10— Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 5, 1975
Farm Commentary
So Long - And Thanks
I’ve had a grand time working with
our local farm community m the three
years since I became editor of Lan
caster Farming. I've enjoyed the
people, the work and the country.
Although this is my last issue with
this newspaper, I won’t be leaving the
people or the country, and expect to
continue, in one way or another, in
Costs Keep Pace With
Better Prices
Farmers received an average of
$2.95 per bu. for their corn last year,
up from $2.55 in 1973 and well above
the $l.OB average for 1973. But, the
high points of the year were in
California, where they received
averages of $3.98 per bu. for corn in
both Aug. and Nov.
They received an average of $4.04
per bu. for their wheat, up from $3.95
in 1973 and $1.25 in 1969. But, in
Ohio in February last year, they got
$6.37 per bu. for their wheat. That
topped the $6.25 per bu. in Michigan
that same month.
And, California farmers received an
average of $6.62 per bu in
November, $6.55 per bu in
December for their sorghum as the
over-all sorghum price rose from
$3 82 per bu. in 1973 to $5.00 for all
of 1974.
But, weigh those prices received
against some they paid . Prices for
90-99 h.p tractors jumped from an
average of $10,500 in March of 1973
Weather Continues To
Dry weather in June may have
caused some further deterioration in
gram prospects in the Soviet Union,
USDA reported last week. While
pointing out that weather during July
will still be very important in
determining the final outcome of the
1975 crop, USDA’s Foreign
Farm Prices Up For
3rd Straight Month
The Index of Prices Received by
Farmers continued up during the
month ended June 15 The 4 point (2
pet 1 boost !eh it at 182 (pet of its
Jar Dec 1967 average), the highest
sirce last November This also
marked the third straight month it
has increased
Higher prices for cattle, potatoes,
tomatoes, cantaloupes and peaches
more than offset lower prices for
wheat, barley and grapefruit to ac
count for the increase The index was
16 points (10 pet) above a year
earlier
Meat Output Off Sharply
U S commercial red meat
production, which has been running
close to or above year-ago levels
mainly because of higher beef output
dropped off sharply during May At
2 9 billion lbs for the month, it was
down 12 pet from a year earlier, 6
pet below that for May 1973
by Dick Wanner
Plague Soviets
farm journalism.
As we note elsewhere, Dieter Kneg,
formerly farm editor of the Penn
sylvania Mirror in State College, will
be taking over as editor. I can only
wish him the best of luck and hope
that he enjoys working with our
wonderful readers as much as I have.
to $12,300 in March of 1974, then up
to $15,100 by December and they
were $17,500 in Colorado that month
... Combines hit a high of $32,000 in
Michigan in Sept., up from $27,000
three months earlier . . Egg-type
pullet chicks averaged $37.10 per
hundred in 1973, hit $4920 per
hundred in lowa in April 1974 ..
Broiler-type chicks averaged $11.70
per hundred in 1973, but hit $28.00
per hundred in Nebraska in April
1974 and stayed there the rest of the
year ... Amomum Nitrate, which
averaged $60.10 per ton in Sept,
1969 and only $77.30 in 1973, hit
$240 per ton m the New England
States in Sept. .. Hammers (claw),
at $4.46 each m 1973 averaged $6 62
last December, but were $8 20 in
both Oregon and Tennessee and only
$4.96 in Utah . . Pitchforks (3-tme)
hit $823 in December, up from $7 56
in June, but were $9.68 in California,
$9.10 in Oregon
Agricultural Service, noted that
relatively dry, hot weather continued
throughout most of June in most of
the Soviet gram-growing areas The
crop, once seen at 215 million, had
already been set at only 200 million
tons by USDA earlier this year
Meanwhile, the Index of Prices Paid
by Farmers also increased during the
month At 185, it was up 2 points (1
pet) from a month earlier, 19 points
(11 pet) above a year earlier The
Ratio of Prices Received to Prices
Paid moved up 1 point to 98 It had
stood at an even 100 a year earlier.
Under the old 1910-14 formulas,
Prices Received moved up 11 points
to 463, Prices Paid climbed 6 points
to 633 and the Parity Ratio moved up
1 point to 73 It had been 74 a year
earlier
Beef output, at 18 billion lbs, was
down 5 pet from a year earlier, pork,
at 925 million lbs, was off 26 pet
from a year ago Lamb and mutton
production, at 31 million lbs, was off
14 pet, veal output, at 59 million lbs,
was more than double that of a year
earlier
READY FOR
SOLID FOOD
Lcuon for July 8,1975
Background Scripture: 1
Corinthians 3; 1-9; 2 Peter 1;
3-11.
Devotional Reading: 1
John 3: 19-24.
There’s an old story about
a brilliant corporation
lawyer who was traveling
across the country in a
Pullamn train.
That night as he was
preparing to settle down in
his berth for the night, he
was overheard to pray:
“Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray to Lord my soul to
keep...”
For all his ac
complishments, the man had
never grown-up spiritually.
In his religious life, he is still
a child, existing, as Paul
puts it, “on milk.”
“You Need Milk...
This was one of the
problems to which Paul
addressed himself when he
wrote his second letter to the
church at Corinth. There was
a great deal of immaturity in
the church there, Paul ob
served. Pulling no punches,
Paul says pointedly:
I must speak to you as
babes, I fed you with milk,
not solid food; for you were
not ready for it, and are not
even now (I Corinthians 3:2).
In the Epistle to the Hebrews
the same theme is sounded:
You need milk, not solid
food; for everyone who lives
on milk is ... a child. But
solid food is for the
mature...
Later, in the thirteenth
chapter of First Corinthians,
Paid reminds the people
there that when you are a
child, it is all right to act like
a child. But when we grow
up, he says, we are to give up
our childish ways and act
with maturity.
Dr. Harry Overstreet
wrote a book some years ago
entitled, The Mature Mind.
The thesis of the book is that
most of our troubles are the
result of our failure to grow
up. A psychiatrist, Hugh
Missildme, has written a
provocative book about Your
Inner Child of the Past.
Immaturity, he says is the
result of letting our “inner
child of the past” continue to
dominate our lives in the
present.
Behaving like
ordinary men
Paul indicated that the
Corinthians were still not
ready for spiritual “solid
food.” The evidence for the
assessment was to be found
in the jealousy and strife that
continued in the Corinthian
churches. You cannot be
mature when you continue to
be dominated by these
emotions.
Actually, said Paul, when
they behaved this way, they
were really “behaving like
ordinary men” (I Corin
thians 3:3). Apparently the
Christian, as Paul sees it, it
not supposed to be like
“ordinary men.” These is to
be something special about
him, something ex
traordinary. There is to be
growth to a more solid type
of spritual food.
There are many Christians
who are constantly fed a diet
of spiritual milk. These are
people who are spiritually
“babes in arms,” people who
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To Buy The Best
Sires
Many livestock producers
change herd or flock sires
during the summer months.
Effort should be made to
select the very best bull,
ram, or boar to be placed in
the position of producing the
next crop of replacement
animals. Performance
testing is now being done
with most species of animals
which should indicate the
transmitting ability of the
sire. Since the sire has a part
in the merits of every young
animal produced, it is very
important to select the very
best. In many cases the sire
that is bought for a
“bargain” turns out to be the
most expensive. Don’t
“pinch pennies” when
buying that new herd sire.
To Read Spray
Material Directions
Before any spray material
is used, the directions should
be read and followed
exactly. In the past week we
have been informed of
several growers and gard
ners who have put the wrong
material on a crop or on the
garden. In some cases this
could do serious damage,
such as a weed killer instead
of an insecticide; many
materials should be applied
several days up to 14 days
before harvest or being used.
All of these items should be
understood before the
material is applied. Keep
spray materials in their
original containers and read
the directions before using.
To Be Careful with
Empty Pesticide Containers
Many times it is a problem
Farm Calendar
Thursday, July 10
Lancaster County Swine
Breeder’s Tour of the
Jerry Rutter farm in
York County. Leaving the
Farm and Home Center
at 6'flfl p.m.
Saturday, July 12
District 111 Jersey Breeders
Annual Picnic at the Top
-0 - H i 11 Farm-
Downington. Event will
start at 12:00 noon. Bring
covered dish and eating
Farm
Credit
Notice
Effective June 23,1975
The Berks-Lehigh Valley
Farm Credit Associations
will be occupying their new
branch office located north
of Shoemakersville on the
west side of Route 61 across
from the Windsor Mutual
Insurance Office.
The new address and
phone number is; P.O. Box
D, Shoemakersville, Pa.
19555. 215-562-3866.
are not yet ready for the
solid food of Jesus Christ. D .
Are Vmi? rOrK
For best results, use a low to
( •u. .. u on . "“.‘I 1 ®* 8 moderate temperature when
the Division cooking pork—both in and out
of Christian Education, doors Pork is a good source of all
National Council of the the B vitamins It is the richest
Churches of Christ u the known food source of thiamin
U.S.A. Releades by Com- (Bl), so necessary for a healthy
munity Press Service.) nervous system
NOW IS
THE TIME. ..
Mux Smith
County Agr. Agent
Telephone
to know what to do with
empty bags and other
chemical spray containers.
However, It is quite certain
they should not be left
around the barn or garage to
become a hazard to children,
pets, or livestock. In many
cases we have known where
animals got to the empty
bags, chewed them, and
were poisoned. In addition,
bags in which treated grain
has been stored or tran
sported (treated with
materials such as aldrin,
dieldrin, or heptachlor)
should not be used to hold
feed or grain. Several cases
of serious pesticide residues
in the meat or milk of
animals have been traced to
this dangerous practice. Be
careful with pesticide
containers.
To Prepare For
August Alfalfa Seedings
Early August continues to
be a good time to make a late
summer seeding of alfalfa.
This is only a month away
and the ground should be in
the preparing process; a
complete soil test is the place
to start and hpply lime and
fertilizer according to the
test recommendations. The
ground should be disced or
plowed several weeks prior
to seeding in order to get a
firm, weed-free \seedbed.
Certified seed should be used
(wilt and anthracnose
resistant) and the band
seeding method of
establishing the new stand is
hard to beat. Good stands of
alfalfa should be the result of
good planning and doing all
of the practices thoroughly
and on schedule.
utensils and
chairs.
Sunday, July 13
Elizabethtown Young
Fanners Picnic - bring
covered dish.
PERSONALIZED For the
man who has everything, this
white Leghorn ben presented
her owner, Jay Weems, Van
couver, Wash., with a shiny
egg personalized with the let
ter, "J”. The egg came com
plete with a period after the
initial. And the timing of the
gift couldn’t have been plan
ned better, since it was
Weems birthday. Now how can
you top this gift?
folding
'■% •