118 INTENSIVE FARMING 



such a farm amount to $21.15 per acre. $39 

 less $2i.i5=$i7.85 gross profit, from which 

 must be deducted cost of hired help and a wage 

 for the owner if he works the place. 



Allow $240 for hired help ana there would 

 exist a net profit of $11.85 P er acre on tne 

 year's operations. It is evident from this cal- 

 culation that a more remunerative cropping sys- 

 tem must be devised in order to make irrigation 

 pay. The question is can this be done under 

 the environment? An analysis of this case 

 shows that alfalfa at $15 per acre gross gives 

 a loss of $6.15 per acre plus the cost of pro- 

 duction. Either the crop must be abandoned 

 or a more profitable method of disposing of it 

 devised. It is likely that if the alfalfa were fed 

 to dairy cows it would return a larger income 

 than by direct sale. If it can be made to re- 

 turn the equivalent of the annual fixed charge 

 per acre it will be wise to retain it in the rota- 

 tion, for it prepares the land for profitable 

 crops of both potatoes and sugar beets. 



The cropping system mentioned is about as 

 profitable as any that can be devised for this 

 environment. In order, therefore, to make a 

 place of this size produce a day wage for the 

 owner it will be necessary to change the plan 

 of utilization so as to sell the alfalfa more ad- 



