260 THE WHEAT INDUSTRY 



and a rainless harvest season, eastern Oregon and 

 parts of Washington and California, fulfilling both 

 conditions, find this machine the practical one. 



Threshing in all cases follows directly after the 

 harvest. When the binder is used, the grain is 

 threshed very soon after it is cut. When the 

 combine is used, the binding and threshing are of 

 course one operation. For the threshing only 

 large-sized machinery is used. The wheat must 

 be delivered to market before the autumn and 

 winter rains begin, but since the dry season ex- 

 tends late into the fall, ample time for marketing 

 is available. The harvest here is not marked by 

 the nervous haste which prevails throughout the 

 Central states. 



The Extent of Production. - The yield per acre 

 of this region is high, averaging from 14 to 28 

 bushels. This high general average- is partly due 

 to the immense return from irrigated valleys in 

 the region where yields often run 40 or more 

 bushels per acre. The cost of production of non- 

 irrigated wheat is relatively low. It is estimated 

 at fro'm seven to ten dollars per acre. The former 

 figure applies to places where the ground is merely 

 harrowed instead of plowed before seeding. About 

 twelve per cent of the crop of the United States is 

 raised in this region. 



Marketing the Crop. - - Wheat here is handled 

 almost entirely in sacks. There are no elevators 



