10—Lancaster Farming. Saturday.
Farm Commentary
Food for
When nearly 1,300 leaders of the
fertilizer industry met in White
Sulphur Springs, West Virginia earlier
this summer, the point was made that
"it is truly an international industry
... and what happens on the world
production and marketing scene has
much more than a passing effect on
each and every person concerned
with the U.S. fertilizer industry ...
literally all the way to the farmer
customer.”
A number of key leaders spoke at
the conference, and what follows are
excerpts from their talks;
Edwin Wheeler, president of the
Fertilizer Institute, announced that
“we are in a slowdown period."
“Material is building up at most
production facilities both in the fully
developed areas as well as in
emerging nations," he continued.
According to his report, "we will not
have the frantic pleading for material
we had this last year. We are no
longer order takers. The magic spell
is not broken we simply have to go
to work. We have to encourage use.
We have to sell quality materials
commensurate with the farmers’
(wherever located) ability to pay. We
have to honor our contracts.”
In assessing the over-all situation,
Wheeler expressed optimism for
1976, stating that it would be a good
year, but maybe not a ‘‘sensational”
year. In going into detail somewhat
with that viewpoint, the fertilizer
executive remarked he did not think
the fertilizer industry can count on
the near future being financially
comparable to the near past. “On the
other hand, I do not foresee it being
comparable to 1968, 69, and 70. We
have reached a plateau; we may get
some slippage, but over a year from
now I think we will agree that the
results have been satisfactorily
measured by return on investment."
In addressing his audience of more
than a thousand fertilizer industry
leaders, Wheeler added; “I would
only urge you to bear in mind that
these results will be commensurate
with the economic health enjoyed by
farmers around the world. None of us
will do well if our farmer customers
are doing marginally well or poor.
Life on the farm
By Dieter Krieg
The shrill ringing of the phone
sounded like an alarm, and within
seconds three of us were on our way
to answer it. Awakened by the un
welcome sound as though it were a
cold bucket of water thrown at us, we
knew something was wrong. The
conversation only lasted for a few
seconds and before Dad had hung up
the phone we knew what the problem
was
Grumbling all the while, we put our
boots on and stepped into the dark
and rainy night. Flashes of lightning
sporadically illuminated the sky as we
ran across the saturated pasture,
slipping occasionally on the wet
grass The ram fell steadily but not
hard Our footsteps sounded as
though we were wearing wet sponges
on our feet
Aiming his big flashlight towards
i»t 9. 1975
thought
Contrarywise, all of us will prosper if
world agriculture and our farmers do
well. Within reason, modest down
turns from current price levels could
well permit both increased con
sumption and at the same time
permit satisfactory returns."
Mark Andrews, congressman from
North Dakota, said in his speech
that: "the United States must
continue to look abroad for supplies
of raw materials as its domestic
resources are consumed and that
means more than just oil."
' By comparison to other nation’s
dependency, this country is relatively
well off, Andrews noted. A recent
study shows that we import only
about 15 per cent of our raw
materials used in making fertilizer,
compared to 75 per cent for Europe
and 90 per cent for Japan.
Andrews pointed to our enormous
food production potential as a
“diplomatic blue chip,” in dealing
with foreign nations at the bargaining
table. “While the oil exporting nations
now have the industrialized nations
literally over a barrel," he stated,
"let’s remember the United States
has a higher proportion of the world’s
exportable food than the Arab
countries have of the world's ex
portable oil.”
The president of a Mexican fer
tilizer concern, Jacinto Avalos,
pointed out that last year fertilizer
importing countries paid 80 per cent
higher prices for fertilizer than did
U.S. farmers, without considering
freight and insurance charges. But
their export prices for agricultural
commodities are keyed to U.S.
production costs and selling prices.
He indicated that the industry and
government must deal more ef
fectively with such disturbing in
fluences as inflation, world currency
supplies, trade balances, and the cost
price squeeze faced by farmers.
"There are no easy solutions to the
problems and uncertain ties facing
our industry. There never have been.
However, with a greater effort by
each of us to better understand the
needs of others I believe we can
create order out of chaos," he con
cluded.
the fence and cornfield, Dad looked
for the villains as well as evidence of
broken wires. Meanwhile my brother,
Ingo, and I ran ahead to within 50
yards of the rascals who were causing
all the commotion. From here on the
situation was critical.
The last thing we wanted to do was
startle the cows into a stampede
through the neighbor’s garden, our
corn field, or the woods and briars
especially during the middle of a ram
soaked night. Inevitably, however,
one or two of the young, ram
bunctious ones would fling their tails
straight up in the air and “high-tail it”
in a spirited manner That would
often cause others to do likewise.
As the first cow took notice of our
slow, cautious approach from three
directions, she raised her head and
stared at us motionlessly Moments
[Continued on Page 111
MONUMENTAL
TENSIONS
Leiton for August 10,107$
Background Scripture:
Romans 12:1-2; Ephesians
6:lt-20; James 1.
Devotional Reading:
Ephesians 6:10-20.
One of the greatest health
hazards in our culture today
is tension. Many diseases of
both mind and body are
either directly or indirectly
attributable to tension. Dr.
Arnold Hutschnecker, in his
book THE WILL TO LIVE
(Cornerstone Library,
N.Y.), says: “We are
moving toward the
recognition that in illness of
any kind, from the common
cold to cancer, emotional
stress plays a part.” In fact,
he says, “Illness is the outer
expression of a deep and
possibly dangerous struggle
going on within.”
“Down with tension”
If tension and stress take
such a great toll of human
energy and life, it would
appear that the elimination
of tension and stress should
be given high priority. Yet,
that solution is more ap
parent than real.
For one thing, there are
many tensions and stresses
that we can totally isolate
themselves from these
factors. A man may run
away to a desert island to
escape the hurly-burly of
daily life in society, but in his
“island paradise” he finds
there are a whole new set of
tensions and causes of
stress. At the very least, this
means that there are some
tensions $e cannot avoid and
must face as best we can.
Furthermore, there are
many stressful factors in life
that we ought not to
eliminate, even if we could.
Stress is a necessary
ingredient of human
existence. By itself it is
neither good nor bad. There
would be no human
achievements without some
stress and many tensions
may be creative.
This is true in our spiritual
lives, too. The writer of the
Epistle of James counsels his
readers: “Count it all joy,
my brethren, when you meet
various trials, for you know
that the testing of your faith
produces steadfastness.”
So, acknowledging that
tensions and stress must be
kept within some kind of
limitations and control, we
nevertheless must un
derstand that the key is to be
found, not in insulating
ourselves from these forces,
but in how we adjust and
respond to them. We can let
them get us down, or we can
respond in a creative
manner. This is what Paul is
saying in Romans 12 when he
counsels: “Do not be
coformed to this world but be
transformed by the renewal
of your mind ...” (v. 2), Do
not be the victims of stress
and tension; be, rather, their
masters. Turn these
“lemons into lemonade”!
First crosses, then
crowns
Stress, tensions, and
crosses come to everyone -
we cannot ever completely
escape them - but if we
respond to these challenges
in a creative way, there are
great rewards. As James put
it, “Blessed is the man who
endures trial, for when he
has stbod the trial, he will
To Control
FallWebworm
Many property owners ire
concerned about the silk
looking web on some of their
favorite shade trees. With
closer examination hundreds
of small worms will be found
inside these webs, and they
will be feeding upon the
leaves of the tree. Under
forest or woodlot conditions
these worms will not be too
serious or kill the tree;
however, to the average
home owner with shade
trees, I’d suggest that the
web be treated with Sevin, or
Malathion spray; another
treatment is to bunfthem off
with a torch on a long stick or
pipe.
To Beware of
Wasps or Hornets
This is the season when
many property owners find
they have visitors in their
shrubs or garden in the form
of wasps, hornets, or yellow
jacket nests. All of these
insects can sting severely
and should be eradicated.
We suggest the exact
location of the nest be
marked and then at night,
when all of the insects are in
the nest, spray with a strong
solution of Chlordane or
Sevin. If the nest is above
ground and away from
buildings, a blow torch might
be used to burn the entire
nest or bag in which they are
reproducing. Folks allergic
to stings should stay away
from this type of insect.
To Order Winter
Grain for Seeding
It’s not too early to be
ordering the needs for winter
barley or wheat. The sup
plies of Certified seeds of the
variety wanted may not be
there by early October. Since
varieties of barley and wheat
perform differently on
various farms, we urge
growers to order soon the
variety wanted. Certified
seed is strongly recom
mended for best per
formance. Home-grown seed
will need to be cleaned and
treated for disease, if
growers do not want to buy
top quality seed. The cost of
inputs is too great to plant
poor quality seeds.
To Control Weeds
In New Seeding
Many farmers are in
terested in more good stands
of alfalfa; we encourage all
farmers to recognize the
merits of this great forage
receive the crown of life
which God has promised to
those who love him” (1:12).
In 1915 the boll weevil
made its first appearance in
Coffee County, Alabama and
the annual yield of cotton
was cut by 40 percent.
Threatened by bankruptcy,
the farmers turned to
diversified fanning, which
proved much more
profitable. Thus, in 1919,
when the county’s peanut
crop was yielding more than
a million bushels annually, a
monument was erected with
this inscription; “In
profound appreciation of the
801 l Weevil and what it had
done as the herald of
prosperity, this monument
was erected by the citizens of
Enterprise, Coffee County,
Alabama.”
NOW IS
THE TIME... |
Max Smith
County Agr. Agent
Telephone :tnt-fiKSI
crop. Good alfalfa stands are
a great asset to any livestock
feeding program; however,
too many stands are being
hurt by weeds and unwanted
grasses. When alfalfa is
seeded without a nurse crop,
the area must be treated for
weeds. Too many growers
fail to see the small weeds
when they are 1 to 2 inches
high, a time when they
should be sprayed for easier
killing, and finally decide to
do something when the
weeds are too big to kill
without harming the alfalfa.
For grassy-type weeds use
Eptam before the alfalfa is
seeded; for broad-leaf weeds
use 2,4-D, B when the weeds
are 1 to 2 inches high. Don’t
try new seedings without
weed control.
Editors Quote Book
Editors Quote Book
To be happy, one must
have a good stomach and a
bad heart
Bernard De Fontenelle
Farm
Calendar
Saturday, August 9
Ephrata Young Farmers Ice
Cream Social at the
Glenn Wissler Farm at
6:30 p.m.
E-town Young Farmers trip
to a baseball game in
Philadelphia leaving 5:30
p.m.
Monday, August 11
11-15 Lebanon County Fair at
the Lebanon Fairgrounds
off Rt. 72 North.
Swine producers panel
discussion meeting.on
marketing hogs. Farm
and Home Center at 7: ! 30
p.m.
Tuesday, August 12
State 4-H Meats and
Livestock contest at Penn
State.
Lancaster Co. Farm and
Home Center board
meeting 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, August 16
Pa. Cattlemen’s Association
Summer Tour at
Doverspike Bros. Dora,
Pa.
Tuesday, August 19
Horse Field Day at Penn
State.
Viewpoints
I have experienced many
instances of being obliged,
by better information or
fuller consideration, to
change opinions, even on
important sublets, which
I once thought right, but
found to be otherwise
Ben Franklin