54 FARM MANAGEMENT 



the farm in grass. When a spot gets poor, it is plowed 

 up, farmed for a year or two, and re-seeded. These small 

 irregular patches of crops in the center of a hay field are 

 amusing to a Western farmer, but the New Englander has 

 a reason for his practice. Potatoes, truck crops, or fruit 

 combined with hay and corn silage for the dairy make a 

 very profitable kind of farming for this region. 



As we go westward, the relative prices change. In New 

 York a ton of hay will buy 20 bushels of corn or 29 bushels 

 of oats as compared with 18 of corn and 23 of oats in 

 Iowa. In 1909, hay occupied 62 per cent of the area in 

 crops in New York and 40 per cent of the crop area in 

 Pennsylvania, 29 per cent in Ohio, and 25 per cent in Iowa. 

 From the prices it would appear as if corn might be the 

 second crop in New York, but oats are second in area 

 and corn third. In value, hay is first and potatoes second. 

 There is much land not adapted to corn that grows oats 

 fairly well. Oats are also desired as a crop with which to 

 seed grass. The straw is also worth more than in Iowa. 

 Winter wheat is grown to some extent in New York and 

 Pennsylvania. Considerable of the wheat in New York 

 is sown after beans without plowing. This greatly 

 reduces the cost of production. In Pennsylvania it is 

 often sown after corn and potatoes without plowing. 

 The wheat is also a good crop with which to seed grass. 



Similar comparisons can be made for other regions and 

 other crops. These cases are cited to show the principle 

 involved and how it works under modifying conditions. 

 It is difficult to compare Northern and Southern states on 

 this basis. Feed prices are usually higher in the South, but 

 the pasture season is longer, so that more of the meat and 

 butter can be grown on pasture. Pasture is also im- 

 portant for hogs and hens. Poultry obtain more green 



