THE POTATO 145 



labor, kind of season, etc., enter into the problem of 

 cost in such varying proportions that it is almost 

 impossible to give statistics which will prove of 

 much value to others. From records for several 

 years on the college farm at Orono, the cost of 

 growing a ten-acre field of potatoes is about as 

 follows: Man and team labor are reckoned at 

 $3.50 per day, extra men at $1.50 per day. 



Ten-acre field 



Plowing at $2 per acre $20.00 



Harrowing five times, $3.50 per acre . . . . 17.50 



Fertilizer (home mixture) $30 a ton . . . . 225.00 



Seed — 130 bushels, 15 cents a bushel . . . 97.50 



Disinfecting seed (labor and material) . . . 3 . Oo 



Cutting seed (by hand) at 6 cents per bushel . 7 . 80 



Planting, team and two men three days, $5 . 15 . 00 



Harrowing or weeding before crop is up, four times 10 . 50 



Cultivating crop eight times at $3.50 . . . . 28 . 00 



Spraying six times ($1 per acre each application) . 60 . OO 



Hand hoeing and pulling weeds once (if necessary) . 15 . 00 

 Digging and hauling to storehouse or station at 



$15 per acre 150.00 



Rent of land (5% on $50 per acre value) 10 acres . 25 . 00 

 Depreciation of implements, (plows, harrows, 

 planter, sprayer, digger, etc.) value $250 esti- 

 mated at 10% 25.00 



$699.30 

 Value of crop, 225 bushels to acre (2,250 bushels at 



50 cents) $125.00 



Value per acre 112.50 



Cost of growing per acre . . 69 . 93 



Net profit per acre . . . . f $ 42.57 



The E. L. Cleveland Company of Houlton, 

 Maine, one of the largest growers and dealers of 

 seed potatoes in America, makes the following es- 

 timate of the cost of growing an acre of potatoes : 



