In this period, average crop yield (using yields of more than the two 

 above crop years) approximately doubled due to improved practices on many 

 farms. But changes of another kind, drastically affecting the place of potato 

 production on New Hampshire farms, were taking place. Information pieced 

 together from several sources suggests the economic forces back of these 

 changes, the adjustments that growers have made so far, and further adjust- 

 ments that may need to be made. 



Probably even in 1920 many of the farms reporting potatoes were not 

 growing them primarily for sale. However, farmers who recall that period 

 say that a great many farms grew some potatoes, seldom over three or four 

 acres, as a cash crop. Using considerable hand labor at times of the year 

 when other farm work was relatively light, potatoes fitted well as a supple- 

 mentary enterprise on dairy and general farms. That is, they used resources 

 left over from the main enterprise. By the late 1930's and the 1940's the 

 development of efficient row-crop tractors and adapted potato equipment 

 had enabled specialized potato production to become highly mechanized. 

 The growers with small supplementary acreages were under economic pres- 

 sure to make adjustments, the extremes of which were to mechanize and ex- 

 pand or quit potatoes. 



In 1949 the Production and Marketing Administration listed the meas- 

 ured acreages of 354 potato growers in New Hampshire. We may assume that 

 the remainder of the 5,161 farms of the Census were growing their potatoes 

 primarily for home consumption. The 354 growers may be classified by size 

 as follows: under 3 acres of potatoes — 203 growers; 3 to 9 acres — 92 

 growers; 10 to 19 acres — 26 growers; 20 to 29 acres — 16 growers; 30 to 

 39 acres — 5 growers; 40 to 49 acres — 3 growers; and 50 and over acres 

 — 9 growers. 



Most of these growers received mail questionnaries and some were inter- 

 viewed. Most of those in the under-3-acre group were not growing potatoes 

 primarily for sale. Some were commercial farmers, principally dairymen, 

 and some were off-farm workers. Most had little potato equipment, their 

 yields were low, and there was little interest in commercial potato production. 



The greatest number of the 3-to-9-acre potato enterprises were on dairy 

 farms, especially in Coos and Grafton counties. These were mostly commercial 

 potato enterprises, but they are distinctly secondary enterprises if the oper- 

 ator has a full-scale occupation. Potato production on these farms is partly 

 mechanized with semi-obsolete equipment (although there are great vari- 

 ations from farm to farm). The continuance of acreages of this size may be 

 dependent on hiring the expensive specialized machines. 



The 10-to-19-acre potato enterprise tends to occur most frequently on 

 dairy farms, sometimes on fruit, vegetable, and mixed farms, and seldom as 

 a side line to off-farm work. The 10-to-19 acreages is still secondary and 

 supplementary to a main enterprise. However, it is more likely to occur on 

 a two-man than a one-man dairy farm. This group tends to be fairly well 

 mechanized in the growing operations, although some of their equipment is 

 smaller than that of the larger growers and they lack some of the harvesting 

 and storing equipment. Their tractors, trucks, and tillage machines are 

 owned for their main enterprises whether they grow potatoes or not. Potatoes 

 would seem fairly well established as a supplementary enterprise on these 

 farms. These are probably most often farms where the main enterprise, 

 frequently dairy, cannot readily be expanded to fit the labor force and where 

 land, often rented, is available. 



11 



