72 BULLETIN 412 



Two products, corn and stalks, are produced by the sweet-corn crop. 

 The economical production of sweet corn requires that the stalks be used 

 by some form of livestock. The Orleans and Ontario areas are not dairy 

 sections. In the Livingston area dairying is more important, an average 

 of twenty dairy cattle per farm being kept. A considerable number of 

 sheep were kept in the Orleans and Ontario areas. 



The common rotation in which sweet corn is grown on the upland soils 

 in these areas is: (i) corn or some other cultivated crop for one or two 

 years; (2) oats, barley, or peas; (3) wheat; (4) hay for one or two years. 

 On the valley soils sweet corn is often grown on the same field for a number 

 of years in succession. When the land is to be seeded down again, the 

 succession of crops would be as indicated for the upland soils. 



COST OF PRODUCTION 



The average cost of producing one acre of sweet corn in 1920 on the farms 

 visited in these three areas, is given in table 76. 



Seed, fertilizer, and manure 



Seed was a minor item in the cost of producing sweet corn. It was 

 in all cases furnished by the factory. The usual rate of seeding was a 

 peck to the acre. Fertilizer also was a minor item of cost. Acid phosphate 

 was the fertilizer most generally used. The common rate of application 

 was from 200 to 250 pounds per acre. Manure was a larger item of cost 

 than fertilizer. Neither fertilizer nor manure was used extensively in the 

 Livingston area on the land in sweet corn. This land is naturally very 

 fertile. In all the areas, most of the manure charged to the sweet corn 

 was applied directly to. the 1920 crop. 



Labor 



The largest item of cost was labor. The rates at which the various 

 classes of labor were charged in the different regions are given in table 7 7 . 

 The highest rates, both for hired and for family labor, were in the Orleans 

 area. The high wages paid for help in this section during the season of 

 1920 are indicated by the rate of 50 cents per hour paid for " other hired 

 labor " during harvesting. This wage was paid to women for picking 



TABLE 77. RATES PER HOUR FOR DIFFERENT CLASSES OF LABOR ON SWEET CORN 



IN 1920 



