66 AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS 



(3) The work which requires dry land and dry weather 

 comprehends the greater number of field operations which 

 must be performed at a definite time, hence the importance of 

 keeping this time free for these activities. The percentage of 

 time capable of being used in the field which is actually used 

 for this purpose is a measure of one's ability as a manager. 



C. The third classification is based upon the condition of the 

 ground with respect to frost and snow. 



(1) The work which cannot be done while the ground is 

 frozen comprehends a large share of the field operations. Some 

 of the activities which one is in danger of postponing too long 

 and for this reason suffer loss are potato digging, beet lifting, 

 and fall plowing. Every farmer should be informed as to the 

 time of year the ground usually freezes sufficiently to stop these 

 lines of work and bend every effort to having all work of this 

 nature out of the way before that date. The fact that the 

 permanent freeze is some years much later than the ordinary, 

 should not be used as a reason for delay. The good manager 

 keeps step with nature, but tries to keep considerably ahead 

 of the date when a given task cannot be performed. The early 

 dates when the ground has frozen enough to stop plowing 

 should be held in mind rather than the later dates. The gen- 

 eral rule in autumn is " work which cannot be done when the 

 ground is frozen should take precedence over work which can 

 be done later." Fall plowing should be looked after first and 

 corn husking afterwards because the husking can be done when 

 the ground is frozen and the plowing cannot. 



(2) In the corn belt, the husking of corn stands out as an 

 important task which is performed when the ground is frozen 

 but which should be completed before a heavy snow falls. It 

 is the fear of snow and severely cold weather that impels the 

 corn farmer to bend every energy to clear the field of corn 

 before the first of December, or some other date fixed by the 

 experience of the community as the time when there is danger 

 of weather which will stop the work. 



(3) There are many tasks which can be done in winter and 

 while the ground is covered with snow. Examples are : hauling 



