FARM PRACTICE IN THE CULTIVATION OP COTTON. 



15 



acre for a cotton crop is 408 pounds. In the nine areas having the 

 lowest yields of cotton, only 43 per cent of the farms surveyed use 

 commercial fertilizer, and the average application per acre for a cot- 

 ton crop is 251 pounds. 



THE RELATION OF TILLAGE AND PRICE OF LAND TO CROP YIELDS. 



In Table X the data are arranged to show the relation of tillage 

 after planting and the price of land to yields of cotton per acre. 

 This table shows that there is little correlation between the price of 

 land and the acre yields of cotton, but a very decided relation be- 

 tween the amount of tillage given after planting and the yields of 

 cotton per acre. In a recent study of farm practice in the cultiva- 

 tion of corn ^ it was found that there is little or no relation between 

 yields of corn and the amount of tillage given after planting. Pre- 

 vious investigations ^ have shown that with corn, if weeds be elimi- 

 nated, any sort of tillage after planting is of minor consideration. 

 Recent experiments have indicated that in growing cotton ordinary 

 tillage operations are of minor consideration other than for control- 

 ling weeds. It would appear, however, from these studies that extra 

 tillage does increase the yields of cotton, which, generally speaking, is 

 not found to be true with corn. 



Table X. — The relation of tillag 



? and price of 



land to normal 



acre 



yields 



of cotton. 





Number of cultivations. 



Avera 





Acre value, of farm. 



3 or less. 



4 



or 5. 



6 or 7. 



8 or 9. 



10 or more. 







i 



2 

 ? 



f^ 



2 



a 



2 





2 



« 

 h 



2 





2' 



$30 or less 



2 

 1 

 

 4 

 

 1 

 1 

 

 

 



Lbs. 



900 



400 







538 







500 



400 















99 

 61 

 12 

 26 

 28 

 10 

 16 

 2 

 2 

 2 



Lbs. 

 636 

 725 

 720 

 665 

 887 

 875 

 774 

 725 

 875 

 750 



50 

 52 

 18 

 14 

 16 

 8 

 8 

 2 

 1 

 2 



Lbs. 



. 767 

 940 

 958 

 843 

 994 

 970 

 800 

 875 



1,000 

 925 



3 

 7 

 5 

 2 

 2 

 1 

 

 

 

 



Lbs. 



833 



930 



910 



900 



1,300 



1,200 



















1 

 6 

 1 

 3 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Lbs. 



800 



967 



1,400 



1,166 



























$21. 80 

 41.80 

 60.00 

 77.50 

 100.00 

 124. 25 

 148. 00 

 162. 50 

 175. 00 

 212. 50 



Lbs. 



787 



$31 to $50 



792 



$51 to $70 - - 



997 



$71 to $90 ■- 



822 



$91 to $110 



1,060 



$111 to $130. ...: 



886 



$131 to $150 : . -- 



658 



$151 to $170 



800 



$171 to $190 



937 



$190 or over 



837 







Total 



9 



2,738 

 548 



258 



7,632 

 763 



171 



9,072 

 907 



20 



■ 6,073 

 1,012 



11 



4,333 

 1,083 







Average 















In consideration of the different root systems of the cotton and corn 

 plants, this might be expected. The corn plant has many shallow 

 fibrous roots, many of which are destroyed by cultivation, and it is 

 probable that by cultivating com the injury to the com plants by 

 destroying these numerous roots is as great or greater than the bene- 

 fits of liberating plant food and conserving moisture. 



1 Gates, H.R. Farm practice in the cultivation of corn. U. S. Dept. Agr. Bui. 320, 66 p., 40flg. 1916. 



2 Gates, J. S., and Cox, H. R. The weed factor in the cultivation of corn. II, S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Plant 

 Indus. Bui. 257, 35 p., 10 fig. 1912. 



