June. 1940] 



Farm Management in Colebrook 



25 



An expansion of tillage land usually involves the purchase of an 

 entire farm including tillage, pasture, woodland, and buildings. The 

 addition of a whole farm may result in a greater maladjustment 

 and will require a considerable capital investment. Under condi- 

 tions of partial abandonment of farms or the destruction of build- 

 ings by fire, tillage land can be added without great cost. Some of 

 the better organized farms in the study have been built up by com- 

 bining small adjacent farms. A few men have purchased abandoned 

 farms several miles away and use the tillage land for pasture for dry 

 cows and young stock. Occasionally potatoes are grown on the old 

 tillaee land and in a few instances the hav is harvested and drawn 

 to tne home farm. On a long-time basis, the gradual declme of 

 yields on these semi-abandoned distant fields will result in abandon- 

 ment for hay production. This situation makes it all the more nec- 

 essary for individual farmers to work out economic units in which 

 tillage and pasture are easily accessible to the farmstead. With a 



WIAU HOUR5 



500 



450 



400 



LEGE KID 



Figure 13. 



Labor requirements by ten-day periods on a farm with 19 

 cows and 10 acres of potatoes 



