Nickels for Know-How; Farmers Vote for Tax, 1954

From the September, 1954, issue of Extension Farm-News

E.Y. Floyd of Raleigh, chairman of the Nickels for Know-How referendum, points to an important date in the lives of North Carolina farm people.

Friday, October 15, users of feed and fertilizer will go to the polls and decide whether or not to continue the expanded agricultural and educational program they started three years ago.

In 1951, they voted 68,283 to 7,088 for Nickels for Know-How. In all, the program is paying for 38 new research and educational programs in North Carolina.

D.W. Colvard, dean of the School of Agriculture [at N.C. State College, Raleigh], says:

“I don’t know of a parallel program that has gotten research together on problems of more direct importance to North Carolina.

“…the issue in this election is: Do we have problems in agriculture that research and education can solve?”

The question voters will be asked to answer on October 15 is whether they are for or against:

“Continuing the present program of adding 5 cents per ton to the price of feed and fertilizer for an additional three years (beginning January 1, 1955) for supplementing an expanding agricultural research and educational program in North Carolina.”

Lex Ray, director of the Agricultural Foundation, which administers the program, reports all 100 local committees met the deadline of August 15 for setting their polling places and are now doing educational work in an attempt to surpass the original vote.

[The article went on to show photos of 17 of the 38 people at work, courtesy of Nickels money. Photo captions follow.]

--Weed Scientist R.P. Upchurch is seeking—and in some cases has found—chemical weed killers that will be effective to cotton, forages, peanuts and soybeans.

--Entomologist J.R. Dogger is finding ways to destroy field and forage crop insects that rob North Carolina of $11 million a year. He has found controls for green June beetle grubs and a dual weapon against thrips and southern rootworm in peanuts.

--Poultry Nutritionist C.H. Hill has found there’s no substitute for good feed. Constant feeding of drugs and antibiotics at high levels wastes money and, instead of speeding growth, slows it up.

--Poultry Scientist H.W. Garren is trying to develop long-term immunity to disease in chickens. His work won him North America’s top poultry research award last year.

--Crop Scientist R.P. Moore is trying to overcome the universal waste of money, muscle, time and machinery that goes into planting seed which never becomes part of a crop. Better seed and seeding practices are the fruit of this work.

--Economist W.D. Toussaint is helping plug a dollar leak caused by uneconomical marketing. He has already concluded a valuable study of grain marketing and storage.

--Tobacco Specialist H.H. Nau is primarily concerned with burley problems, but he works with farmers throughout the state. His promotion of burley priming alone would justify his employment. Many farmers have followed his advice, primed their burley, and added 400 pounds an acre to their crop.

--Nematologist J.N. Sasser seeks a solution to the nematode problem. In North Carolina nematodes destroy $30 million worth of tobacco a year; they also lower disease resistance.

--Chemist T.G. Bowery is studying the effects of pesticide residues on soils, yields, subsequent crops and plant and animal life.

--Cotton evaluation is Caswell Williams’ job. He is helping plant breeders find out whether one variety can fully meet North Carolina’s needs.

--Home Demonstration Editor Jean Anderson’s news and feature stories have helped bring the Tar Heel farm wife the recognition she deserves and the information she needs. Her work appears regularly in local, state and national publications.

--Horticulture Specialist T.W. Flowers is bringing garden know-how to Negro farmers, who operate 21 per cent of the state’s farms. A good home garden is worth at least $400 to the average family.

--Challenge Specialist L.D. Naugher is part of the team that has helped increase the number of “Challenge” counties from 34 to 86. Twenty-five of these counties have definite programs of action.

--Peanut Specialist Astor Perry says the state could double its income from peanuts. Perry is having remarkable success in bringing farmers the know-how that can make this possible.

--Challenge Editor Joe Hancock helps county workers put their programs on paper—a preliminary step to putting them in action.

--Radio and Television Specialist Ted Hyman initiated and conducts the nation’s first daily farm broadcast originating form a college campus. This program brings farm people the latest know-how from State College.

--Challenge Specialist Florence Cox helps show the way that leads to the goals of the Challenge. Without such workers, the Challenge might become just another noble plan, forgotten because nobody had the full-time responsibility for seeing that it worked.