XSUN gUC

Report of the

DESCHUTES COUNTYAGRICULTURAL

OUTLOOKCONFERENCE

Conducted InREDMOND, OREGON

FEBRUARY 27 AND 281936

TABLE OF CONTENTSCONFERENCE COMMITTEES

FOREWORD

AGRICULTURAL

DAIRYING

SMALL SEEDS

POTATOES

LIVESTOCK

POULTRY

WEED AND PEST CONTROL

HOME IMPROVEMENT

HAY AND GRAIN

2

3

ECONOMICS 4

9

11

14

15

17

20

22

24

Mrs. E. D. RobinsonVerne Livesay

Mrs. Mabel Marnach,Chairman

Herman RaschJ. A. Foss

William Hall, ChairmanGeorge ThompsonW. J. Crow

Guy Shwnway, Chm.Geo. BillingsleyWilliam CollinsJas. ShortE. 0. Adams

James UnderwoodB. L. FleckFrank Reibhoff

Carl LivesleyGeorge Murphy

Geo. Elliott, ChairmanE. ObernolteHoward Mayfield

CONFERENCE COMMITTEESFred' C. Shepard, General Chairman

Gus Y. Hagglund, County Agent

POULTRYG. A. Kriger,, Chairman Mrs. Frank Nutley Mrs. F. L. WesterMrs. E. D. Elrod Clarence Elder Mrs. E. L. LoyC. L. Allen Hubert Scoggin F. C. Jacquot

AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICSF. C. Shepard, Chairman Kenneth Sawyer Cecil YoungstromGeorge Aitken Earl Hallock George Kanoff

FARMB. F. BeckMrs. Meredith Bailey, Jr.Mrs. B. B. HeeseMrs. Sara L Wertz

C. E. LyonELM. Eby

DAIRYR. T. Jackson Albert ShultsJack L. Jones Ole HansenPriday Holmes D. B. McKenzieEllis Edgington Fred Uliman

WEED AND PEST CONTROL,Gene AckleyJoe McClayHarvey Mustard

SMALL SEEDSM. Wright

Joe HenryRobert WilsonRay GerkingJ. E. Thompson

POTATOESGeorge CooleyA. L HoumardH. A. Helmholtz

GRAIN AND HAYJ. 0. HansenBjarne Moe

LIVESTOCKL Wester

James ElderM. E. Knickerbocker

AND HOME IMPROVEMENTHans T. MikkelsenJ. J. BrownMrs. J. A. Chamberlain

Frank McCafferyN. 0. LsaacsonFred Sankey

E. E. VarcoChas. ChristyW. B. Simmons

J. W. SchrunkA. J. Gonnason

Rasmus Petersen

Emerson ShaferRobert Blair

George HuettiMrs. E. E. BirgessMrs. 0. M. Olausen

FOREWORD

This report is published as a result of a resolution unanimously adoptedat the final session of the 1936 Deschutes County Agricultural Outlook Con-ference. The resolution directed a committee of three, Verne F. Livesay,James Short and Phil F. Brogan, to devise ways and means to print the variouscommittee reports. This committee met with a generous response to requestsfor assistance in publishing the reports.

Publication of this report has in a measure been made possible by thecooperation of The Bend Bulletin, which first published the committee re-ports and then saved and donated the type to the committee, and the fol-lowing Bend and Redmond concerns, which contributed cash:

Deschutes County Pomona Deschutes County CourtBend Chamber of Commerce Redmond Chamber of CommerceCopeland Lumber Co. Dairyman's Bank RedmondBend Hardware Co.Midstate Hardware Co. Central Oregon Cooperative CreameryErickson's Store Deschutes Grain and Feed StoreSafeway (Bend) Redmond Motor Co.Deschutes Farmers Warehouse C. 0. Production Credit CorporationBend Dairy Farmers Hardware Co.Medo-Land Creamery Bone Implement Co.The Bend Bulletin E. 0. "Clover" AdamsMiller Lumber Co. Swift & Co.First National Bank of Portland, Bend Branch

The conference was planned and conducted by the Deschutes CountyAgricultural Outlook central committee, with Fred C. Shepard as chairman,cooperating with the Extension Service of the Oregon State AgriculturalCollege. The sub-committees were assisted in their work previous to theconference by Gus Hagglund, county agricultural agent. Purpose of the con-ference were (1) to gather accurate and detailed information on the localand national phases of agriculture, (2) to present this information in conciseand definite form, and (3) to draw conclusions from and make recommenda-tions based upon the assembled facts.

Recommendations of the conference constitute the best opinions of com-mittees made up of representatives and practical producers, and constitute,in the aggregate, a program for the guidance of Deschutes county agriculture.All the reports herein published were formally adopted at the Redmondconference.

The various committees put painstaking effort into the preparations forthe conference. Notwithstanding this, and the fact that the best availabledata were at hand to aid in the formulation of the conclusions, the recom-mendations herein set forth should not be considered final. it is not assumedthat the farmers will completely change their systems each year to meetchanging conditions. On the contrary, there should be greater stability,more gradual adjustment and less violent fluctuation.

It is hoped that all persons interested in the agriculture of Deschutescounty will individually and through their organizations study the reportsthat comprise this publication and use them as a guide for the best develop-ment of the agriculture resources of Deschutes county.

4

REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ONAGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS

Sources of Agricultural Income:For the five year period 1926-30 theaverage cash farm income of Des-chutes county was $1,186,000. Ap-proximately 29% of this income wasderived from the sale of crop pro-ducts, while about 71% came fromthe sale of animal products, chieflylivestock and dairy. Since the 1926-30 period, however, the trend hasbeen toward an increase in incomefrom turkeys through rapid expan-sion of this industry and from fieldcrops in the form of materiallygreater production of potatoes, al-sike clover seed and Austrian win-ter field peas. It should be noted,however, that Deschutes countyfarm and ranch people derive morethan half of their income from thesale of animals and animal products.It is likely that this will be the casefor an indefinite period. The pre-dominance of livestock is related tothe acreage of irrigated land espe-cially adaptable to the production ofalfalfa hay, and to the very largeacreage of grazing lands in nativegrass used by beef and sheep.

Land Resources: .In connectionwith agricultural development in anyarea the ownership of land to a largeextent is a governing factor. Of thenearly 2,000,000 acres total in Des-chutes county less than one-fourthis in private ownership with the bal-ance in public ownership. Of the 23%of the county area owned privatelytwo-thirds is non-agricultural landbeing mostly timber holdings. Landin farms accounts for but 7.3% ofthe county total of which only one-third is improved, amounting toslightly in excess of 48,000 acres.

Of the public lands national for-est and unappropriated public do-main together make up 70% of thecounty total, 5.6% is owned by thecounty, and 1.5% by the state.

The total area of improved land infarms has not changed much in thelast 15 years. During that time thenumber of farms has risen from 751in 1920 to 924 in 1935. With the acre-age of improved land remainingrather constant, it is clear that thereis a movement to subdivide farms inas far as the improved land is con-

cerned. While your committee doesnot regard this subdivision as havingprogressed to a serious extent as yet,experience in other counties showsthat there are limits beyond whichthis subdivision should not go. Min-imum farm sizes are discussed underthe topic settlement.

Grazing Within Irrigation Districts:Your committee is in full agreementthat federal, state and county lands,unimproved in character and lyingwithin the boundaries of irrigationdistricts, should be reserved for theuse of settlers on those districts forgrazing purposes. Further, we urgethat driveways across irrigationdistricts be reduced to a minimumand that such driveways be clearlydefined to protect grazing land,crops and the domestic water sup-ply. Watering places should beestablished. It is our belief also thatlands within and adjacent to irriga-tion districts should be reserved tothe settlers thereon for grazing pur-poses and permission granted set-tlers to fence and otherwise improvesuch lands.

We are disposed to condemn thepractice of commercial woodcuttingon these grazing lands within andadjacent to irrigation districts. Thiscutting is done more or less promis-cuously and the time is not far offwhen wood supplies of occupants ofirrigation districts will be depleted.

Disposition of County Lands: Yourcommittee takes the position thatlands now under county title shouldbe disposed of in such a way as tolead to the most desirable use,looking at the matter over a longperiod. For instance, lands that areobviously of grazing value onlyshould not be disposed of to thosepeople who plan upon plowing themup. The small amount of soil surveywork which has previously beendone in Deschutes county, clearlydemonstrates the need for promptexpansion of this work to cover thecounty, and ownership classificationwork now under way should be ofmaterial assistance to the countycourt in following out this policy ifadopted.

We feel that there is no hurry in

AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS(Continued) 5

disposing of county properties of anagricultural nature. Better to con-solidate county holdings by tradeswith trie state and with the federalgovernment in order that countylands may pass into economic agri-cultural units, grazing or other.

There are some truly submarginallands under irrigation in this county.Under the same ditches are areas ofcounty owned land not supplied withwater. Your committee believes thatan effort should be made to transferthe water in question from the sub-marginal lands to the better lands incounty ownership all to the end thatthe income of the community maybe increased.

Soil Survey and Land Classifica-tion: One of the great needs of Des-chutes county long has been moreinformation as to the nature anddepth of the soil, and as to the properuses to which land should be put. Astart has been made in a soil surveyand in classifying land ownership. Aland assessed valuation is in thecourse of preparation. Although thesetasks promise not to be completedfor several years, your committeeheartily approves of such publicwork and calls the attention espe-cially of new settlers to the value ofmore accurate information as to thenature of soil and as to the appro-priate use of lands. We trust thiswork will be continued by anymeans feasible.

Land Settlement: The committeehas made a rough survey of desir-able lands available for new settle-ment. There is room in Deschutescounty on irrigated lands for a min-imum of 200 additional farm families.There are opportunities for a stillgreater number if consideration isgiven those local people who are dis-posed to sell places they are nowoperating.

The conclusion has been reachedthat a Deschutes county irrigatedfarm of from 55 to 65 acres underditch may be regarded as the min-imum for an economic unit, pro-vided that a diversified type of agri-cultural pursuit is to be followed.Production for sale on such a farmwould include field crops, dairy pro-ducts, livestock and livestock pro-ducts and poultry.

It must be borne in mind that this

farm unit is for the average operatorunder average conditions both as toseason and prices.

Capital costs are very little higherfor the operation of a 60 acre farm inDeschutes county than one of smallsize. The equipment of farms of 60acres or less must be the same sizeand of comparable value. Livestockneeds are the same relative to horse-power, and other stock from whichproducts are sold to maintain ordin-ary living expenses of the farm.

Fixed charges per acre, while in-creasing as the size of the farm unitdecreases, tend to decrease in pro-portion to net return as the farmunit nears the economic size of theone family farm.

Recommendation is made by thiscommittee that a balanced, diversi-fied method of production be fol-lowed. Looking forward to a longtime program no radical deviationfrom regular cropping practicesshould be made in order to attemptto take advantage of speculativehigh prices.

Recommendations to New Setflerr:Minimum capital cost for a completeset up in Deschutes county will ruz1to about the figures shown in thetable below.

Number of acres 60Land cost $3900House cost 800Outbuilding cost 800Equipment cost 420Livestock cost 675Land preparation 60

Total $6405Land cost for comparative unim-

proved irrigated farms will runabout $60 to $65 an acre. This willbe a place with fair location regard-ing schools, social activities androads.

Outbuildings costs including onebarn, a small amount of fencing, andperhaps other improvements such ascisterns will run to not less than$550.

Land preparation cost will vary,but a dollar an acre would be theminimum that could possibly be ex-pected.

This summary for an individualfarm will vary greatly according tothe conditions of the farm being pur-chased An individual could easily

6 AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS(Continued)

ascertain whether the proper charg-es are being made by analyzing thepurchase price and comparing withthe above values which are basedupon present prices.

The new settler should have as aminimum sufficient capital to coverneeded livestock, equipment, seed,and for living costs until such timeas returns from the first year's cropsare available.

While your committee is disposedto frown upon renting as a type ofland occupancy, it must be admittedthat it has two advantages for manyindividuals: (1) the newcomer is en-abled to get acquainted with thedistrict to the end that he may makea more intelligent selection of land,and (2) one keeps himself in a safeposition financially by putting hislimited capital in stock and equip-ment until such time as earningsmay justify purchase of land. Thereis no place in Deschutes county forsettlers utterly without capital.

It is felt that fair rental valuesare from $6.75 to $13.00 per acredepending upon the state of culti-vation, improvements, and location.

It is felt that experience neededfor the successful operator in theDeschutes county farming area neednot be confined to irrigation farming.Industry and adaptability are theessential factors necessary for thosefarmers who have not followed thistype of agriculture previously. It cannorm lly be expected that an effi-cient operator in one type of agri-culture will be sufficiently capablein another, provided the enterprisebe not too specialized. This wouldwarrant the statement that goodfarmers from other sections will besuccessful in Deschutes county.

Part-Time Farming: Experiencepoints to the feasibility of the devel-opment of part-time farming to alimited extent only, in the vicinity ofBend. Approximately 80 mill em-ployes live upon garden tracts, andtheir average ability to care forthemselves seems to measure upvery well with the general averageof farmers in Deschutes county.

The development of part-timefarming by all means must be keyedvery closely to the industrial payrollwhich is to provide for the "othertime" of such operators. A maximumof three acres is suggested by your

committee, if the land is to be caredfor and not force the operator tosacrifice his tillage operations in or-der to safeguard his job. Of course,the size of the family will have abearing on the amount of land thatmay be cared for. It is our convic-tion that part-time farmers shouldoperate upon their own capital andshould borrow for no purpose relatedto their farming operations. We re-alize that this qualification forces amodest start, but we feel that thevery fact that the job is of majorimportance brings about special risksin connection with extending creditto such operators.

Cooperative Marketing and Buy-hg: Your committee looks upon co-operative marketing and cooperativebuying as proper and wholesome de-velopments in this community. Arecord of the Central Oregon Coop-erative Creamery at Redmond is anexcellent example of successful co-operation.

With respect to future develop-ment of either cooperative market-ing or cooperative buying we urgevery earnestly that the need for anyorganization or special service bestudied fully, carefully and withoutprejudice, and that the possibility ofeffecting savings be explored beforeany definite organization proposal ismade. Your committee is in a posi-tion to urge upon any group inter-ested in setting up a cooperative unitthat they consult private operatorsin the same or in similar fields andwe can vouch for the fact that mostsuch operators will be more thanglad to open their records with noreservations to any authorized in-vestigating committee.

A condition in Central Oregon thathas a bearing upon the success orfailure of cooperative enterprises isthe still shifting population. Cooper-atives have a better opportunity toeffect savix!gs for their memberswhere the population is more stablethan it is in this community. Yourcommittee favors cooperative enter-prise but merely wishes to point outsuch safeguards as should be ob-served by any business concern be-fore investing anywhere or for anypurpose.

CreditSources of Credit: Thefarm credit administration has beenexpanded to service nearly all typesof agricultural loans. Of the four

AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS(Continued) 7

units making up the farm credit ad-ministration the federal land bank,organized in 1916, is the oldest. Itmakes loans to individuals on farmlands. It makes loans oniy to orga-nized groups.

The bank for cooperatives was setup in 1933 to provide specializedcredit service for regularly organizedcooperative associations, with threetypes of loans. It extends facilityloans for the purpose of buying orerecting buildings or equipment, op-erating loans of short term for con-ducting the seasonal business of acooperative, and a third type of loancovering commodities in storage, us-ually in connection with the issue ofwarehouse receipts.

The production credit associations,of which the Central Oregon Pro-duction Credit association with head-quarters in Redmond, is one, wereestablished in 1934. Loans are madefor all types of production whichincludes range livestock, the financ-ing of breeding operations, the feed-ing of livestock, finishing livestockfor market, dairy operations, for thepurchase of cows or otherwise fi-nancing a dairy enterprise, and gen-eral purpose loans for general farm-ing operations, crop loans for cropproduction and for finishing poultryor turkeys for market, and practical-ly any other type of farm productioncredit.

The federal land bank, the bankfor cooperatives and the productioncredit associations are cooperativeinstitutions and either are, or ulti-mately will be, owned by the bor-rower.

The four institutions making upthe farm credit administration, con-trary to prevailing opinion, do notloan government funds but handleprivate capital exclusively. It istherefore vital to the interest of allagriculture 1 borrowers that the in-tegrity of land bank bonds and in-termediate credit bank debenturesmay never be questioned.

Interest rates charged by the fourgovernmentally sponsored credit in-stitutions must rest basically uponthe prevailing interest rates in thenation, or, in other words, upon themoney market. Rates paid by bor-rowers in turn are effected also bythe risks that must be taken by anyinstitution extending credit, and byany necessary services in connection

with making loans and effecting col-lections.

Separate from the farm credit ad-ministration is the loan service ofthe rural rehabilitation section ofthe rural resettlement administra-tion. This type of credit is availableonly for those who have exhaustedall other credit sources. These fundsare available for the purchase or re-pair of equipment, the buying ofseed, fertilizers and, if absolutelynecessary even for the payment ofrent.

Your committee feels that the farmcredit administration should behighly commended for the effectivemanner in which it has set up na-tion-wide institutions and met soquickly the principal credit needs ofagricultural borrowers.

With reference to the severalsources of credit available in agri-culture we feel that there exists aheavy duplication of personnel withrespect to the service of loans. Weurge upon the farm credit adminis-tration and other government creditagencies the need for coordinatingtheir activities, especially in thofield, to the end that over head cx-pense may be lessened and the costof credits lowered to the borrowers.It is also recognized that there shouldbe an effort by private credit agen-cies to reduce interest rates wherethe risk would justify such proce-dure. Present conditions would seemto warrant an investigation of thisnature.

QUALIFYING FOR CREDIT: Thiscommittee does not subscribe to theview that every citizen with collater-al has an "inherent right" to credit.The hazard incidental to the individ-ual is so important in the extensionof credit by anyone that any suchview cannot be sound.

We wish to call the attention ofDeschutes county farm people to thefact that loans are made basicallyupon the earnings of an enterpriseand not upon the value of securityoffered. This is a fact not widelyunderstood among farm people. Thesecurity is required by public andprivate credit agencies solely in or-der that paymenQ may be madeshould the regular plan of liquida-tion out of earnings fail. In this daythere are no creditors who are inter-ested in taking possession of collat-eral in as much as such procedure

almost invariably results in loss.This repayment of loans out of the

earnings of a business points out theabsolute necessity of prospectiveborrowers and lenders knowing whatearnings have been in the past to an-ticipate earnings in the future. Weurge Deschutes county farm peoplethe maintenance of such records aswill show from time to tim the f i-nancial position of the operator. Thisincludes the total property owned,the total of all creditor claimsagainst that property, and the bal-ance, equity or net worth remain-ing to the credit of the owner or op-erator. However, such a record isnot sufficient for credit purposes nordoes it furnish a safe guide in theoperation of a business. Even moreimportant than what one has iswhat his business has earned in thepast. Records should show fully theearnings of a farm or ranch year byyear. These earnings statements arerequired now by virtually all credi-tors. The farther back the recordsextend the better.

Your committee again points outthat records of this kind are of valueto any operator whether he usesthem for the obtaining of credit ornot.

TAXATJON: The committee refersagain to the fact that only 7.3% ofthe total land area of the county isin farms and the improved farm landin the county is but 48,101 acres. Ap-proximately 15% of the county areais in private ownership other thanagricultural, being mostly timberproperties. As such lands are loggedoff there is a strong tendency forthem to revert to county ownershipand to gradually pinch off tax rev-enue from lands formerly in timber.In addition to these forces tendingto narrow the tax base we point outthe fact that marginal agriculturallands for the most part must betaken by the county. There is also aprogram for purchase by the federalgovernment taking off the tax rollother properties which may or maynot be delinquent in taxes. A resultof the operation of these forces isto leave a larger and larger part ofthe tax load upon that narrow base,namely, the 48,101 acres of improvedfarm land in Deschutes county.

A substantial area of farm land inthis county is owned by the state asa result of the operations of the

World war veterans state aid com-mission and the state land board.These properties pay no local taxeswhatever so long as the title restswith the state. Even though suchlands may be leased or purchased oncontract by private operators stilllocal taxes are not collectible. Thereare no less than 47 farms of this de-scription within the Redmond unionhigh school district abbe.

Your committee is in no positionto pass upon any constitutional ques-tions that may be raised, but we feelthat the holding of lands under statetitle and exempt from local taxationis highly inequitable to local tax-payers. Two suggestions are madewithin the committee to remedy thissituation in part. One is that, in linewith forest service practice, a cer-tain percentage of the gross revenuefrom such state lands be left withthe county in lieu of what otherwisewould be taxes. Further, we believethat state land should become imme-diately taxable once it is sold on pur-chase contract. We recommend andurge that a qualified agency studythis entire state land situation withspecial reference to the problem ofmaintaining local public services andto recommend action to the legisla-ture.

Tax delinquency had grown tosuch alarming proportions that the1935 special session of the legisla-ture passed a drastic and sweepingact designed to stimulate tax pay-ments. Your committee is inclined towait for results from this legisla-tion but should it fail of its purposewe favor a redrafting of the taxlaws ii such a manner that taxesnot only will be paid but in such amanner that the taxpayer who ac-tually does pay his taxes is not pen-alized because of the failure of hisneighbor to make payment. Yourcommittee takes the position that laxcollection methods have raised levieson actual taxpayers by probablyabout 20%. This is an indefensiblesituation and, should the 1935 act notserve as anticipated by its advocates,we insist upon tax legislation thatwill relieve this inequitable relationamong taxpayers themselves. As leg-islation has become so involved andintricate that few understand whatis reouired and what may be theirprivileges, we recommend a programof simplification or tax legislation.

8 AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS(Continued)

DAIRYING COMMITTEE REPORTThe Situation in Deschutes County:

It is believed that the production percow in Deschutes county improvedsteadily until 1930 and since thatperiod has declined. This is believedto be caused by low butterfat pricesand relatively high prices for feed.During these years the numbers ofdairy cows have declined as shownby local estimates.

The cost of producing butterfat onwell-managed farms in Deschutescounty is relatively low as comparedto most of the state of Oregon. Thecommittee lists the following advan-tages of dairying in D e s c h Ut e scounty:

Dry climate.Sunshine most of the year.Cheap high grade feed.Irrigated pasture.Expensive buildings and equip-

ment are not necessary.Cooperative marketing of dairy

products.Regular income.

ReconimendationsThere is no exception to the neces-

sity of following principles of gooddairy management if dairy enter-prises are to be profitable in thecounty.

Marketing and manufacturing f a-cilities, both cooperative and inde-pendent, are adequate and no newmarketing developments are neededat the present time. Prices have beenwell in line with outside marketsduring the past few years.

The committee believes that theprincipal problem of the dairy in-dustry in the county is the furtherreduction in the cost of producingbutterfat through increased produc-tion per cow, improvement of stock,cheaper feed, improvement of pas-tures, elimination of disease, andfurther quality improvement.

Expansion of the dairy industry ofthe county should be made by higherand more profitable production percow rather than through increasednumbers of cattle.

It is believed by the committeethat the average farm has a betteropportunity of utilizing home grownfertilizer through dairy cattle thanthrough any other kind of livestock.When a crop is taken from the soil,tertility can be maintained only by

returning the equivalent in the formof manure or organic matter.

On many Deschutes county farmsthere are areas of rocky unplowableground which will produce an ex-cellent pasture when irrigated. Suchlands represent almost a total loss ifnot used by dairy cattle or someother form of livestock. When a cropis fed to the dairy herd there is anincome from the product and also inthe return of the manure to the soil.

To improve production per cow itis recommended that dairy herd im-provement association be organized.

It is believed by the committeethat about 15% of the dairy sires inuse are grades or scrubs. Theseshould be replaced with purebredsires from high producing families.It is also recommended that consid-eration be given to forming a coop-erative bull association especiallyamong the members of the DairyHerd Improvement association whenit is formed.

There has been a marked improve-ment in the quality of dairy productproduced in the county the last lowyears. The committee recommencsfurther improvement in quality. It istherefore recommended that legisla-tion be enacted to provide for thepayment of butterfat on the basis ofquality and that butter be sold to theconsumer on the same basis.

Butter grades which can be un-derstood by the housewife such asA-B-C, such as those in use underthe former Oregon state butter mar-keting agreement should be estab-lished. It is recommended that a localcommittee be appointed to contactcommittees in cther counties andpresent to them a legislative programon quality improvement. It is furtherrecommended that Mrs. P. J. Mar-nach, C. C. Vice, and D. B. McKenziebe the committee from this districtand that they confer with the direc-tor of state department of agricul-ture in regard to this proposad legis-lation.

While it is impossible to tell adairyman the number of cows heshould keep, attention is called to thefact that production costs are lowerin larger herds and that a sufficientnumber of cows should be kept toutilize to the best advantage the feed

and labor resources of the farm.The present active California mar-

ket for surplus cows will probablyn o t be continued when the presenttuberculosis eradication campaignthere is completed, although themarket milk sheds of Los Angelesand San Francisco will probablycontinue to purchase outside replace-ments. The market price for surpluscows, except where they are pro-duced cheaply, usually does not coverthe cost of producing them. The com-mittee recommends that heifers beraised primarily for local replace-ments and only from the best cows.

The United States department ofagriculture reports indicate that thereis a swing towards spring fresheningover the country as a whole. Thecommittee wishes to call attention tothe advisability of more fall freshen-ing in this county to get cheaperproduction costs and take advantageof the higher prices usually obtain-able through the winter when butteris moving out of storage.

The committee believes that thereis an opportunity for much improve-ment in the quality and carrying ca-'-acity of pastures in Deschutescounty. The use of fertilizers, espe-cially barn manure, rotation grazingand better pasture mixtures will in-crease returns from this crop. Pas-ture mixtures recommended by thecounty agricultural agent should beused in new pastures.

Deschutes county is a modified ac-credited tuberculosis free area andtesting should be continued to keepthis rating. It is recommended thatall cattle owners take advantage ofthe federal Bang's disease program

and eliminate this disease while fed-eral indemnities are available. It isalso recommended that steps be takento put the county under the statecompulsory Bang's disease testingact, when it becomes effective inJanuary 1937.

One of the problems causing ser-ious loss to the dairymen of thecounty is sterility. Little is knownabout this problem. We recommendthat the Oregon State college ex-periment station make a thoroughinvestigation of this problem so thatpresent large losses can be elimin-ated.

At the present time butter is in-directly taxed much higher thanbutter substitutes. We endorse thepresent movement to put a nationalexcise tax of five cents a pound onbutter substitutes believing that thiswill tend to correct this situation andalso provide a national revenue pro-ducing measure.

There is much competition be-tween many highly advertised foodproducts. To increase the consump-tion of dairy products we recom-mend educational work such as isbeing carried on by the Oregon dairycouncil. Dairy producers and manu-facturers should give increased at-tention and support to this work.

The present operation of the Ore-gon milk control act has been of realservice to the fluid milk producersof the county in the marketing anddistribution of their products. Thereis now an adequate supply af fluidmilk and no new production is need-ed at this time.

Your committee e n d o r s e s 4-Hdairy club work.

10 DAIRYING(Continued)

SMALL SEEDS COMMITTEE REPORTREPORT OF SEED COrtiMITTEE

I. Situation in Deschutes County:AcreageThe acreage of the

small seeds is about 4000, three-fourths of which is Alsike clover, thebalance is mainly Austrian winterpeas.

MarketsBecause of the smallpercentage of the value of the croptaken by freight charges, the Alsikeclover from here can be shipped toany point in the United States. Des-chutes county Alsike clover must besold in the middle west in the samecounties which produce clover seedback there.

Competing SectionsA study ofUnited States department of agricul-ture figures reveals that Oregonyields of Alsike clover seed are thehighest of any state, being 310 poundsper acre for the 1924-34 average.Deschutes county yields are abovethe state average and several timesas high as in the other districts.

Prices Here and Other StatesDue to the superior quality of Des-chutes seed the growers here cus-tomarily receive about as muchmoney as the growers receive in themiddle west where our seed isshipped. The difference in qualitytherefore nearly erases the threethousand mile rail shipment.

Cost of ProductionThe com-mittee, after careful study, estimatedthat the average cost of producingAlsike clover seed was 8.6 cents peipound.

It will be seen therefore that witha return of the average of cleanedseed at the average price of 15c perpound, Alsike clover is one of thefew crops which has consistently re-turned a profit over all growing ex-penses for the past ten years. Inonly one year during the 1919-34period has the crop sold for less thanthe 8.6 cent estimated cost. It must berealized that not every grower getsa return of 370 potmds of seed. Onegrower may get 50 pounds and an-other one 900. The above costs aregiven only to guide the grower infiguring his own costs since thesecosts will differ on every farm. Theyalso differ from year to year on thesame farm.

The OutlookUnfavorable factsfor the future prices are:

The trade agreement withCanada which cuts the 8c tariffto 4c.The substitution of lespedezafor clover over all of the south-ern part of the Alsike cloverarea.The tendency of farmers dur-ing low prices to produce theirown seed even at extremelylow yields in order to cut cashexpenses.

Favorable factors are:(a) The new government plan

which will provide cash bo-nuses to farmers for seedingtheir land to clover andgrasses.

(b) The apparent improvement infarm prices following re-em-ployment in industries.Inflationary measures whichmay raise prices temporarily.

Comparative Advantages ofCentral OregonIt is likely thatCentral Oregon growers can continueto displace clover seed from othersections because of larger yields heroand better quality, just as Deschutesand Klamath counties have replacedother sections in potatoes and forcedYakima to curtail their acreage. Soit is likely that Central Oregon canforce middle western people to cur-tail their clover seed acreage. Sofar as competition is concerned thereappears to be no limit to the possibleacreage here. From a practical farm-ing standpoint with only 31,000 acresavailable for other crops it is notlikely that the present acreage couldincrease more than 2000 acres with-out upsetting either the dairy or live-stock business.

Yield DecreaseAll of the com-mittee members agreed that yieldsare steadily decreasing but they werenot agreed as to why. Some thoughtit due to a soil fertility problem,others to insects while some thoughtthat yields in former years wereabnormally high and in recent yearsperhaps unusually low due to weath-er conditions.

Weed IncreasedAll committeemembers agreed that weeds are anincreasing menace causing loss inyields, greater harvest expense, addi-tional cleaning charges, greater lossof good seed in cleaning and lower

(c)

11

prices for the product. The premiumprices enjoyed so far by CentralOregon growers have been due, first,to color and plumpness, and second,freedom from weeds. There is nopoint in shipping weedy seed to themiddle west because they h a v eplenty of that on hand already. Ifthe district is to maintain its namearid is to continue to receive goodprices, greater attention must be paidto weeds.

10. Nematodes in Some Fields -Some growers reported that nema-todes were beginning to r e d u c eyields. This is not general through-out the county.

II Recommendations:1. AcreageThe committee recom-

mends that the clover seed acreagebe increased some but only so faras good farming practice will permit.The crop should be grown in a rota-tion including a cultivated cr0 p,which in this county will probablybe potatoes. The clover seed acre-age should be more than twice thepotato acreage.

2. Clover StrawWe recommendthat greater attention be given tothe clover straw. Much of it is nowwasted and some growers are sellingit to sheep men for $2.00 per ton orthereabouts and are then paying cashfor commercial fertilizer for the i rpotatoes. At the going prices forfertilizer a ton of the clover straw isworth $8.00 for fertilizer. Stating itanother way, when this by-productis sold at $2.00, a grower is tradingaway eight silver dollars for two.On most farms this straw turnedunder can be depended upon to in-crease potato yields from 25 to 150sacks per acre.

3. Source of SeedSome growesrhandicap themselves to the extent of$15.00 to $20.00 per acre by plantingseed which is full of weed seeds.They look at a lot of seed gradingsay 95% Alsike, and that soundspretty good, but if the other 5% isinseparable weed seeds such as sor-rel, a grower may save 25c per acrein his seeding clover and lose $25.00per acre when he comes to sell thecrop.

4. WeedsThe committee recom-mends that every effort be made toproduce weed free seed. In addi-

tion to using clean seed the follow-ing possibilities are mentioned:

Use oats rather than wheat Orbarley as a nurse crop. Theyshade out weeds better. Plantthe oats thick and cut for hay.In this way the cutting is donebefore the weeds go to seed.Grow in a rotation with pota-toes.If planting is done in the latesummer, follow a system sothat the clover can be plantedearly. If planted in the latefall it will not get started wellenough to combat weeds in thefollowing year. Early plantingmay be possible through eithercutting the grain crop for hayor by growing a winter wheatinstead of a spring variety.

The committee realizes that theabove recommendation may not bepractical on some farms, for exam-ple: A man may have no use forgrain hay or he may be farming ina region where winter wheat will in-variably freeze about the time itheads out in the spring. Or perhapshe cannot grow potatoes because offrost.

5. We would like to see experi-mental work carried on in order totry to establish reasons for decreas-ing yields.

Austrian Winter Field PeasI The Situation:

1. PriceThe price o f Austrianwinter field peas depends upon twothings:

The price of cotton in thesouth.The supply of peas and hairyvetch in western Oregon. Ore-gon supplied about fifteen mil-lion pounds of these seeds in1934 and a little more than thatin 1935. There are very fewsupplied from, other sections.

2. Demand IncreaseThe southernstates are all increasing their acre-ages and will eventually use twice asmuch as they are using now.

3.. Supplies for 1936The acreageof winter peas in the Willamettevalley has been nearly doubled andacreage of hairy vetch (which isinterchangeable with peas in thesouth) is more than doubled. Some

12 SMALL SERDS(Continued)

complaints of winter injury are oc-curring.

4. Advantages of PeasThe mainadvantages of peas are:

They are a legume and tend toimprove the soil.The straw is a good feed and,like the clover, is an excellentfertilizer.They distribute labor on a seedgrowing farm.The cost of production is rea-sonably low compayed w i t hgrain and the returns per acrehave been greater than is thecase with grain.Weevil which ruined the cropin some sections have not asyet been a factor here.Average yields here are verygood.Nearly all of the peas arefall planted in the Willamettevalley and since the crop isspring planted here growershave a chance to watch theacreage and watch the wintersurvival and increase or de-crease their acreage here inaccordance with the crop inprospect west of the mountains.

5. Cost of ProductionOne of themembers of the committee submittedthe figures showing a cost of produc-tion of $23.24 per acre. This is sub-mitted merely that the reader maycheck them against his own csts.

Peas so far have been quite prof it-able and made a greater return thanthe costs of growing.Recommendations:

We recommend additional workby the Oregon experimental stationin Aphid control since this is themost serious growing problem in thecounty.

We recommend that pea grow-ers do not follow the practice of acertain acreage every year but thatthey watch the cotton market and peaacreage in the Willamette valley.When cotton is abnormally low andwhen the pea and hairy vetch cropis abnormally high we should reducethe winter pea acreage and increaseit when the opposite conditions occur.

Red Clover1. Alsike Better Adapted Here

The average yield of Red clover onthe average farm is lower than theAlsike clover yield and Red cloveris bothered by insects and diseases

SMALL SEEDS(Continued) 13

more than Alsike is. Yields are muchmore uncertain.

2. Red Clover Fits Better on SomeFarmsRed clover has the followingadvantages:

It is a better soil improvingcrop than Alsike.Where a hay crop is desiredthe red clover can be cut forhay about the first of Junewhen it will yield from one-half ton to a ton per acre. Thesecond crop can be cut forseed.Those people wishing to im-prove their soil can do so bycutting one crop of their cloverfor hay and then by plowingthe second crop under in thelate fall.

3. Eastern Seed RecommendedThose growers who plant red cloverare urged by the committee to useonly seed from the eastern or moun-tain states or locally grown seed.Seed from the Willamette valleyshould on no account be used.

Ladino CloverMarket RestrictedThe present

market for Ladino does not justifythe production of more than 100,000pounds per year. If more than thisis produced here the price is badlydamaged or some seed remains un-sold. California is at present the onlymarket which takes seed regularly.

Alsike clover and Ladino cannot be separated Ladino clovergrown in an alsike district is a men-ace to the surrounding alsike and inturn the alsike gets into the Ladinofield and reduces the grade of thelatter. These two seeds therefore donot fit well into the same commu-nity

We believe that because of re-stricted markets and danger of mix-tures, Central Oregon would do wellto let the Ladino be grown by otherpeople unless the market conditionsfor the two crops change.

Grass SeedSeveral grass varieties will yield

well under irrigation. Indications arethat meadow fescue, chewings fescue,crested wheat grass, brome grass,slender wheat grass, orchard grass,and tall meadow oat grass will allproduce seed here in paying quanti-tieS.

New government program willcreate grass seed demand. It is likely

14

that the new government program,with its policy of paying for seedingland to grass and legumes, willcreate a demand for all of the above

grass seeds. Probably returns fromthem can be expected to run from 25to 160 dollars per acre for the nextseveral years.

REPORT OF POTATO COMMITTEEThe Situation in Desci utes County:

Acreage: The Deschutes countypotato acreage increased 188% forthe 1929-34 period.

Markets: In former years nearlyall of that part of Deschutes countycrop which went from the countywent to Portland. In recent yearscompletion of the Great Northernrailroad has resulted in wideningmarket possibilities so that when thePortland price is markedly under theSan Francisco price, a large percent-age may go to California. During theperiod 1924-35 70% or more of thePortland earlot receipts came fromthe state of Washington.

Freight rates: Deschutes countyhas an advantage in freight rates toSan Francisco over every other dis-trict except Klamath.

Carlot shipments: Official fig-ures indicate that during the pastfour years Central Oregon has fur-nished 10% or more of the totalshipments of the state. No atemptshas been made to segregate Des-chutes and Crook county shipments.

Grades: In 1933 86% of the Cen.-tral Oregon shipments graded No. isand 14% No. 2s. In 1934, 75% gradedNo. is, 22% No. 2s, and 3% gradedmlls.

Yield per acre: In 1929 the en-tire acreage of the county averaged109 bushels per acre. In 1934 thecensus report showed an averageyield on about three times the 1929acreage of 170 bushels per acre. Thisis equivalent to almost exactly 100sacks per acre or about 80 sacks ofNo. is. This yield is considerablyabove the Oregon average and theUnited States average, but is belowKlamath, Yakima, and the main po-tato producing counties of Idaho.

Cost of production: The commit-tee reports a cost of production on a180 sack yield per acre of $83.45. Thisis approximately in line with costsin other sections where similar yieldsars obtained.

Comparative advantages of dis-trict:

The advantages of this district overompeting sections are:

Lower freight rates to Port-land market and to California.Higher percentage of No. is.Better shape with less peelingloss.Attractive light color. Potatoeswith this bright color are call-ed buckskins or blonds in thetrade. Central Oregon has ahigher percentage with thisdesirable color than any othersection.

The disadvantages in competitionwith other irrigated sections are:

Smaller size.Lower yield.Too small a production to war-rant offices here of a largenumber of buyers and hencesomewhat of a curtailment inmarket outlets as comparedwith Klamath and Yakima.This does not result in muchof a price disadvantage togrowers here, but the distri-bution is not as wide as thatfrom the larger sections andusually the market is not soactive. It is often difficult tosell large numbers of potatoesin any one day. At times morecompetition would probablyhelp prices.

LI. Recommendal ions: 1. Acreageper farm: Potatcas should be grownon a large enough acreag so thatthe growers can efford to own potatomachinery and a good cellar. Theminimum should be ten acres. It isrecognized that some farms are toosmall to maintain ten acres and suchplaces should aim to have close toone-tenth of their land in potatoeseach year. These small farms shouldown machinery in cooperation withneighbors.

2. Acreage in county: It is believedthat the maximum desirable acreagewas in 1934 with 3377 acres. In thatyear more than 10% of the harvested

Year 1919 1924 1929 1934Acres 1250 899 1174 3377

crop land was in potatoes, and nearly30% of all land not in hay was inpotatoes.

Quality: Since the main marketis Portland, and since Yakima dumpshuge amounts of low grade potatoeson the Portland market, it followsthat the only chance to market thecrop here profitably is to maintainand improve quality. Demonstra-tions should be continued to developbest methods of accomplishing thisend.

Marketing: The committee be-lieves cooperative marketing is a de-sirable goal but since Klamath andDeschutes furnish nearly all of thecarlot shipments in the state, nostatewide marketing agency is pos-sible. Cooperative marketing herecould do very little without the as-sistance of Klamath. If the Kiamathdistrict should ever decide to trycooperative marketing on a substan-tial scale we recommend a unit ofthe same organization in CentralOregon.

Packaging: The committee con-demns the trend in recent years to-ward small containers and fancypacks. Potatoes are a main food ofworking men and are not the mainfood of moneyed people; conse-quently packs which tend to raise theprice to the consumer result in thelong run, in decreasing consumptionand are an additional source of ex-pense to the producer.

Rotation: The committee recoin-mends as the most economical rota-

LIVESTOCK COMMITTEE REPORTPRESENT SITUATION

It was believed by the committeethat in a normal year we have a sur-plus of feed in this county, but weare not set up properly for winteringrange livestock because we do nothave close available adjoining rangefor such livestock to run on and ifthe livestock is wintered where therange is available the livestock isthen located too far from the irri-gated sections where the feed is tobe had. The surplus feed availableconsists of alfalfa hay, small grains(principally oats and barley) andclover straw and screenings. Inshort the situation might be summedup by saying that we are long on

POTATOES(Continued) 15

tionone year of potatoes, followedby one year of grain, followed bytwo years of clover. With this rota-tion only one plowing is needed inthe four years. The clover tends toenrich the soil for the potatoes andpotatoes in turn tend to free the landof weeds for the clover seed.

In-and-outers: Potatoes are aspeculative crop in that prices in thepast 10 years have varied from 10cents to as high as $3.00, a differenceof 30 times. Other farm productssuch as butterfat, hay and grain donot fluctuate more than a tenth asmuch as potatoes. Those who go intopotatoes one year and out the nextinvariably manage to jump in duringthe year when prices are low andcrawl out the year when prices aregood. Potatoes should therefore begrown only in a rotation and part ofthe plan of farming, so that approxi-mately the same acreage wili e pro-duced each year. From three to fourthousand acres in potatoes each yearin Deschutes county would be aboutright with the present acreage ofirrigated land.

We recommend that a continuedfight be kept up to get rates to in-terior California points on a basiswith Klamath. For example, there isonly 3½c difference between theKlamath and the Redmond rate toSan Francisco, while the differenceto Sacramento is 8½ cents.

We commend the work of theCentral Oregon Potato council andurge all growers to support it.

winter feed and short on range.There are therefore apparently noreasons why range livestock numbersshould expand in Deschutes countybecause of the natural range limita-tions. Increase in range livestocknumbers therefore can only comethrough range improvement.

In view of the above conditions itwas the opinion of the committeethat livestock development in Des-chutes county should be in the di-rection of feeding and finishing live-stock for market. The committeefeels that there are a number of rea-sons why feeding offers advantagesin this county which are in addition

to those cited above of a surplus offeeds.

Dry conditions and not so cold.It was stated that hay costs are lessin some other sections but that itrequired more hay where the wea-ther is cold, and where wet andmuddy conditions prevail in the feedlots.

Feeding of livestock offers thefeeder an opportunity to use his ownhay and grain on his own farm andhave the advantage of fall pastureand also the clover straw.

There is usually no profit ingrowing hay and grain for sale inthis section.

There is usually an ample sup-ply of feeder lambs easily availableand quite frequently the range op-erator will deliver the lambs to thefarm. The feeder, therefore, saves onfreight. In the case of cattle the sameadvantage does not apply to so greatan extent, but feeders are usuallyavailable at not great distances.

We have railway and highwayconnections which will permit live-stock to move in two different direc-tionseither south or north to goodmarkets.

The diversion privileges at Port-land were pointed out as an addedadvantage.

We are located fairly close tomarketcloser than most of theeastern Oregon territory and muchcloser than Idaho and Montana, fromwhich points cattle are shipped toPortland at higher freight rates. Itappeared to the committee that feed-ers in this territory would have theadvantage in this respect.

Because of the quick turnoverin capital it is much easier to becomefinanced.

Not much equipment is neces-sary and very little capital is tied upin feeding equipment.

There is the added advantageof manure to conserve soil fertility.

Feeding can be done during thewinter months which brings aboutmore economic distribution of labor.

Range lambs take on bettergains than ranch lambs usually.

For the inexperienced feeder, it isrecommended that one car load betried until he becomes accustomed tothe proper feeding practices.

It is recommended that the lambfeeder prepare himself so that he can

feed every year rather on an in-and-out basis.

As in the case of lamb feeding, tis recommended that those engag-ing in feeding of steers should feedevery year rather than on the in-and-out basis.

Farm FlocksIt seemed to the committee that the

average Deschutes county farm doesnot have sufficient pasture area,especially on such farms as are al-ready maintaining dairy herds to ac-commodate a farm flock of sheep. Itwas felt by the committee that theraising of purebred sheep to the endof producing bucks for sale to rangeoperators would be preferred overthe farm flock operation. The incomefrom the farm flock is likely in mostinstances not to be sufficient tojustify the trouble incurred. Mostfarms are not equipped to handleenough sheep in a farm flock to per-mit shipping lambs in carload lotsand therefore there are disadvant-ages in marketing the lambs.

In the raising of purebreds it waspointed out that there are differentpreferences of range operators onbreeds, and it is therefore recom-mended by the committee that theindividual should form his contactswith range operators first and thendecide to keep the breed which ismore likely to be in demand. It wasalso thought desirable that this ter-ritory should standardize on onebreed of sheep and build a reputa-tion for good bucks of that breed.It was pointed out that most popularbreeds with range operators areLincoins, Rambouillets and Hamp-shires.

Quality LivestockIt is just as cheap to handle high

quality livestock as it is to handlepoor quality. The committee pointsout that it is usually more econom-ical to attempt to increase income inthis way rather than attempting toincrease the volume.

Purebred BullsIt is recommended by the livestock

committee that the existing livestockassociations in the county have acommittee pass upon the quality ofthe bulls that are to be turned on therange. This is considered desirablefrom the standpoint of improving thecondition of the cattle on the rangeand also it will serve as a protection

16 LIVESTOCK(Continued)

to those who purchase good qualitybulls.

DiseasesThe committee recommended that

the beef cattle operator cooperatewith the dairymen in establishingDeschutes county as an accreditedBang's disease free area. It was alsobelieved that dairy cattle going tothe range should be tested for Bang'sdisease.

In as much as the Taylor grazingact as rapidly being applied to thepublic domain in Oregon and as itaffects Desehutes county stock mento some extent. it is recommended,in so far as possible, that the grazingservice be requested to reserve suchlands in Deschutes county for Des-chutes county stock men.

HogsIt was suggested that a good rule

for Deschutes county on hogs is tokeep one brood sow for every five

POULTRY CONDITIONS INDESCHUTES COUNTY

In 1930 Deschutes county had 824farms. By 1935, there were 924 farms,or an increase of 100 farms. The av-erage acreage per farm was 155acres. The smaller farms would in-dicate that poultry might form amore important part in the agricul-tural program of the county. A totalof 641 farms, or 78%, kept poultry,and 66 farms, of 69%, had less than100 hens, while 75 farms had flocksranging from 100 to above 1,000 hens.

The value of chickens and eggsproduced in 1930 by Deschutes coun-ty was $164,521.00.

The industry in Deschutes countydeclined in both number and valuesduring the depression. Deschutescounty produces poultry productsfor home consumption and not forexport to outside markets. It is aminor industry here.

Eggs from outside districts areshipped into Central Oregon to meetthe requirements of local marketsduring the fall and winter months.Local producers have to compete ineggs shipped in.

As long as the industry remains ona part time import basis, local pricesto growers are usually based upon

dairy cows, unless the skim milk isused to feed some other class of live-stock or poultry. The committee re-commended that the average farmmaintain only enough hogs to con-sume waste feeds. They pointed outthe danger of over expansion in hogsand the history of rapid and violentfluctuations which have occurred inthe past.

HorsesIn raising horses there should be

plenty of pasture and low cost ofproduction. The committee believesthat horses on the average farmshould be raised for replacementsonly, as the cost of production doesnot justify raising horses for sale inview of the price. It was pointed out,however, that most of the horses inDeschutes county are aged animals.It was felt by the committee thatthose having cheap range shouldraise the horses rather than farmershaving expensive land.

POULTRY COMMITTEE REPORTPortland quotations plus freight. Ifthe industry expands to where it isa small exporter of eggs the priceswill likely be based upon Portlandquotations minus the freight.

Markets and Feeds: Producersof eggs in Deschutes county have todevelop their own markets individu-ally or sell to independent egg andproduce dealers. There is no estab-lished cooperative egg and feed asso-ciation to service the poultrymen inthe county or to afford the beneficialcompetition which does exist in manysections of the coast states.

Feeds and supplies are usuallyhigher in the county than in inten-sive poultry districts where competi-tion is keener and where cooperativebuying is practiced. Freight rates areunfavorable for shipping in feeds orshipping out eggs.

Breeds and Additional MarketOutlets: The state export demand isfor white-shelled eggs. This demandnaturally results in the leghorn andother white egg breeds dominatingthe situation. This does not mean theexclusion of the heavy breeds suchas reds, rocks and other brown-shelled breeds from Deschutes coun-ty farms.

The demand for eggs from well-

LIVESTOCK(Continued) 17

managed flocks to supply hatchingeggs and dressed poultry meat shouldbe considered by a few farmers asadditional market possibilities.

The Poultry OutlookThe poultry industry as a planned

industry f or a few farms in Deschutescounty is sound business. A numberof new farms, rehabilitation, reset-tlement and subsistence farms willkeep poultry. If this expected expan-sion is toward barnyard flocks ratherthan toward flocks large enough tojustify commercial care, it will in-crease an already existing bad sit-uation on local markets. Approxi-mately 97% of the farmers who keepchickens in the county now have lessthan 200 hens. These flocks are toosmall to justify frequent gathering,proper farm storage facilities, fre-quent deliveries and other factorsnecessary to the delivery of qualityeggs for the consuming public.

The outlook of the industry de-pends largely upon whether or notthe farmers who keep poultry makea reasonable effort to adjust theirpoultry units in relation to the de-mands which prevail for quality eggsfrom the markets.

RecommendationsFor Deschutes county farms de-

siring small home table flocks, fromwhich eggs do not enter trade chan-nels, it is recommended that onlyflocks of two or three dozen hens bekept.

The farm which plans a sidelinecash income from poultry, fromwhich eggs will go into trade chan-nels, it is recommended that a flockof not less than 400 to 500 hens bethe objective.

A farm which expects to deriveits major source of income frompoultry should develop a flock ofapproximately 1500 to 2000, as a one-man unit. When additional familyhelp is available, the unit may be in-creased accordingly. It is recom-mended further that a beginner,having no experience in the indus-try, start on a moderate scale andbuild his business up to the stand-ards mentioned rather than startingwith a unit in advance of experienceand capital.

For a well-rounded specializedpoultry farm program operated un-der natural conditions of ranging

young stock, an acreage of 10 to 20acres is recommended. Where artifi-cial confinement throughout is prac-ticed, less acreage is needed. Rear-ing under artificial confinement issuccessful for the few but not for all.

It is recommended that from 50to 0% of the laying flocks be re-placed each year with pullets.

In purchasing day-old chickscaution should be observed. Theyshould be from pullorum-free parentstock when possible, or from accur-ately blood-tested parent stock withall reactors removed.

Chicks under average conditionsand equipment should all be pur-chased at one time. March, April andearly May are the three months inwhich the big majority of chicks arepurchased.

Green feed should be providedthroughout the growing period andfed liberally until the pullets are inproduction. Alfalfa is the main greenfeed crop with carrots supplyingwinter succulence.

More capital is required to de-velop a safe poultry enterprise thanthe amateur anticipates. Exclusive ofland and the home, it will require afirst year investment of approxi-mately $2.50 to $3.00 per pullet be-fore she starts production. This ex-penditure when prorated will in-clude cost of brooder, fuel, litter,cost of chicks, mortality losses,houses and equipment. The layinghouse is used as a brooder house thefirst year.

With the apparent increase inpoultry production in the county thecommittee recommends a survey ofegg marketing conditions.

TURKEY CONDITIONS INDESCHUTES COUNTY

During the past few years theturkey industry of the county hasexpanded. It produces a surplus ofapproximately 40,000 turkeys whichmust be marketed outside the countyas part of the export crop of thestate as a whole. The turkey cropbrings in an annual gross income inexcess of $120,000.

The depression, aided by the greatdrouth in the midwest, reduced thenumbers of chickens and turkeys.The same causes, aided by agricul-tural adjustment, resulted in reducedsupplies of pork and other meats.Turkey growers who plan expansion

18 POULTRY(Continued)

for 1936 must recognize the fact thattheir product will have to competeagainst an increased supply of chick-ens, turkeys and other meats. Onlyan improved consumers' demand canprevent a depressing effect on prices.

Deschutes county is well adaptedfor turkey production, and in keep-ing with general economic condi-tions should be encouraged, but notexploited.

Marketing and Feeds SituationGrowers have a choice of marketingtheir turkeys individually, throughestablished produce firms, or throughan established cooperative marketingassociation, the Central 0 r e g o nTurkey Growers' association; a mem-ber unit of the Northwestern TurkeyGrowers' association, which servesnine western states.

The existence of both methods ofmarketing turkeys is a great factorin stabilizing the industry, affordingbeneficial competition and protect-ing the investments of the growers.

The growers before entering upona turkey raising enterorise shouldmake a close study of costs and aver-age selling prices over a period ofyears. The committee after a studyof costs determined the average costof raising turkeys in 1935 to be 16cents per pound. We also found thecost in small flocks to be lower thanin large flocks. The possibility ofreducing the costs in small flocksis better on account of the greateravailability of green feed and milk.

Recommendationsi. Bree d i n gstock should be selected early in thefall and kept separately from themarket flock during the fatteningperiods. The breeding stock shouldbe givn a breeder's mash from earlyJanuary throughout the breedingseason.

Turkeys should not be rearedor ranged with chickens or on groundrecently used as a chicken range.

The cost of producing turkeyscan be materially reduced by pro-viding succulent green feed duringthe growing period. Turkeys aregreat consumers of roughage in thisform. In addition to rape, alfalfa,clover, etc., row crops such as sunflowers should be provided for bothgreen food and shade on farms wherenatural shade is not available.

Turkey p r i c e s are depressedeach year through the arrival on the

POULTRY(Continued) 19

market of poorly finished birds. Noturkeys should be killed out for mar-ket until they are properly finishedin both flesh and feathering.

Ample credit is necessary toproperly grow out a band of qualityturkeys. Beginners too often thinkin terms of profit rather than costs.Growers should, roughly, providefinances to the extent of the cost ofone sack of feed for each marketturkey raised.

Credit when extended to theextent of furnishing brooder houses,brooders, fuel, poults, feed and sup-plies to new beginners is unfair com-petition against established growers.It results in exploiting an industryto the detriment of all. It is urgedthat a general credit policy be estab-lished of extending credit only togrowers who can finance their ownpoults to eight weeks of age.

There are disease hazards whichgrowers must consider. The mostcommon ones are fowl-pox, rouppullorum, mycosis a n d cocidiosis.Each of these hazards can be con-trolled with a minimum of loss tothe growers. Growers are urged toprotect their investments by havingan authentic diagnosis made of dis-ease outbreaks as early as possible.

The installation or use of semi-scald equipment on the individualfarm as a method of dressing tur-keys, which must encounter delaysbefore reaching the consumers,should be discouraged and labelledunsound.

Turkey stealing is a growinghazard against which producers mustprotect themselves. A movement isnow under way by the growers to dothe following:

Make turkey stealing a felony.Require all dealers to display

a record of brands registered inthe state. The present law requiresdealers to record the number ofeach brand of turkeys purchased.This is an aid to the grower intracing stolen property.

Publish each year a bookletof all registered brands and distri-bute to every peace officer in thestate.

Growers purchasing brandedbirds for breeders would get fromthat breeder a bill of sale in orderthat he could later present it when

selling turkeys having a differentbrand number than his own.10. The turkey growers recommend

that the present law relating to dis-position of dog tax license money beamended to include idmnity for

After giving very careful consid-eration to the weed and rodent sit-uation in the county, we wish to ad-vise that this is believed to be nolonger an individual problem butthat it is necessary that it be handledfrom a community and county stand-point.

Due to the fact that the biggestpercent of the land in Dcschutescounty is owned by the federal gov-ernment and also a large percentageof the land is owned by non-residentowners, the problem of pest, rodent,and predatory animals is seriouslyincreased.

Principal damages caused by theserodents are in the loss of crops andirrigation water. It is also reportedthat these rodents are capable ofcarrying serious diseases.

With these facts in mind, yourcommittee wishes to present the sit-uation in regard to the most seriousrodents which are namely, groundsquirrels, pocket gophers, wood-chucks, porcupines and rabbits. Thesepests will be considered separately.

Ground Squirrels: Your committeebelieves that the big problem in con-trol of ground squirrels is caused bynon-resident lands. Such land pro-vides breeding places from which thesquirrels move into the farming dis-tricts.

Ground squirrels on the cultivatedland could be more easily kept undercontrol were it not for the influxfrom adjacent lands.

Recommendations: Adequate con-trol should be based on control op-erations over an entire community atthe one time, covering both residentand non-resident land.

it is further recommended thateach community set up a rodent con-trol committee and that the chairmanof each community committee con-stitute a county rodent control com-mittee, which will cooperate with thecounty agent in carrying out thecontrol campaign.

turkeys killed by killer dogs.11. A greater use of home grown

and locally mixed feeds is recom-mended as a means of lowering over-head costs in the face of increasedcompetition and lower prices.

WEED AND PEST CONTROLProcedme for Handling Campaign:1. Since the biggest problem will

be to secure material for treatingnon-resident land, it is believed thatthe funds in each community can beraised by any one or all of the fol-lowing methods:

Individual contributions byfarmers within the community.By granges contributing as anorganization.Contributions from the county.

It is recommended that these fundsbe consolidated in a pooi for the pur-chase of materials to cover the non-resident ground within each com-munity.

2. Labor: Labor for the controlwork within each community shouldbe handled as follows

Each farmer distributes thepoison on his own place.Public work such as WPA fordistributing bait on non-resi-dent land where it is not pos-sible to have it done by f arm-ers living within the commim-ity. It is strongly recommendedthat inexperienced relief work-ers, if employed, be under thesupervision of a competentforeman.

3. Time of application: It is recom-mended that each community, orcommittee over a period of tinle startas early in the spring as practicablefor the distribution of bait.

4. Cooperation r e q u e ste d frompublic institutions: It is strongly re-commended that cooperation be givenby the state highway commission,railroads, irrigation districts and thecounty court for the purpose ofkeeping property by these institu-tions free from these rodents andpests.

Pocker Gophers: Pocket gophersare serious pests on irrigated farmlands. Due to the fact that this pestis found mostly on cultivated land,the problem is up to individual farm-era. It is recommended that addi-

20 POULTRY(Continued)

tional demonstrations on pocket go-pher control be given by the countyagent

Woodchucks and Porcupines: Ser-ious infestations of woodchucks andporcupines are limited to certainareas in the county which providefavorable living conditions for thesepests.

Control methods already workedout are very successful. Any of themethods prescribed for the raising offunds and the use of labor describedunder the topic of ground squirrelscan be used in control of woodchucksand porcupines.

Jackrabbits: Jackrabbits are cap-able of migrating great distances insearch of food. We recommend thatcommunity committees carry on con-trol campaigns where necessary,using any or all of the foregoing pre-scribed means for effectively accom-plishing the purpose.

Compulsory Districts: Your com-mittee is not in favor of compulsoryrodent control districts, believingthat the best results can be obtainedby voluntary cooperation among allproducers within a community.

However, if it should become nec-essary for the benefit of most pro-ducers within a district to use thismethod, we wish to state that thecounty can be declared a rodent con-trol district by the signing of a peti-tion of 100 landowners and present-ing it to the county court who maythen declare the county a rodentcontrol district. Or, the county courtcan declare a compulsory commun-ity district upon presentation of apetition signed by 75% of the land-owners within the district.

Predatory Animals: The countycourt of this county has been willingthe cooperate to the extent of appro-priating $500.00 for the control ofpredatory animals This fund is dup-licated by state and federal moneythrough the U. S. biological survey.There has apparently been some dif-ficulty in maintaining a governmenttrapper, therefore, rather than losethe use of these funds in predatoryanimal control, your committee re-commends that the payment ofbounties should be the next alterna-tive.

If it is necessary to use this moneyfor the payment of bounties it should

be paid to residents living within the,county only. Satisfactory proof thatcoyotes were killed within the coun-ty should be presented to the countycourt.

Weeds: The importance of thesmall seeds industry in this countysuggests the need for weed controLIn some areas weed control is be-yond the possibility of individual ef-forts and is becoming more depend-ent upon community action.

Situation at the Present Time: Thecommittee believes that the numberof different kinds of weeds appearingin Deschutes county is increasingeach year and that the total weedinfestation is becoming greater. Someof the new weeds are now confinedto certain localities, but gradualspread is occurring. Weeds are re-sponsible for reduction in yields, re-duction in seed quality and price,increase in the cost of recleaning,loss of seed in recleaning, reductionin land values, and placing adjacentlands in danger of infestation. Weedseven effect the landowners' credit insome instances. In an irrigated sec-tion there is more danger of weedseed spread, and the abundant moist-ure supply will permit weed seeds togerminate at almost any time duringthe growing season, and thereforethe yield of weed seeds per year ismuch greater than in a non-irrigatedsection.

Perennial Weeds: The more seriousweeds of perennial nature, at thepresent time, are quack grass, whitetop (hoary cress), Russian knap-weed, Canadian thistle and wildmorning glory.

Annual Weeds: Annual weed seedsare also a very serious factor. Somecannot be removed from clover seedand tend to reduce the quality ofseed produced in this district.

In addition to reducing the valueof seed sold on the market, otherannual seeds are serious factors inyield, causing an estimated shrink-age in cleaning of from 3% to 70%.Investigation has shown that anytime shrinkage runs over 10%, it iscaused mostly by weed seed shrink-age.

It is estimated that 40% of thesmall crop seed produced in thiscounty at the present time has ashrinkage of 10% or more.

WEED AND PEST CONTROL(Continued) 21

Your committee considers that thefirst year the seed produced is gen-erally clean, the second year on thesame field weed seed becomes moreserious, and following that the weedseed content is greatly increased. Thecommittee recommends seed produc-tion not more than two years in suc-cession, unless the fields are knownto be free of weeds.

RecommendationsThis committee wishes to com-

mend the grange on the excellentwork done in the past in weed identi-fication and control and recommendthat the granges through their agri-culture committees continue thiswork.

It is also recommended thatthese grange agriculture committeesbe authorized to take such action asmay be necessary to have the pres-ent state seed laws, and weed lawimproved.

It is also recommended thatmore assistance be provided the stateseed testing laboratory to the endthat seed tests can be made morepromptly. It is believed that this willenable farmers to plant cleaner seed.

It is recommended that oats in

REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ONHOME IMPROVEMENTS

Improvement of the farm homesurroundings is of great importance.In the recent pioneer period in Des-chutes county arrangements of build-ings and farmsteads were frequentlynot made with the idea of perma-nency. Buildings were put up forquick service when there were nat-ural limitations of time and money,and in many instances the unhandyarrangements remain as they were15 or 20 years ago.

While the money value of homeimprovement cannot be measuredexcept in indirect and general terms,the value is there in convenience andcomfort. Since farm home improve-ment will progress only to the extentthat interest is developed and sus-tained, it is the intended purpose ofthis committee to provide generalinformation and suggestions leadingto an extended program which willhelp to bring about interest in farmand home improvement and assist

particular be thoroughly cleaned asgood evidence is found at the presenttime that quack grass seed in dis-tributed through planting oats.

It is further recommended thatwith the possibility of the increasingof the feeding of stock in this county,that screenings from seed and grainbe run through a hammer-mill, orthe germination of this seed other-wise be destroyed before it is fed tostock, particularly on irrigated lands.

Threshing machines and cloverhullers moving from farm to farmshould be thoroughly cleaned beforegoing from one farm to another asserious infestations of weeds havebeen known to be spread by thismethod.

The committee wishes to pointout that weed seeds are found to bemore serious on farms where regularrotation practices are not followed.

It is recommended that the pres-ent county weed control district becontinued.

The committee favors first vol-untary cooperation in weed control,but if this fails then compulsory con-trol is the only alternative.

home owners in bringing about bet-ter and more pleasant surroundings.

RecommendationsThe committee recommends that

improvements be those which aresimple and inexpensive and whichwill add to the convenience.

The committee recommends thatplantings be limited to the extentthat time for attention is available.

Each home presents an indiv-idual problem which should be givenindividual study.

The committee wishes to pointout that there are four main areas toconsider in planning the exterior ar-rangement of the farm home. Thereare: (1) service area, (2) the ent-rance lawn, (3) the view lawn, (4)drives and walks.

Planning should always precedeplanting.

The tendency is to concentrateon appearance at the expense ofutility.

22 WEED A1'1D PEST CONTROL(Continued)

Your committee suggests thatinterest can best be d e v e lo p e dthrough grange and farm meetings,evening schools, garden clubs, libra-ries and publications. Use of peoplewho have special knowledge or ex-perience on these subjects will befound of value.

Community projects are recom-mended.

This committee does not attemptto solve individual problems, butrather to point out a means of co-operation which will develop the in-terest, leaving the many interestingsubjects of planning and develop-ment to be worked out as the pro-gram gets under way.

List Trees, ShrubsThe following is a list of trees and

shrubs that have been tried by andgenerally found satisfactory for Cen-tral Oregon. This is not a completelist of all -trees grown in this area.No recommendations have been madefor trees not yet sufficiently estab-lished. In some instances it has beenfound that trees that do well in theRedmond community may not do sowell in the Bend area. -

(N) indicates tree or shrub nativeto Central Oregon.

Foundation Plantings (5 to 15 ft)Mock orange (Syringa) (N). Chokecherry (N) attracts - caterpillars. Na-tive willows: (such as the red osierand yellow willow). Elderberry: (N).Golden Chinquapin. Alder (N).Snowballs and lilacs (in some partsof the county they freeze).

Small and Medium FoundationPlantingsSpirea (N) pink andwhite, Oregon grape (N) is an aver-green, currant (N), wild honeysuckle(N) orange and pink, prostrate jun-iper (N), snow berry (N), Japanesebarbaryvery good for hedge, Rus-sian sage, good for hedge, wild Cle-matis, (N), is a good vine for trelliswork, Service berry (N).

Flowering ShrubsForsythia,flowering almond, golden elder, Jap-anese flowering quince.

Catalogues list shrubs and treesand give much information on selec-tion and planting; also local nursery-men have an understanding of ourconditions and are more than willingto cooperate.

The following are recommenda-tions for transplanting of evergreens

HOME IMPROVEM-ENTS(Continued) 23

according to local authorities. Can betransplanted from September untiljust after the frost goes out of theground in the spring (that is in thelocation where the tree is found).Mark the north side of the tree be-fore digging and transplant with thatside to the north. Do not destroy anymore roots than necessary in dig-ging. It is desirable, but not neces-sary, to include some of the nativedirt with the roots.

In all evergreens, and with anyother species it is necessary to pro-tect the roots from the air, prefer-ably by wrapping with wet burlap,as the air getting to the roots formsa resin and has the same effect asapplying a coat of varnish.

Dig a hole somewhat larger thanthe roots, spread the roots out care-fully. Partly fill the hole with dirt,being careful to disturb the roots aslittle as possible. Fill the hole withwater and puddle in the remainingdirt. Irrigate thoroughly regardlessof the time of year. It is advisable togive all evergreens a reasonableamount of winter irrigation.

The transplanting of other nativetrees and shrubs will follow the samegeneral principles as to care andhandling. -

The following is a list of trees andshrubs that have been tried by sev-eral people and found satisfactoryfor Central Oregon. Many are nativeand are marked (N). Some are moresuitable than others for certain pur-poses and one planning to use theseshould study the characteristics andsee if they fit in the plans.

Trees for lawn and shade purposesin the yardThis includes the largebranching Canadian poplar; Boleena,tall with slim large white facedleaves; Lombardy, which is also atall slim tree; balm of Gilead; quak-ing aspa and others. They are mostcommonly planted because of quickgrowth. It is suggested that becausethey are soil robbers and suckerthought be given before plantingthem near garden, lawn or cultivatedareas. One should study the varietiesand their characteristics b e f o r eplanting.

Elms: Siberian, rapid growth,grows compact and shapely; if water-ed late may top freeze when young.American, spreading branches, a

24 HOME IMPROVEMENTS(Continued)

little slower growing than Siberianand long lived, nice tree for shade.Cork bark.

Willows: Golden yellow bark, goodleadscape tree. Weeping willowwhich aphis badly. If planted next tothe house it may become a nuisance.

Locusts: black locust, liable to topfreeze if watered late; leaves comeon late and drop early; suckerssome near the trunk

Birches: cutleaf weeping and up-right branch. Both are beautifulspecimens. When young truxik shouldbe protected by wrapping, prefer-ably with burlap.

Mountain ash: (N), grows from 15to 25 feet high. Blossoms early inspring; orange red berries in thefall; compact head.

Maples: silver or white (box eIder)many failures reported. Very shal-low roots.

Green ash: nice shaped trees; slowgrowing.

In addition to the above namedtrees; fruit trees, especially minia-ture fruit trees, can well be used forboth fruit (in some years) and tobeautify the yard.

Conifers:Tamarack (N), drops itsneedles in winter. Engleman spruce:(locally called the blue spruce) (N).Firs: white and douglas. Cedars: (N)IncenseArbor Vitae. Quite hard totransplant. Pines: (N).

Medium Sized Trees:This groupincludes trees that are not as largeas the above and should be plantedaccordingly. They are: Russian olivelight green foliage; alder(N)Russian pea tree or (Caragana),suitable for tall hedge; and many ofthe small miniature fruit trees.

A list of trees and shrubs adaptedto Central Oregon conditions, withsuggestions on propagation, has beenprepared by the committee and isavailable at the county agent's office.

HAY AND GRAIN COMMITTEE REPORTGrain Situation in Deschutes County

1. Varieties Grown-95% of thewheat produced is Federation, 3%Turkey Red and 1% Galgalous. Sev-eral miscellaneous varieties make anadditional 1%. Most of the oats areVictory, and most of the barley isHannchen and Trebi.

Recommendations:Because of its earlier maturity and

lower water requirement w i n t e rwheat will fit better on some farmsthan spring wheat. We recommenda substitution of the winter wheatin the lower and less frosty sectionof the county.

We recommend that a few growersconcentrate on producing clean seedof Federation wheat, Victory oatsand Hannchen barley and one of thewinter wheats, perhaps Hybrid 63.

flay Situation in Deschutes CountyAlfalfa shows a decrease during

the past ten years due to the ex-tension of potatoes and seed crops.The cost of producing alfalfa hay inDeschutes county according to t h e

Oregon State college is $8.66.

Recommendations:The committee recommends all al-

fa only as a crop for soil improve-ment and for the local use of thelivestock and dairy industries. Itdoes not offer much hope as a cropto be sold outside of the region.With the reduction of livestock onnational forests and the reduction ofstock in prospect through the Taylorgrazing act, it is likely that demandfor hay on the part of range live-stock, men will decrease. It is pos-sible that the long cycle of dry yearshas been broken. If this is the case,the stockmen will be producing addi-tional hay of their own in the nextfew years.

Oat hay is recommended as a cropvaluable to use in establishing cloverseed stands.

Ladak alfalfa is recommended forall parts of the county due to itslonger life, greater yield, disease re-sistance, cold resistance, frost resist-ance, and greater feeding value.