

736 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. [Vol.40 



and 1914, the authors present information relative to dates of operations, time 

 available for field work, farm organization, equipment, man and horse labor, 

 use of machinery, amount of seed required for various crops, thrashing, yields, 

 etc., together with a comparison of the costs of various items for 5 years be- 

 fore the war and their cost in 1917 on a representative farm. The results of the 

 study may be summarized as follows : 



Wheat occupied 39 per cent of the crop acreage of the farms studied, oats 17 

 per cent, and barley 14 per cent, while flax, corn, rye, and potatoes were of less 

 importance. The average yield of wheat was 13.2 bu. per acre, as compared 

 with 12.7 bu. for the State as a whole. The equivalent of one disking and two 

 harrowings, in general, appeared to give better results than either more or less 

 working, while under certain conditions the disking was omitted and the same 

 results secured by harrowing three times. Summer fallowing as a rule did not 

 prove profitable except on very weedy land, and comparatively few farmers fol- 

 lowed this practice. No significant difference in yields was observed between 

 spring and fall plowing, but the latter is said to be more advantageous, in that it 

 gives a better distribution of labor and makes possible earlier spring seeding. 

 The practice known as " stubbling in," whereby the grain is sown after disking 

 the land without plowing, was found to he almost invariably unprofitable, tend- 

 ing to lower yields and to encourage the spread of weeds and other pests. Ap- 

 proximately 6.4 hours of man labor and 19.4 hours of horse labor were re- 

 quired per acre in the production of wheat, while oats, barley, and tlax re- 

 quired a little more work per acre than wheat, different parts of the State 

 varying widely in this respect. Thrashing from the stack cost a little more than 

 thrashing from the shock but possessed certain advantages in labor distribu- 

 tion and the saving of grain. 



The maintenance of work stock cost $145 per head In 1917, as compared with 

 an average cost of $105 for the five years 1911-191G, the difference being at- 

 tributed to the advance in the price of feed. The initial cot of farm machinery 

 used on these farms was 40 per cent more in 1917 than the average for the five- 

 year period, while seed wheat cost :?2.2S per bushel in 1917, as compared with 

 $1.23 for the preceding five years. 



Pea and oat hay for northern Ohio, L. E. Thatcher (Mo. Bui. Ohio sta.. .', 

 (1919), No. 3, pp. 86-88). — Growing a mixture of field peas and oats for hay 

 as a supplementary forage crop in the spring is described. Golden Vine, Prus- 

 sian Blue, or Canada Beauty field peas, and medium or late varieties of oats 

 such as Siberian, Wideawake, Welcome, or Improved American, are said to be 

 best suited for this purpose. For the 7 years, 1900-1915, the maximum aver- 

 age yield was obtained from a seeding rate of 1 bu. of peas and 2 bu. of oats 

 per acre, amounting to 5,573 lbs. of hay. A mixture of 1.5 bu. each of peas and 

 oats, however, is deemed more satisfactory. 



Inoculation of legumes, P. Emerson (Idaho Sta. Circ. 7 (1919). pp. 8, fiffs. 

 4). — A popular account of the purpose and nature of inoculation. 



Spacing of rows in corn and its effect upon grain yield. A. B. Conner 

 (Texas Sta. Bui. 230 (1918), pp. 5-20, figs. 5).— Experimental work with corn 

 planted in rows 36 in. apart with the stalks 36 in. apart in the row ami in rows 

 6 ft. apart with the stalks 18 in. apart in the row, thus providing for 4,840 

 stalks per acre in each case, is described. The tests embraced 234 plats, located 

 at seven different points in the State said to represent different soil and 

 climatic conditions existing in the corn-growing regions of Texas and have 

 extended over periods of from two to five years at each point. The results 

 obtained at each experimental center are presented in tabular form and briefly 

 discussed. Limited observations were also made on the effect upon yield of 



