Another method to change the weather was weather
modification. When the clouds appeared that were the correct kind
with moisture, an airplane would fly through them seeding them with
silver nitrate. This was supposed to create or cause the rain to
fall. Sometimes it was successful and sometimes it wasn't.
Foster County for a time belonged to this group.
Evidence is easy to find that these conditions weren't
always present. There were the "dry years" when nothing would grow
except a few weeds which raised havoc with many a beginning or existing
farmer. Then there were hailstorms that would occur with little
warning and wipe out the entire crop for that season. To prove the
point, here's a poem that was published in the Grace City Gazette,
September 28, 1916. (It was sent in by one of the readers.
The publisher didn't know if it was original or not.)
Farmer Jones arose one dawn,
And slipped his
greasy jumper on,
And said, "When I get back from town,
I'll
start to cut that durum down.
I'll get a whip and oil and twine,
And saw her down and then she's mine.
Wow! The wind is going to
blow,
Guess I'll hurry up and go."
Farmer Jones drove into town
And tied his
horses gray and brown,
And got the whip and oil and twine
And said, "My wheat is pretty fine,
Wheat this year'll be out of
sight,
But mine'll be down by night:"
Farmer Jones drove out of town;
Drops of rain
were falling down.
Thunder clouds so big and black
Swiftly
following his track.
Then with a sudden burst and roar,
Downward came the awful pour!
Rain and wind and dirt and hail,
Darkness coming with the gale.
Farmer Jones then saw a light-
At a neighbor's
spent the night.
But he arose again at dawn,
Trembling,
slipped his jumper on.
Homeward drove to see the field,
(Well, he knew what it would yield!)
"Yes, " he said, "I'm always
right,
Got my durum down last night! "
Besides the problems with the hailstorm, too much rain
during the harvest season would cause the grain to mold and in some
cases to sprout and start to grow in the shock or windrows before it
could be picked up.
Other obstacles were the ever-present weeds. An
extensive program to fight these pests has been inaugurated with the
spraying of chemicals. Dockage at the elevators was such a problem
that it was necessary to do something drastic, hence the spraying
program.
Grasshoppers, aphids, potato beetles, armyworms,
cutworms, spider mites, web‑worms, and others did their share in
destroying the grain after it had begun to grow. These pests were
present in the early days of farming and are still a menace today.
To cut down the loss it is sometimes necessary to spray for these pests
too. Stored grain may be affected from these insects making it
necessary to fumigate.
Rodents became a special worry to the farmers,
especially the gophers. Records show that they were capable of
destroying all the crop in a given area. In 1921 with the help of
the county agent, the townships worked together in a cooperative effort
to try to combat the gophers. Boys and girls were given money for
the gopher tails that they could collect. Thousands of pounds of
poison was set out each season to cut down the population of these
pests.
Rabbits too, became numerous and were causing problems.
To aid on controlling them, rabbit drives were organized. In
1939‑1940 one of the drives covered 220,640 acres of land destroying
some 4,810 rabbits.
Raccoons became a problem in 1968. They were going
into the self‑feeders that were set up for the calves. Besides
eating the feed, the raccoons would dirty the remaining feed so that the
calves wouldn't eat it.
Rats and snakes too were a menace in some areas.
With the help of the county agent they managed to control them.
If the crops happened to survive, the next problem the
farmer had to face was marketing his product. The price they
received was affected by supply, demand and politics. These prices
may fluctuate, up or down, in a matter of minutes, hours, days or weeks.
When to sell can truly be the "sixty‑four dollar question". If
they are able to do this wisely, they may make enough to pay the
expenses and have some money left over to finance the operation for
another season.
Because farmers were having problems with receiving a
low price for their products and paying a high price for their
purchases, a need arose for some way to put pressure on the legislature
for laws affecting farmers. The farmers got together to discuss
their problems. As a result farm organizations were formed, such
as the Farmers Union Educational and Cooperative Union of America, The
Farm Bureau, the Grange, and the National Farmers Organization.
Source: A History of Foster County 1983 Page 111