—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, August 4,1979
152
Five acres stands between us and starvation
By JERRY WEBB
University of Delaware
NEWARK, Del. - Although
we Americans are the best
fed people in the world, there
really isn’t much between us
and starvation. Department
of Agriculture figure show
that we each depend on die
production of about five
acres of farmland. From
that we get almost all our
food and at least some of our
clothing and building
materials. Add to that the
frightening fact that your
five-acre farm averages less
than afoot deep.
That means that thin little
crust of topsoil must produce
all of the food crops, feed
crops, pastureland and
farmstead space that’s
required for our
sophisticated diets.
Of course, it hasn’t always
been that way. When the
Pilgrims came there were
millions of acres and only a
handful of people. But the
ratio has been declining
steadily ever since. There
was a time when American
farmers would “wear out” a
farm and just abandon it and
move on. There was always
more free land farther west.
But those days are gone
and those worn-out farms
have been reclaimed and
urban sprawl has taken up
where the migrating farmer
PUBLIC SALE
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 22
New Holland Sales Stables
New Holland, PA
25 Bred Gilts - 3 way cross; Duroc, York & Hamp
shire. Bred to Chester White. Due Aug. 28 & next two
weeks.
Terms by,
PHILIP M. HORNING
PUBLIC SALE
OF VALUABLE LIMESTONE FARM
SATURDAY, AUGUST 11
AT 2:00 P.M.
Located on the road leading from Clay to
Brunnerville, Pa. on the Hammer Creek Road
from Hammer Creek Church to the Brubaker
Valley Road.
All that certain tract of Limestone Soil
Containing 52 Acres
More or Less
On Which Is Erected A
2Vi STORY FRAME DWELLING
with aluminum siding with 12 rooms, washhouse and
2 car garage attached. Oil fired hot water heat summer
and winter hook up; 5 room and bath upstairs; 6 rooms
down stairs, modern kitchen, dining room and % bath;
large cistern and well.
LARGE FRAME BARN
with tobacco shed, stripping room. Implement shed
and corn bam attached; 2 steer stables; pigstable; 2
com mbs, place to hang 6 acres tobacco; 22 x 40 shop;
11 x 50 silo, cemented barnyard Buildings in good
condition
Adjoining land of Melvin Brumbach, C.P Wenger,
Landis Martin, Harold Hess, Alvin Seiberlmg, John
Sensemg and public road. Buildings are about in the
center. Will be seeded
If you are looking for a good farm don’t miss this one
No out of state checks accepted
Sale by,
ELAM S. & EDNA S. SHIRK
Frank and Paul Snyder, Aucts.
859-2688 733-7052
Paul Diehm, Clerk
10% down, balance April 1,1080.
Not Reponsible For Accidents
To View Property By Appointment Only
Call 626-8058 —Week of Sale Only
left off. Starting in the East
and spreading westward, it’s
claimed more and more
farmland—meaning that the
piece of land that you and I
rely on for our groceries
becomes smaller and
smaller.
Department of Agriculture
figures indicate that each of
us relied on 10 acres of
farmland 50 years ago and
eight acres 30 years ago.
Fifteen years ago we had the
use of six and one-half acres,
but the current estimate puts
the figure at just under five
acres per person.
Here’s how that five-acre
farm divides up. Grassland
pasture accounts for 2.12
acres; crop pasture adds
another .41 acres and
woodland another .53 acres.
All crops add up to 1.72 acres
and idle land, farmsteads
and roads account for the
rest.
Any forecaster worth his
salt ought to be able to look
ahead somewhere in the
future and find the time
when there’ll be no land left
Freezing Pork
Cooked pork and com
bination dishes containing
pork can be stored in the
freezer at zero degrees
Farenheit for up to three
months with little or no
change in quality.
for any of us, but until that
day the efficiency of modern
agriculture allows us to be
the best-fed nation in the
world. Even though our farm
is half the side it was 50
years ago, it produces a
whole lot more. And that’s
not the whole story because
almost one acre out of every
three of American cropland
is currently producing for
the export market. So your
little farm is not only feeding
you, it’s also helping feed a
foreigner.
If tiie thought of trying to
survive on five acres worries
you, I can only say that your
future rests in the hands of
PUBLIC SALE
VALUABLE REAL ESTATE & CONTENTS
SATURDAY, JULY 28
AT 9:00 A.M.
Located Elizabethtown, R.D. #3, Mt. Joy
Township, Lancaster Co., Pa.
WILL BE OFFERED IN 3 TRACTS
AT 2:00 P.M. JULY 28,1979
TRACT #1 - Beautiful STONE 3-BEDROOM HOME.
Situated on a large wooded lot, 113 ft. frontage. Modem
Kitchen & Dining Rra. Comb, w/commg-top stove, eye
level oven; Living-Room 21x13’ w/stone fireplace &
Planter; Bath; enclosed Bx2o Breezeway; 12x20’ 2-car
heated garage w/Powder room, Heated full Basement
w/outside entrance; Oil Heat, Anderson windows, Lots
of closets, insulation, central fan, Patio, Mature shade,
in a very desirable location.
TRACT §2 - LOT 95x374” (Approx.) Perked &
probed.
TRACT #3 - LOT 217’ Frontage. Perked & probed.
The 3 Tracts are joined and will be offered
separately and as 1 Umt.
ANTIQUES & CONTENTS at 9:00 A.M.
To Be Held in Tent
12 Pane Dutch comer cupboard, Cherry drop-leaf
table; 6 Windsor plank chairs (100 yrs. old); Dry sink,
Majestic coal range, Boston rocker, Wash stand, Rock
Maple Bedroom suite, Empire Bureau, Wicker porch
set
But
Boj
dal
Dj
Sla;
ch(
turai
dis) -
butter dish, creamer & sugar set; Ironstone - Fostona -
Carnival - Depression - cut & pressed glass; Salts,
Prince Albert can, Two Ruby 1863 & 1868 Gettysburg
mugs - 1903 York Fair; Pitcher & 6 glasses initials
ESF; 1908 cups, 2 cnuts; cake stand; banana dish, 1897
German Baptist Conference glass, glass basket,
Bullseye Compote; 2 moon dishes; cut glass miniature
punch bowl set w/6 cups; Childs glass sugar &
creamer; Vases, Wooden compote w/7 kinds wood; 2
post card albums, lots cards w/stamps; Valentines &
love notes, 6 German Celery dishes w/peacocks, Lefton
china Mother hen & 6 chicks, Bavarian Figurines, Doll
furniture - (reed rocker - high chair - swing - dressers -
etc.); China doll, wicker bottle etc.
COINS - $5 Gold piece, Silver & half dollars, Indian
head pennies, Buffalo nickels;
2-pc. Living-room suite, 2 end and coffee tables.
Humidifier, GE upright freezer, breakfast set,
cabinet, lamps, copper craft set, utility cart, Maytag
wringer washer, glider, bench, BOLENS GlO riding
Mower & tiller, Lawn trimmer & roller, wh. barrow,
Lawn sweeper & sprinklers. Tools & chest, vise, dog
box, Chicken House, Alum, ladders, cherry lumber lots
of berry boxes, and numerous useful items not listed.
LUNCH AVAILABLE - ALL NICE CLEAN
MERCHANDISE - NO OUT OF STATE CHECKS.
Owners,
RAYMOND L. & VERA E. NEWGARD
Auctioneer Attorney
C. H. Wolgemuth Jack B. Horner
R.D. #2, 23A S. Market St..
Manheim, Pa. E-town, Pa.
665-5664 367-1357
our efficient agricultural
system. A combination of
factors including owner
incentive, agricultural
research, profit motive,
pride, and whatever else is
at work keeping our food
producing system constantly
running ahead of our need.
And the experts say we
haven’t nearly reached our
potential. New acres are
being tilled each year
despite the fact that this
great nation has been far
med from coast to coast for
many decades.
Dry-land acres are being
turned into fertile gardens
through the use of irrigation
and commercial fertilizers
and the end is nowhere in
sight. New technology, new
varieties, new systems allow
us to create the equivalent of
many new farms every year.
Even though urban sprawl
and other nonfarm uses
continue to eat up valuable
farmland, producers are
staying ahead with double
cropping, even triple
cropping, doubled and
quadrupled yields through
fertilization and irrigation
Hammondale Acres
HOLSTEIN HEIFER
SALE
at the farm located three miles North of
Chambersburg, Pa., one mile south of Let
terkenny Army Depot. Gate 1, between
Cheesetown and Salem Church on:
FRIDAY EVENING,
AUGUST 17
Sale at 7:30 P.M.
45 HEAD OF FRESH AND
SPRINGING HOLSTEIN HEIFERS
1 REG. BULL
An outstanding group of well grown heifers, some
are registered. 15 or more will be fresh by sale, some
close springers, balance due Sept, and Oct. Many are
A.B.S. sired, others from A.I. sires or good bulls, many
from dams with good records of 4% test. A real
promising group of heifers accustomed to free stalls.
Calves from fresh animals will sell. Reg. 15 month old
bull, sired by Life-O-Riley Marquis and from dam with
4 yr. old record of 19,050 M, 4.3 test, 810 F.
Certified; accredited; Some are Vac.; 30 day test;
Also Vac. for 1.8. R. and Lepto., Folders at Sale; Terms
Cash; Refreshments, Sale Inside.
GERALD AND MABEL HAMMOND
AND FAMILY
R.D. 11, Chambersburg, Pa. 17201
717-263-4227
Ralph W. Horst, Auctioneer
Fred M. Naugle, Announcement
Gossert and Carty, Clerks
AUCTION
FEED MILL - HARDWARE
The “MATEJA FARM SALES & SERVICE”,
located one mile south of 1-80, Garfield St., West
Middlesex, Pa., Mercer Co. Due to ill health, we
will offer for sate at auction on;
FRIDAY EVE., AUGUST 10
6:00 P.M.
A COMPLETE OPERATING BUSINESS -
“MATEJA FARM SALES & SERVICE”
One fifty by one-hundred foot Shenango Steel
Building w/full basement, ten ft. ceiling, reinforced
concrete walls, on one acre of land.
OVER $100,000.00 worth of inventory - hardware,
feed, lawn equipment & farm supplies; 80 ton bulk
storage; Mod. #3OOO PRATER elevator leg; Mod.
#14TW250 PRATER mixer w/100 H.P. motor; 1 ton
mixer; molasses blender w/5000 gal. storage tank;
truck scale; dump pit; battery operated fork lift; small
gas fork lift; gas pump w/underground tank.
TRUCKS: 1974 International Mon dump, V-8, 4x2
transmission, power steering. 1973 GMC 12 ft. stake,
new motor.
A FANTASTIC BUSINESS OPERATION TO BE
SOLD IN ITS ENTIRETY, SUBJECT TO CON
FIRMATION. TERMS. $20,000.00 cash or certified
check deposit as down payment day of sale, with the
balance due in 60 days. OWNER FINANCING
AVAILABLE - phone for further details.
Sale Conducted By
ANDERSON AUCTIONEERS, INC.
R.D. #l, Georgetown, Pa. 15043
Phone; (412)573-9767
Auctioneers:
McConahy Brothers, Harry Anderson,
Edinburg, Pa. Georgetown, Pa.
(412)652-4608 (412)573-9767
Members of the Pa. &
Nat’l. Auctioneers Associations
and pest control, and whole
new farms from land
clearing and drainage.
It’s true we’re living off of
five acres apiece, but it’s the
most productive five acres in
the world and it’s getting
better. Two challenges he
ahead, it seems to me. One is
to continue to make that
little farm highly efficient
and highly productive and
the other is to keep that thin
layer of topsoil from
washing or blowing away.