EGYPTIAN COTTON CULTURE IN THE SOUTHWEST. 



23 



much above the average for the entire acreage devoted to the crop, 

 they are sufficient in number to indicate what may be expected by 

 the better farmers on rich land which had previously produced 

 alfalfa, as was the case with most of the yields reported upon. 



Two of the yields reported in Table I were those obtained by Pima 

 Indian farmers on the Sacaton Reservation. One of these Indians 

 made a crop of 994 pounds and the other 794 pounds from their 

 fields of about 1^ acres each. 



Table II. — Yields of ginned cotton from certain measured fields of Egyptian cotton 

 grown hy farmers in the Imperial Valley, Cal., in 1912. 



The yields from fields in the Imperial Valley as shown in Table II 

 range much lower than those from the Salt River Valley reported in 

 Table I. The lower yields were due cliiefly to the less careful prepa- 

 ration of the land and handling of the crop by farmers in the Imperial 

 Valley rather than to any essential difference in natural conditions. 

 This is proved by the fact that some of the boys mentioned obtained 

 yields from their half-acre fields approximating Salt River Valley 

 figures. 



The results of the past summer indicate in a very striking manner 

 the importance of thorough preparation of the land before planting 

 and the need of careful attention to the proper cultivation, irriga- 

 tion, and tliinning of the crop during the early stages of growth in 

 order to secure good yields. It is also clear that while profitable 

 crops of Egyptian cotton may be produced on new land or following 

 grain or a previous crop of cotton, the best results are to be had where 

 cotton follows alfalfa. And, wliile the evidence is not absolutely 

 conclusive, it seems reasonably certain that cotton should not fol- 

 low sorghum or milo, which crops appear to have a depressing effect 

 on the following cotton crop. 



CHARACTER AND VALUE OF THE CROP. 



With but few exceptions, the cotton was picked carefully and the 

 seed cotton as delivered at the gins was clean and free from trash. 

 Tliis made it possible to turn out a liigh grade of lint. The bales 

 were well packed to a density of from 15 to 20 pounds per cubic foot, 

 and they were well wrapped with burlap bagging. The average tare, 

 including bagging and ties, was about 14 pounds per bale. (Fig. 1.) 



[Cir. ll!3] 



