32 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



Spring Wheat. — Area harvested, 265,339 acres; average yield, 13.6 

 bushels per acre; total product, 3,608,910 bushels; price per bushel, 90 

 cents; total value, $3,248,019; aggregate value of wheat, $5,767,945. The 

 total yield last year was 4,968,250 bushels, and the average total yield for 

 the ten preceding j'ears is 10,665,709 bushels. 



Oats. — On account of unfavorable weather conditions last spring, oats 

 were planted from two to four weeks later than usual, and as a result 

 the acreage seeded was 170,236 acres less than the area harvested in 1908; 

 but notwithstanding the many adverse conditions, the yield per acre 

 was slightly better and the quality much better than last year. The area 

 harvested was 4,261,414 acres; average yield, 27.4 bushels per acre; total 

 product, 116,557,830 bushels; aggregate value at 35 cents per bushel, 

 $40,795,240. The total yield last year was 112,830,490 bushels, and the 

 average total yield for the ten preceding years is 121,224,606 bushels. 



Bakley. — Area harvested, 492,327 acres; yield per acre, 21.6 bushels; 

 total product, 10,629,300 bushels; average price, 46 cents per bushel; 

 total value, $4,889,478. The average total yield for the ten preceding 

 years is 13,289,595 bushels. 



Rye. — Area harvested, 49,591 acres; average yield, 16.3 bushels per 

 acre; total product, 805,780 bushels; average price, 60 cents per bushel; 

 total value, $483,468. The average total yield for the ten preceding years 

 is 1,301,120 bushels. 



PYax. — Area harvested, 25,525 acres; average yield, 10 bushels per 

 acre; total yield, 255,205 bushels; average price, $1.29 per bushel; total 

 value, $329,214. The ten year average is 609,202 bushels. 



Potatoes. — Area harvested, 127,841 acres; average yield, 8S bushels; 

 total product, 11,209,950 bushels; average price, 53 cents; total value, 

 $5,941,273. 



Hay (Tame.) — Average yield per acre, 1.7 tons; total product, 5,828,580 

 tons; average farm price, $7.42 per ton; value of crop, $43,248,063. 



Hay (Wild).— Yield per acre, 1.4 tons; total product, 1,219,630 tons; 

 average price, $5.90 per ton; total value, $7,195,718. 



THE ORIGIN AND THE PURPOSE OP THE MOUNT WEATHER 

 OBSERVATORY. 



BY PROF. VriLLIS L. MOORE, CHIEF U. S. WEATHER BUREAU. 



In 1870 the United States government undertook the important work 

 of forecasting today what kind of weather might reasonably be expected 

 tomorrow. This service, because of its value to the industries of the 

 country, has rapidly grown and we now get reports twice daily of the 

 surface conditions of temperature, moisture, rainfall, wind velocity and 

 direction, and other data from more than two hundred stations in the 

 United States, West Indies, Mexico, Canada and elsewhere. 



From this information the forecaster now makes predictions for the 

 coming two days with such success that they are of service to nearly 

 every class of people. But the more accurate this forecasting, and the 

 greater the length of time ahead to which it can be made to apply, the 



