OCR Text |
Show (AGRICULTURE HAS IMPROVED LOOK IN SOUTHERN UTAH Extension Service Director Says Prospects Best in Many Years Agricultural crops in the southern counties of the state have a much better outlook than they have had for several years past, says William Peterson, Pet-erson, director of the U. S. A. C. Extension Ex-tension service. Washington county has more water than usual and the farmers there passed through the spring season without a frost. The fruit promises not only to be good but abundant. At Enterprise the two reservoirs are full of water, a condition which has not been apparent in many years. The Sevier river is not going to give as much water as was earlier expected and while the ground has been quite thoroughly saturated, the most economic use of water from the Sevier is necessary. Livestock show the effect of a long, hard winter and in many of the southern areas, a large part of the first crop of alfalfa will be sacrificed as pasture in an attempt to feed an rehabiliate the animals which are in such poor condition due to the lack of feed (luring the past winter. Feed and seed loans have been most helpful. The distribution of feed grain and flour through the Red Cross representatives, has been almost al-most a life-saving procedure to most of the communities. While large amounts of the Red Cross grain were distributed, surveys were made hurriedly hur-riedly by the local organizations and county committees, it has been found that some persons who are entitled to a liberal distribution of grain and flour because of their financial stress, have been missed because the lists were not completed. Others have suffered a short distribution because of a misunderstanding in the purpose of the Red Cross activity and the extent ex-tent to which this help might be extended. ex-tended. Some of the areas are urging urg-ing a further distribution on account of the lack of an equitable measure. This further distribution is not only justifiable but actually needed. It is hoped that it might be possible to give to these areas in want, a further allotment from the Red Cross gran-ery. gran-ery. A strong effort is Deing made in all communities by the extension service, the Relief society and the farm bureau, bur-eau, to effect a program for better food preservation and storage, in order or-der that the coming winter may find the people so prepared that they will not suffer from lack of food. Also an effort is being made to encourage a larger accumulation of feed for livestock live-stock to ensure them an adequate manger during the coming winter. The farmers of the state have an extra problem to meet in that the forage and farm products to be raised rais-ed must not only be enough to feed the family and livestock, but it must be sufficient to pay back the loans which have been made this year from the federal government. Approximately Approxim-ately one-half million dollars were borrowed for feed and more than two-hundred thousand for seed. In addition to this, data collected ' indicate in-dicate that more than two million dollars was lent by private individuals individu-als and banks for feed which has been purchased during the past hard winter. Farmers of the state are urged to produce as large a feed supply as possible. Extra tons of feed in Utah are money in the bank and in those areas where these is an extra supply of water, feed should be for sale this year. |