252 CROPS 



try to determine why they are important there, and should 

 then gather information as to their importance in other 

 regions and where they are grown with the greatest success. 

 Then may follow such details as the rotation or farm-plan 

 in which these crops find a place, the times and methods of 

 sowing, the fertilizers used, the methods of tilling, harvest- 

 ing and marketing; and then inquire as to any special 

 difficulties in the way of insects or plant diseases. The cost 



429. A crop of broom-corn. 



of growing the crop, the usual prices and the yields should 

 always be determined as nearly as possible. 



425. How to Study a Crop Plant. We have been directed 

 in this book to some of the important things to look for in a 

 plant, from root to fruit; and our attention has been called 

 to some of the relations of plants when they live together. 

 These observations may be made on cultivated plants 

 with as much interest as on wild plants. The cultivator of 

 plants should develop the habit of careful observation on 

 individual plants that he cultivates; this observation should 

 aid him in discovering the reasons for failure or success in 

 the growing of plants. The student should go directly to the 



