As long as we had a great abundance of unoccupied land it would perhaps have been uneconomic to increase the production of that which was occupied by the costly methods of agriculture used in Belgium, Germany, and other thickly settled countries.  But the old methods of farming not only failed to get from the soil all that it was then capable of producing, they also robbed it of fertility without restoring to it what was taken from it.  Thus the loss caused by wasteful methods was passed on to future generations.  To continue such methods in the light of our present knowledge and with our growing population is thriftless in the extreme.  Methods of preserving and restoring the fertility of the soil and of obtaining the largest returns from it are now receiving the most careful attention from both state and national governments.

IDLE LANDS

A great deal of land lies idle that might be productive of food—­ not only arid, swamp, and cut-over lands, mentioned in later paragraphs, and land held for speculation, but also vacant lots and unused back yards in cities and villages, and waste or unused portions of cultivated farms.  It is largely from city and village lots that the School Garden Army obtained its remarkable results.  It is astonishing how many farmers buy instead of raising their vegetables for the table, as well as feed for their stock.

Texas, for instance, has purchased $200,000,000 worth of food products yearly from northern markets which might have been produced more cheaply at home.  It takes 15 to 20 acres of land in Texas to grow cotton enough to buy 160 bushels of canned sweet potatoes, while one acre of Texas soil would produce the same quantity, and uncanned. [Footnote:  Thrift, a monograph published by the National Education Association, 1918.]

Such topics as the following should be studied, consulting parents, farmers of the locality, and such printed sources of information as are available.

The important cereal crops of your state.  The average yield per acre of each.  Increase or decrease in yield in recent years.

The work of corn clubs and other boys’ and girls’ clubs to increase the yield of crops in your state.

The difference between “production per acre” and “production per person engaged in agriculture.”

The difference between “intensive” and “extensive” agriculture.

“Single crop” and “diversified crop” types of agriculture in your locality.  Advantages of each.

Extent to which farmers of your locality raise their own table vegetables and stock feed.

Evidence furnished by your town, or neighboring towns, during the war, of the wealth-producing power of vacant lots or unused backyards.

RECLAMATION OF ARID LANDS