130 PRINCIPLES OF FARM PRACTICE 



will not succeed. Fertilizers are often used, especially those 

 containing phosphoric acid and potash. 



Tobacco is grown as a cash crop and in some localities as 

 a main crop. Where it is produced along with other crops 

 in general farming, there is a tendency to make tobacco the 

 main crop to the neglect of other crops. This tendency is to 

 be deplored; for the additional profit gained from the tobacco 

 would doubtless be more than equalled by the profit secured 

 from a well-balanced system of farming. 



The production of a tobacco crop is too complicated a 

 procedure to discuss in detail here. Many of the operations 

 require special skill and experience. 



Factory crops. Included in these are sugar beets, to- 

 matoes, sweet corn, peas, and cucumbers. According to the 

 general practice, these crops are produced in cooperation with 

 factories. Beet-sugar factories and canning factories enter in- 

 to contracts with the farmers to buy certain products. The 

 factories give directions for planting and caring for the crops, 

 sometimes furnishing expert supervision and often furnish- 

 ing seed. As the factory crops require considerable labor, the 

 average farmer can devote only a part of his farm to their 

 cultivation; but where factories are near, such crops are often 

 useful as cash crops, and on small farms they may become 

 the chief source of income. 



