1010] FIELD CROPS. 139 



detailed account of the farm practices and cost of growing sugar beets in the 

 Greeley, Fort Morgan, and Etockv Ford districts of Colorado, embracing Weld 

 and Larimer, Morgan, and Otero Counties, respectively. The data are based 

 upon farm estimates obtained from representative sugar-beet growers on ,".Ti 

 farms, and arc for the crop years of 11)14 and 1915. Items, such as the hours 

 of man and horse labor required to grow the crop, the quantity of seed and of 

 manure and fertilizer employed, etc., which are said to show much less fluctua- 

 tion from year to year than the actual money costs, are emphasized and form 

 the chief basis for discussion. 



The acre costs for all tillage operations performed by the grower with the 

 exception of plowing, rolling the beets, irrigating, hoeing, and topping, were 

 lower for the farms studied in the Greeley and Fort Morgan areas than for 

 those in the Rocky Ford area, due mainly to the heavier soil types in the latter 

 region which necessitated a greater amount of tillage. Man, horse, and contract 

 labor was the most important charge, ranging from 54.3 to 59.1 per cent of the 

 total cost of production. Charges for materials such as seed, manure, and 

 water varied from 8.G to 10.7 per cent of the total, while interest charges on 

 the hind for owners and rental for tenants, insurance, taxes, and machinery 

 comprised from 32.3 to 35 per cent of the total cost of raising the crop. The 

 total cost of production per acre was $72.53 for the Greeley area. $65 for the 

 Fort Blorgan area, and $64.87 for the Rocky Ford area, the total receipts per 

 acre, including tops, amounting to $92.44, $S1.66, and $67.36, respectively. The 

 average yields for the respective regions were 15.57, 13.65, and 12.99 tons per 

 acre. 



Owners produced beets at a lower cost per acre and per ton than tenant 

 fa liners, except in the Rocky Ford area where their costs were higher. The 

 lower cost of production to owners in the Greeley area is said to have been 

 due largely to a lower interest charge on beet land than the corresponding 

 rental charge on tenant farms. 



Beet tops were fed directly to stock by 74 per cent of the farmers, while 12 

 per cent fed a part and sold the remainder, and 14 per cent sold all the tops. 



Farm practice in growing sugar beets in the Billings region of Montana, 

 S. B. NXJCKOM and E. L. Cuerieb (U. S. Dept. Agr. Bui. 735 (191S), pp. 37, 

 figs. 7). — This bulletin, prepared jointly by the Montana Experiment Station 

 and the Bureau of Plant Industry of the U. S. Department of Agriculture, re- 

 ports the results of a study of methods of management, labor requirements, and 

 cost of growing sugar beets made in the summer of 1916 on 305 farms, repre- 

 senting a sugar beet crop of 8,849 acres and comprising about 36 per cent of 

 the entire acreage grown for the factory at Billings, Mont., during 1915. 



The total overhead charge for the entire area was $20.44 per acre, divided 

 as follows: Land charges $11.85, manure $3.79, machinery $2.04. seed $1.72, 

 cash to run farm 41 cts., and miscellaneous 3 cts. The total cost of sugar-beet 

 production was found to be $56.79 per acre, including $17.71 for farm labor, 

 $1S.64 for hand labor, and the above-mentioned overhead charges. These data 

 are said to be applicable to present conditions by adjustment to the present 

 prices of labor, real estate, equipment, and the value of beets produced. 



The results obtained are held to indicate that the growing of sugar beets 

 is not profitable in this region unless a yield of more than S tons of beets per 

 acre is obtained. A minimum of 20 acres per farm was found to be most 

 economical. Of the total area in the crop. 77.2 per cent is said to have been 

 grown at a profit. The average net profit per acre for the region was (11.70. 



The beet-sugar industry in the United States, C. O. Townsknd (17. S. Dept. 

 Agr. Bui. 721 (1918), pp. 56, pis. 9. figs. 2). — This bulletin comprises a detailed 

 discussion of the subject dealing with the distribution of the crop in the United 



