10
—Lancaster Farming. Saturday. March 1, 1975
U.S. Milk Production
Dairymen changed a habit of a
generation last year They reduced
herd culling to such an extent
because of low slaughter cow prices,
apparently ■ that milk cow numbers
increased from July through
December 1974 for the first time
since 1953 That accounts for the
increase in dairy cattle numbers
picked up by the annual cattle in
ventory of Jan 1
If There Hadn’t Been A 1973 . . .
Fact is - except for 1973 - it was the
highest in history Trouble is, it has to
be compared with 1973 By that
standard, the $27 2 billion in realized
net farm income was down 16 pet.
And, though cash receipts for farm
marketings did hit $95.0 billion, up 7
pet from the previous high (of $BB6
billion) set a year earlier, production
expenses, at $748 billion, were up 15
pet. Government payments were off
an estimated $2 billion. That put
them at about $6OO million and the
lowest since 1960
Hog Imports at Record High,
Cattle Are Lowest in Decade
Hog and cattle imports both off
sharply in December But, while hog
imports finished the year at an all
time high, imports of live catlle were
the lowest since 1964.
Hog imports totaled only 1,612
head in December, less than a third of
the Dec. 1973 total. But, the Han. -
Dec total, at 196,347 head was 2V*
Egg Output
Numbers Dip
US. egg production and layer
numbers continue to downtrend
Though egg production per layer hit a
record high last year, layer numbers
and total egg production both
declined for the third straight year
Total egg production, at 66.0 billion,
was off 1 pet. from a year earlier and
Russians Post Banner Livestock
Year, But Lower Crop Yields
Aided by abundant feed supplies
from 1973’s record harvest, Soviet
livestock production hit record highs
last year But, these gams were more
than offset by sharply lower crop
output As a result, over-all- farm
production declined 3-4 pet in the
USSR in 1974, according to USDA's
Foreign Agricultural Service.
Both meat and egg production
increased 7 pet, wool output was up
6 pet, and milk production was up 4
pet from 1973 But, production of
grains, sugarbeets and vegetables
were off 11-12 pet, while potato
output plunged 25 pet
The reason for the lower crop
production Bad weather Though
d by an early
spring, weather turned cool and rainy
in parts, there was frost damage as
well This was followed by a summer
long drought, and finally abnormally
Outlook Revised
As tfie result of that increase, and
possibly because of the boosts given
milk prices last month, USDA revised
its milk production outlook While it
still hasn't gone beyond the first 6
months, it now thinks production
during Jan. - June will remain near
year-earlier levels At Outlook
Conference time, it had predicted
output during the first 6 months
would run "well below” year earlier
levels.
By almost any standard, 1974 was
a banner year for farm income Prices
received by farmers were up 64 pet
and were the highest on record, as
were over-all cash receipts from farm
marketings And, while farm
production expenses were sharply
higher and government payments
sharply lower, realized net farm in
come was more than 50 pet higher
than in 1972 - more than double that
for 1971, according to the USDA’s
most recent "Demand and Price
Situation" report
* times the 1973 total, more than
double the previous high (of 89,032
head) set in 1972
December cattle imports totaled
only 16,136 head, less than one-tenth
the Dec. 1973 total The Jan - Dec
total, at 568,271, was only a little
more than half of the (1,038,985
head) imports of a year earlier
Down - Layer
to 36-Year Low
the lowest since 1965 Average
number of layers on farms, at 286 5
million, was down 2 pet from a year
earlier - and the lowest since 1938.
Production per bird, at 230.5 eggs,
was up from 227 a year earlier and
record high
heavy rams that caused
during the harvest season
Meat production was up 1 million
tons, to 14.5 million tons Egg output
totaled 55.0 billion, compared to 512
billion in 1973. Milk production hit
91.8 million tons, up from 88 3 million
in 1973. Wool output reached
461,000 tons, compared to 433,000 a
year earlier
But, gram production sagged - from
222 5 million tons m 1973 to 1956
million last year Sugarbeet
production dropped from 87 0 million
tons m 1973 to 764 million m
1974 Sunflowerseed production
was off - from 74 million tons a year
earlier to 68 millipn tons last yeat -
Vegetable production, from 25 9
million tons m 1973 to 23 1 million
last year And, potatoes, from
108.2 million tons to 80 7 million last
year
fcasaji
JW
ii
THE ULTIMATE
WORD
Lesson for March 2.1975
Background' Scripture:
Hebrews 1 through 2:9.
Devotional Reading: John
1:1-5, 10-13.
There is a story about a
father who took his children
to the circus. There, for the
first time they saw an
elephant. When they got
home their • mother
questioned them about what
they had seen. All the
children wanted to tell her
about the strange beast they
had seen: the elephant!
“What did he look like?”
the mother wanted to know.
Little Johnny, who had
looked at the elephant from
one side of the cage and seen
only the face of the beast,
described the elephant in
terms of the long, grey trunk
that lifted food to his small
mouth. Lucy, who had
viewed the elephant from the
side, described the huge
m
animal in terms of his
enormous body. Bobby,
however, who had seen the
elephant only from the rear,
was fascinated by the huge,
thin, flapping ears.
“Why,” said mother
mischievously, “I have a
hard time picturing him
from your different
descriptions.” At that, Ellen,
who had not yet been heard
from, handed her mother a
Polaroid photograph she had
taken of the elephant:
“Maybe this will help you,
Mother.”
“Many And Various Ways”
The story is a parable of
man’s attempts to define and
describe their experience
with the Divine demension in
life: the reality we call God.
It is not that some views of
the Divine are wrong, but
that they are incomplete,
only part of the
Each approach reflects
God’s attempt to reveal
himself to men.
He has always used a
variety of methods and
means. The writer of
Hebrews acknowledges this
when he says: “In many and
various ways God spoke of
old to our fathers by the
prophets .. .” (Hebrews
1:1). There has never been
just one way by which God
reveals himself to man.
These ways are often so
diverse so as to seem con
tradictory and incompatible.
But they are not: it is man’s
limited, partial vision that
creates the conflicts. Man
has a finite mind and.
whenever he attempts to
comprehend the infinite he is
forced to admit defeat.
flooding
“In many and various
ways,” God has spoken to us
over the centuries. He has
spoken to us through all
kinds of religions and
religious leaders. He has
spoken to us through men
who did not even know that
God was using them. Each of
these pictures has helped us
to better understand the
nature of God, yet the
composite picture is always
incomplete at best.
God’s Reflection
This is what we find to be
the uniqueness of Jesus
Christ: what we find par
tially in others, we find
completely in him. The
writer" of Hebrews says it
this way: “but in these last
w
1 "Mm*-
To Use Certified Seed
Many kinds of seeds will be
going into the ground in the
next few months. Certified
seeds are worth the extra
cost and will help insure a
good crop. When home
grown seeds are used, or
those from a neighbor, the
germination-is unknown, the
amount of weeds present is a
question, and several
diseases may be on the
seeds. Also, it is unlawful in
Pennsylvania to sell seeds
unless they are tested and
approved by the Bureau of
Plant Industry at
Harrisburg. Don’t take the
risk of planting poor quality
seeds because the cost of
inputs will be just as great as
with certified seed.
To Beware of
Sewage Sludge
We are aware of the
availability of sewage
sludge from the various
public sewage plants. Also,
we know of the problem of
disposing of this sludge* in the
community. The fertilizer
content of sludge will vary,
but on the average the
content of dry sludge is about
3 percent nitrogen, 1 percent
phosphorus, and one-half
percent potash. Also, in
many cases only about half
of this fertilizer value is
available the first year.
Another consideration is the
amount of heavy metals in
the sludge, such as copper
and zinc. If farmers are
going to utilize sludge we
suggest they do the
following: (1) Have the
sludge tested. (2) Have the
soil tested to leam the needs.
(3) Request approval from
the regional office of the
Department of En
vironmental Resources. In
addition, don’t apply the
sludge within at least 100 feet
of any stream.
Calendar
Monday, March 3
7:30 p.m. - Manheim Young
Farmers meeting at the
Manheim Central High
School.
6:15 p.m. - Pa. Cattlemen’s
Association annual
meeting at the Holiday
Inn at State' College.
Tuesday, March 4
9:30 a.m. - 1975 Livestock
days he has spoke to us by a
Son ...” (Hebrews 1:2). The
Christ does for us what
Ellen’s polaroid photo did for
her mother in the story. The
writer of Hebrews says. “He
■reflects the glory of God and
bears the very stamp of his
nature .. .”(1:3). In Christ
we see the clearest of all
reflections of God. It is the
best likeness of God
available to man. To view
Christ may not dispel all the
Divine mysteries, but in huh
we find a sufficient likeness
so that the major questions
of life may be answered.
God has spoken many
tunes to man and in many
different ways and we must
respect what-others have
heard*him‘ say. Yet, those
who follow Christ will
humbly believe that in him
God has spoken his ultimate
word.
NOW IS
THE TIME. .. 1
Max Smith
County Agr. Agent
Telephone :i!IM1851
To Permit Soil
To Dry
Spring is just around the
corner when many gar
deners and farmers will be
anxious to get out in the
garden or fields and start the
spring planting. It will be a
mistake to work soil that is
too wet because it will be
hard and lumpy all season.
Heavy clay soils should be
given more time to dry than
sandy or loam-type soils.
Also, with heavy equipment
used on our farms today, it is
more important to wait until
the soil is dry before working
it. The hand test where you
squeeze a handful of soil and
then roll it along on the
ground as you would a
bowling ball, is suggested. If
it stays in a ball, the ground
is too wet; if it crumbles and
falls apart, then the soil is
sufficiently dry to work.
Don’t work in the mud or wet
woil.
To Beware of
Liquid Manure Pits
The use of the water-tight
pit to store all types of
manure is very common in
this area; at a recent
meeting of swine producers,
nearly half of the men had
liquid manure systems. This
is an excellent method of
storing manure to preserve
the fertilizer nutrients.
However, there is danger of
toxic gases forming from
this manure and every
producer should recognize
this hazard. This is
especially true when the
manure is mixed for hauling
to the fields. We are hearing
of more and more csses of
both livestock and men being
overcome. All liquid manure
operators should be ex
tremely careful when emp:
tying the pit, and extra
caution about going down
into the pit. Some attention
to this possible hazard is
urged at this time.
Day at Fenn State.
Registration begins at
9:00 a.m. at the J. 0.
Keller Conference
Center-State College.
9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. - Lan
caster County Dairy Day
at the Lancaster Farm
and Home Center.
Wednesday, March 5
9:00 a.m. - Schuylkill County-
Agronomy Day at Begins
United Church of Christ.
7:30 p.m. - Lancaster County
Conservation District
meeting at the Farm and
Home Center.
9:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. - Lan
caster Fruit Growers
Meeting at the Lancaster
Farm and Home Center.
Thursday, March 6
7:30 p.m. - Poultry
Education Meeting at the
Farm and Home Center.
7:30 p.m. - Lancaster County
Holstein Association
Barn Meeting at the
Albert Fry farm in
Manheim.
Friday, March 7
6:45 p.m. - Manheim Young
Fanners Banquet at the
Manheim High School
Cafeteria.
7:30 p.m. - Lancaster County
Holstein Association barn
meeting at the farm of
Amos and Kenneth Rutt
m Quarryville.