Democratic Sentinel, Volume 16, Number 15, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 April 1892 — COLD AND BACKWARD. [ARTICLE]

COLD AND BACKWARD.

SPRING CONDITIONS UNFAVORABLE FO,R CROPS. Reports Indicate a General Lateness and Backwardness Injthe Season All Over tlie Country Spring-Seeded Crops Come Out of the Ground Slowly. Condition of the Crops. So far we have had a poor spring for getting anything into the ground, and it seems almost an impossibility to get It out even after it is in. This situation has been brought about by an excess of moisture, a lack of sunshine, and a low degree of temperature. The grass has made slow growth, the winter wheat ditto, and the oat crop is now only beginning to break through the ground. These conditions have been general all through the lower lake regions, the Ohio Valley, the Upper Mississippi and the Missouri Valley, and when we travel into the extreme Northwest we find all these conditions in a much more aggravated form. A year ago at this time all over these areas the weather was favorable, the growing crops in excellent condition, the oats were practically all seeded, and plowing for corn was in progress. The last week of April, 1891, closed with the whole Northwest and Southwest under full headway. The wonderful revolut'on in farm machinery as applied to putting in and gathering the oat crop has pushed this important crop rapidly to the front during the last few years and In area it now comes next to the corn crop. Oat seeding commenced the present season the lust weea of March, but before much was put Into the ground heavy rainstorms put a stop to seeding. Since April 1 the weather has been cold, cloudy, and wet, and as”" soon as the ground would get into condition to work more rain would follow. The consequence is that, taking the country over, not the usual acreage has been put in this spring, and a large proportion of that has been sown under great difficulty. On low, flat land, where the water has stood, the crop has more or less rotted. Last year, although the seeding of oats was late, the crop was all in the ground by April 15. The seeding of oats will end practically with this week. In one sense of the word the cloudy weather, with the ground so full oi moisture, has been a favorable character in the history of the newly-sown crop; on the advent of warm, clear weather we ought to see rapid growth in this crop. There are, however, few fields to-day which look green and-show an evpn stand. Nebraska reports that they are only now just finishing up the seeding of the crop, that the job so far has been poorly done. A large percentage of it was practically “mudded in,” and the earliest sown is coming up slowly. The ground and atmosphere are cold and damp and warm sunshine with occasional showers greatly needed. In lowa about two-thirds of the oats are now in the ground. On account of the low temperatun vegetation of all kinds is making little headway. Spring: Wheat. West of the Missouri River in North Dakota spring wheat seeding is going on. On the east side of the river, owing to so much moisture, they have barely commenced. Under the most favorable ci.cumstances, through the Red River Valley on the Dakota side, it .will take three weeks of most favorable weather for the ground to get into condition to let farmers onto the ground. Of course there will be isolated places where some spring wheat can be seeded, but general seeding cannot begin before the first of May. This is a month or six weeks late, and with these conditions frost is liable to catch the crop in August. In South Dakota the wheat is practically all sown. The seeding is somewhat later than usual, but the soil is in fine condition, which will counterbalance that, probably, in the end. The weather, however, keeps cold, with more or less freezing every pight. There have been some few reports of seed rotting in the ground. In Central Minnesota about one-half of the spring wheat has been sown. None of the early sown has come up yet. Seeding will not be finished until May 1. The situation in this portion of the State indicates an increase of acreage, due more to the opening of'new farms than to increasing old oneH'' In Southern Minnesota most of the farmers are entirely through sowing wheat. There has been little oats or barley sown yet. There is plenty of moisture in the ground, and wheat is just coming up. The weather is cold and warm growing weather greatly needed. Winter Wheat. Telegraphic reports from San Franciso show that drying winds have impaired previous favorable conditions. Prospects still, however, are fairly good with ordinarily favorable weather next month. Texas reports that the young wheat will average ten inches high; the extremely late-sown wheat does not look as well. Corn is now large enough for plowing. What little wheat now remains in farmers’ hands is still being firmly held. Farmers are all up with their work. In Kentucky the early sown wheat is about knee-high. There is some complaint that it has been injured by frost within the last ten days, but this will, however, not amount to enough to make any serious loss in the aggregate. On account of the lack of sunshine and the excess of moisture wheat has made slow growth. The opinion seems to be now that the crop will be about as good as the one made last year. This statement is based upon the fact that the late wheat will turn out well. Ohio reports that they need warm, dry weather for wheat at the present time. The average height of the crop is now from four to six inches. On low lands wheat is poor and spotted. In the northern portion of the StSto the cold weather is holding wheat* back. Fields are spotted and many of them will not produce more than half a crop. On the river bottoms in Southern Indiana the early sown wheat is now high and looks well. 4 Late sown wheat is poor and thin on the ground. In Central Indiana wheat has done well during the last ten days, notwithstanding the weather has been cold, cloudy, and wet. The late sown wheat has improved some, though more or less spotted. In Northern Indiana late wheat is decidedly thin on the ground, but the early wheat promises to do fairly well. In Central Illinois wheat has made but little growth during the last fourteen days. The color is good and the crop now averages from six to ten inches in height. In Southem Jl’inois the general condition of the crop shows little improvement over that of fourteen days ago. The weather has been so wet and cold that in some of the best counties in this important area of the winter-wheat belt the crop has a sickly appearance, and some fields are turning yeliow. In Michigan the weather has been eool and wet. Wheat has made slow growth, and, on the whole, the crop has held its own. Spring work is backward, and there have been but few oats seeded yet. Farmers are selling but little wheat, and millers are carrying small stocks. Prices are low, and fanners will carry over a good deal unless the prices advance considerably. Central Kansas reports during the last few days that there has been some slight improvement in the winter wheat

situation. It is still small in growth, but is stooling out well. In Northern Kansas harvest will be ten days late. The crop has made slow growth, as the ground is packed from too much heavy rain. The general conditions are not as good as those of a year ago. The season Is late and the outcome mixed. Southern Kansas reports that they have had little growing weather so far; that the wheat harvest will be from two to three weeks later than last season. The late sown is a better stand than the early. Southern Missouri reports that the wheat is still small, and that with hot and dry weather in the neat' future the crop will not amount to much, but if the weather continues cool and damp the prospects are ter a good crop; not as large as was made last year, however. A correspondent from Central Missouri says that “he goes a good deal on’ the pulse of the farmers;’’ they are quiet now on the wheat question, and so long as they keep quiet he considers the crop in fair shape; but the crop is not as good by 20 per cent, as it was this time lust year. Condition of Corn. By the end of the third week in April at least two-thirds of the corn lands of the great corn surplus States of the West ought to be plowed and ready for planting. Such, however, was not the case this spring. It is only on lands which have been underdrained, and those are lands confined to the States of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, where there has been any progress in plowing for corn worth reporting. In Kansas and Missouri there has been a little corn planted, but no matter how much land was ready, with the ground cold, wet, and soggy it would be simply the height of folly to attempt to put the seed in the ground, for It would only ro t an d have to be replanted. There has been little land plowed for corn in lowa, and the great surplus corn State, Nebraska, has made no headway with this most important crop. The reserves of old corn in farmers’ hands are still firmly held, and with the lateness of the season, the backwardness with the work on the farms, and the uncertainty which must necessarily follow a season like the present, farmers will not be inclined to sell their surplus after corn planting, as they usually do at that season of the year. Hence the surplus corn this spring will be carried over until late in the fall if not until the opening of 1893.