CHAPTER V 

 THE CHOICE OF CROPS 



All will agree that in managing a farm one should produce 

 the crops which pay best. The difficulty is to know which 

 crops actually add the most to the farmer's profits. A manufac- 

 turer may decide upon some one line of production, and devote 

 his entire time to the one thing ; but most farmers find it neces- 

 sary to produce a number of crops. 



Suppose a farmer found one crop profitable and decided 

 to produce nothing else, what difficulties would arise? The 

 risk of depending entirely on one crop, — " putting one's eggs 

 all in one basket," — has often been used as an argument against 

 the single crop system. This is a point in favor of diversifica- 

 tion which should not be lost sight of, but which should be given 

 no more than its fair weight in the argument. If the one crop 

 requires a very large proportion of one's time through the 

 farming season, it may pay to specialize. If another crop can- 

 not be introduced without cutting the area of the special crop, 

 the question should be decided on the basis of which system will 

 pay best in the long run. In figuring long-time average profits, 

 soil depreciation or appreciation should always be considered 

 and the element of risk should be covered. 



One of the chief economic reasons for diversified farming is 

 to provide profitable employment more nearly throughout 

 the year for men and horses. Suppose a farmer should decide 

 to produce nothing but Indian corn. The work of preparing 

 the seed bed, planting and cultivating the crop, might keep 

 him busy for from eight to ten weeks in the spring and early 

 summer. The corn laid by, there would be nothing to do until 

 corn harvest. The corn harvested, the farmer would have 



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