of the U. U S. S s soil oil conservation service is authority t ty y for the statement that 50 million acres of the nations nation's million tillable tillable till till- able acres have been completely rued ruined ruined ru ru- ru- ru m ined ed for agricultural purposes An additional 50 million acres he estimates are seriously damaged and a very large further acreage has suffered a marked decrease in soil fertility As a result of ot the soil conservation services service's work and the efforts of agronomists at state agricultural colleges and experiment stations significant steps have been taken In recent years in combating this menacing trend But the major task lies ahead Six principal factors are responsible ble ile for the foregoing losses according according accord accord- ing i ng to Mr Bennett They are erosion erosion ero ero- erosion sion leaching the removal of fertilizer fertilizer fertilizer lizer elements by harvested crops livestock and livestock marketing oxidation of soil organic matter and fire I Erosion is the worst offender removing removing removing re re- re- re moving annually tons of nitrogen nitrogen ni ni- ni- ni trogen tons of phosphorus and tons of potash the potash the three major plant foods which make the productions of crops possible I r I 4 I I I 1 J I I 1 I Hilly land often considered practically worthless can be made to tc S yield good returns by proper strip S SS cropping C C. C D. D D Blubaugh Danville Ohio is shown weighing the harvest I from such a field He lIe Is one of the thc three million farmers now included in soil conservation projects Harvested crops rank next In depleting depleting de de- depleting the soil and are In normal years responsible for taking out an as I additional tons of nitrogen tons of phosphorus and tons of potash Nearly a n third of the fertile topsoil topsoil top- top soil of American farms has been beer I lost Jost due to erosion floods and the damaging effects of according to a statement Issued b by bythe bythe the Middle West Soil Improvement L Committee Committee- Six SiC Inches of or Topsoil A uA century and a half holf ago says the statement there was an average average aver aver- age of nine inches of topsoil spread I over the entire United States To 10 day this averages only six Inches 5 in depth The present war emergency as aswell aswell a 5 well as the future of American agriculture agriculture agri agri- Lwell L- L culture itself calls for a determined determine a fight against the forces forces' of soil de de- The ef ell effectiveness of the is individual in individual in- in farmers farmer's soil management it plan In wartime as well as in th the e peace era to follow can be aided aide d dby by the cooperation of agronomists agronomist 5 at state agricultural colleges and e experiment experiment ex ex- stations Through research h hand and experimentation over a Ion long g span of years these experts have hay e developed information concerning g fertilizer needs for various crops and an d soils that Is helpful to the farmer r who is striving to rebuild his soils soil's s productivity I In combating the destructive e effects effects ef ef- f. f of erosion individual farmers farmer s and organized agriculture are confronted confronted con cor 1 fronted by a stealthy fifth column a enemy Erosions Erosion's damage is grac gradual gradual grad grad- I- I ual and in the first stages barel barely y noticeable But once it gains headway head head- Iway I- I wa way winds and rains not only carry carr y away valuable topsoil but also re remove remove remove re re- move needed fertilizing elements Ls such as nitrogen phosphorus and an d potash Conservation methods are the su surest surest sur sur- rest r- r est means of reducing these losses of f valuable topsoil and plant nutrients nutrient 5 It has been found that soils havin having havinga g ga a cover crop suffer only a fraction a of the losses from erosion that othe other r farm areas experience Not only on y will grasses and legumes provide e effective effective ef ef- f- f vegetative cover for holdin holding g topsoil in place and furnish a balanced bal ba 1 ration for farm animals in but it they promote nitrogen fixation in improve improve im im- i- i prove the soil and help increase e crop yields following in the rotation 1 This is particularly true where ad adequate ade quate fertilization is undertaken Bonds Will Vill Provide Funds Fortunately the means for accomplishing accomplishing 1 pushing this soil replenishment ja job b bare are arc in irs the hands of virtually ever every 3 American farmer Dollars invested in war bonds now that farm cash income is a at t the highest level in history and farm debt at the lowest point in many years can provide the ready cash cash- to pay for the purchase purchase pur pur- chase of nitrogen phosphorus and potash needed to restore the fertility ty level of farms later on onIt It is not too early to begin plannIng planning planning plan plan- ning for this agricultural tion job any more than it is premature prema- prema premature ture turc at present to lay plans for future future fu fu- ture political and economic peace a statement by the Middle West Soil Improvement Committee concludes For it is becoming increasingly clear that the whole structure of future Lu- Lu fu fu- ture security will rest on the pro pro- of the soil While every encouragement will be given to soil rebuilding projects by the federal government and by state agricultural al agencies the major responsibility for getting the job done will rest on the shoulders of ot individual farmers By earmarking part of present war bond purchases now for peacetime soil rebuilding expenditures farmers farmers farm farm- ers can be ready when the mD materi teri- teri als and manpower become readily available ble in the postwar era |