32 ANNUAL EEPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



The interest in the exhibit work of the Department has greatly 

 increased. Additional equipment has been secured, and the Depart- 

 ment has participated in a large number of educational fairs and 

 expositions of regional or National importance. This work has been 

 particularly useful in connection with the efforts to promote the 

 better conservation and utilization of farm products. 



THE RESPONSE OF THE FARMERS. 



Imbued with patriotic motives, influenced by favorable market 

 prices, and falling in with the suggestions of the Department of 

 Agriculture and of State agricultural agencies, the farmers of the 

 Nation manifested much interest in the campaign for increased pro- 

 duction and displayed efficient activity in reference both to plant and 

 animal foodstuffs and feedstuffs. The weather conditions during 

 the spring were generally favorable and, according to the unrevised 

 estimates, the Nation will have, as the result of the work of the farm- 

 ers and of all the agricultural agencies, approximately 3,191,000,000 

 bushels of corn, 059,797,000 of wheat, 1,580,000,000 of oats, 201,659,000 

 of barley, 56,000,000 of rye, 16,813,000 of buckwheat, 33,256,000 of 

 rice, 73,380,000 of kafir, 439,686,000 of Irish potatoes, 84,727,000 of 

 sweet potatoes, 15,957,000 of commercial beans, 42,606,000 of peaches, 

 11,419,000 of pears, 177,733,000 of apples, and 7,621,000 tons of sugar 

 beets. These figures represent increases of cereals in the aggregate 

 over 1916 of 1,006,000,000 bushels, and over the average for 1910-1914 

 of approximately 1,000,000,000 bushels, but a decrease of production 

 in comparison with 1915 of about 199,000,000 bushels. It should be 

 borne in mind, however, that the carry-over of cereals from last year 

 was much below the normal and that the percentage of soft corn 

 of the 1917 crop was unusually high. The figures also reveal the 

 record crop of Irish potatoes of 439,000,000 bushels, 154,000,000 more 

 than in 1916, and 79,000,000 more than the average for 1910-1914; 

 an increased production of sweet potatoes over 1916 of 14,000,000, 

 and of 24,000,000 over the five-year average; and of sugar beets of 

 950,000 tons over 1916, and of 2,230,000 over the five-year average. 

 There was also the largest production of perishables on record. 

 While authentic figures for meat, poultry, dairy products, and vege- 

 table oils are not available for 1917, it appears, from rough estimates, 

 that the quantity of these commodities for this year is slightly 

 greater than for either 1916 or 1915, and exceeds the five-year average 

 by two or three billion pounds. 



