TFE MATANUSYA VALLEY PIONEER
Published Thursdays at
Palmer Alaska
Jack Allman, Editor - Publisher
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Single copies 54 locally, 10 4
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nished on request. V/eekly PIONEERS
at Bert1s Drug Store - Anchorage.
The following figures are from
the records of the U.p. vreather
Bureau substation at the Experiment
al Farm.
Temperatures for:
Oct. Nov. Dec. Ian.
62 53 45 45 Maximum.
-4 -5 -19 -17 Minimum.
3.3 2.01 .49 .68 Peroimitation
Hr. K.-T. Leohner, superintend
ent of the Farm tells us hew this
range of weather affects the valley
from an agricultural standpoint*
’’Odd weather means chemical in
activity in nature, "uch a condition
effects soil fertility very favor
ably, especially with an annual rain
fall as low as ours.
TTrrhile we have no scientific
records to prove our point, observa
tions point emphatically to the fact
that from the standpoint of rainfall
and climate in the 1'atanuska Valley,
nature is balanced in a fine way.
"Yfhile our rainfall is low, it
is well distributed from the stand
point of agricultural production.
About half our moisture falls dur
ing duly, August and September*
Rainfalls are frequent and usually
light - perhaps a bit too frequent*
Cur cloudy days may seem excessive,
but they play a very important part
in this latitude.
"Obviously the frozen ground
ncias moisbure aurii^; une w.Liioe±.
decent tests made at the Station
shew 3^ to 38cJo moisture in frozen
ground.
"Reasonable ears in seed bed
nrenaration will assure the farmer
amnle moisture until the July rains,
^roof of this is the record of no
crop failures in east years.
"Cince this soil shows a 60fc silt
content- with of fine sand, and
only 12% clay, the farmer must be
careful not to let his seed bed get
too loose, lest a few daysT drying
in early summer reduce his moisture
content to a dangerous degree.
"Odd weather, under control, is
a fine preservative for crons, hr.
Adam "'erner, an old settler, has
tent carrots over to the second year
in excellent condition by keening
nis cellar a few degress below
freezing. Here is an idea that can
easily be nut to nraotice in the
•Tatanuska Valley,"
TV/C CHOSEN TO FILL
COLON IS 01 VACANCIES
Twc more names have Teen added
to the colonist roster this oast
week. 0.3.-Bisson takes over the
Hoeft olace, Tra^t 197, and Tack
Bourdon is moving onto ^aul JahrTs
former olace, Tract 114.
Mr. Bisson, whose family will
be here shortly from his former
home in Ketchikan, says that since
he has been here he has never seen
anything to change his original
idea that this whole project is a
fundamentally sound orooosition.
He has farmed in the States and
worked for the oast twelve years
in Alaska. He considers himself
fortunate in being oermitted to
settle on a tract and does not ex
pect to encounter any of the oio
neering airricuiuies Lnai namoeren
him in settling uncn frontier lani
in the mountains cf Iiaho.
lack Hour do n, who wa.i ted for hi c
wife to come in and look the valle;.
ever before rlacing his annlioatic..
says this wall be a nicnic comnarec
with the work he encountered in try
ing to whittle a home out of the
wilderness of Eastern Oregon where
he and his young wife had to rack
all their sunn lies cn their backs
from a railroad twelve miles away.
Pourdon’s ambition is to have
a string of twenty milkers. ”1
know I can make it nay,” he says.
Bisson expects to go in for
hogs in a big wray. "rT3igs is
^igs'" he says, "Especially when
you go to buy them over a meat
block in this country."
Pioneering is not new to either
cf these men. Young, footloose
searchers for a nermanent home, it
is understandable that they both
got their anrlieat ions in as soon
as it v/as announced that many of
the vacancies created by the return
cf former colonists were to be
filled by Alaskans.
"It was a chance that only a
fool could overlook,” said Hr.
Bisson.
BRED BEYT'ER. n:C FAS FAD T^S
BARBEE SFO’3 -*T T*tE C01 TRINITY CEN
TER, HILL :'TELC0NS ALL FORMER CUS
TO:'IRS AT FIS FEW LOCATION IN TFE
VALLEY CITY F0T~L BUILDING.
LET MANLEY S. SWSAZTY, C.L.U. ,
LUO SELLS NORTHERN LIES ”3 in 1”
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