34 MASS. EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 387 



Proportion of Improved Land 



The proportion of improved land is considered both from the standpoint of 

 total town area and in relation to land in farms. Each indicates a different set 

 of circumstances. A high percentage of improved land in the total town area 

 denotes the agricultural character of the town as far as land utilization is con- 

 cerned. On the other hand, a high proportion of improved land in farms does not 

 necessarily point to the same position of the town in agricultural land utilization. 

 There are a number of towns of a residential and industrial character with only 

 a few farms but with most of the land on these farms being utilized for farming. 



Classification on the basis of percentages of improved land in relation to total 

 town area indicates (Map 5) that the group of towns with the lowest proportion 

 of improved land is found in the hilly sections of the Berkshire area, in the northern 

 section of Worcester County with the adjoining towns of Franklin County, and in 

 the Cape Cod region. The proportion of improved area in this group of towns 

 ranges up to 10.6 percent. The small amount of land utilized for agricultural 

 purposes in these towns is due in most cases to the poor quality of the soil or rough 

 topography or both. In the eastern part of the State the primary cause is most" 

 often the use of land for purposes other than agriculture or forestry. 



The second or intermediate group of towns has a range in proportion of im- 

 proved area from 10.6 to 18.6 percent; these towns are scattered in various sec- 

 tions of the State. The third group, with the highest percentage of improved 

 land, is represented largely by towns in the western part of Berkshire County, in 

 the Connecticut River Valley, in the southern part of Worcester County, and in 

 the northwestern portion of Middlesex County. Most of these towns have a 

 high degree of land suitability and are primarily agricultural in character. 



In considering the grouping of towns on the basis of proportion of improved 

 land in farms it will be observed from the maps that there is substantial coinci- 

 dence with the groups based on the relation of improved lai;d to total town area. 

 There are, however, a number of exceptions, the most notable being the Cape 

 Cod area, where little land is in farms, but most of it is used with a fair degree of 

 intensity. 



DENSITY OF COWS AND POULTRY 



The amount of improved land indicates the degree of intensity to which the 

 land is being utilized for crops and improved pasture. Much of the agriculture 

 of Massachusetts, however, is carried on through the medium of imported feed 

 which enables some towns with a low degree of land utilization to maintain con- 

 siderable numbers of livestock and poultry. Maps 7 and 8 indicate respectively 

 the number of cows and poultry supported by the individual towns per square 

 mile of their territory. 



Density of Cow Population 



Dairying is the predominant type of agricultural enterprise in Massachusetts 

 and is found in all sections of the State. The major distinctions in the organiza- 

 tion of the dairy industry in Massachusetts, going from west to east, lie in the 

 smaller size of farms (Map 7), the declining proportion of pasture land, and the 

 amount of home-grown feed per head of livestock. In considering the grouping 

 of towns on the basis of the density of cow population it will be observed that the 

 greatest concentration is in towns where the proportion of improved land to the 

 total town area is the highest, or in other words, in towns which have already 

 been designated as agricultural on the basis of land utilization. 



