12 



BULLETIN 32, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



tilizer containing- 4i per cent of nitrogen, 9 per cent of phosphoric 

 acid, and 10 per cent of potash was made. During the summer the 

 potatoes received good cultivation and in the fall gave a yield of 

 800 bushels of merchantable potatoes from 6 acres. 



After potato digging, the land was fall-plowed and the next 

 spring it was planted to barley. Previous to sowing the barley 7 

 tons of plaster lime were applied with a manure spreader to the 6 

 acres. The weather was very dry and the barley, a small-growing 

 2-rowed variety, did not grow very well. At the time of sowing the 

 barley an application of grass seed, consisting of a mixture of 12 

 quarts of red clover and 4 quarts of timothy per acre, was made. 

 The grass came up nicely and made a fine stand. On account of dry 

 weather the clover did not seem to be doing very well, so Mr. English 

 mowed the barley before it was ripe and secured two small loads of 

 barley hay. In this way the stand of clover was saved and it grew 

 luxuriantly during the summer and fall. 



The next spring the clover was allowed to grow until early in 

 July, when the cattle were turned in to pasture it. The crop was 

 especially good and Mr. English was severely criticized by his 

 neighbors for his practice. 



That fall, 1909, the field was again plowed, the organic matter and 

 the nitrogen of the clover thus being added to the soil, and potatoes 

 were planted the next season. Good cultivation and good weather 

 conditions were factors favoring a good yield. This time 200 

 bushels per acre of marketable potatoes were secured. About GOO 

 pounds of the potato fertilizer mentioned were used on this crop. 



The cost and income of the second crop of potatoes were estimated 

 by the owner and the writers to be as shown in Table II. 



Table II. — Cost of and income from the second crop of potatoes on 6 acres of 

 hill land of the English farm. 



Item. 



Cost. 



6 acres. 



Average 

 per acre. 



Income. 



Average 

 per acre. 



Value of land after improvement, 1 6 acres, $40 per acre, 



interest at 5 per cent 



Plowing 



Preparation (harrowing 4 times) 



Planting 



Seed, 10 bushels per acre, at 60 cents per bushel 



Fertilizer, 600 pounds per acre, 4J-9-10 



Cultivation, 5 times 



Spraying for bugs only 



Digging and picking up 



Marketing 



SI 2. 00 

 16.00 

 10.00 



8.00 

 36.00 

 60.00 

 30. 80 



2.80 

 40.00 

 36. 00 



82. 00 

 2.67 

 1.66 

 1.34 

 6.00 



10.00 

 5.13 

 .46 

 6.67 

 6.00 



Total and average cost 2 



Receipts, 1,200 bushels of potatoes, at 60 cents per bushel. 

 Income (taxes and use of machinery not included ) 



251.60 



41. 93 



$720. 00 

 468.40 



$120.00 

 78.07 



i This land in its unimproved condition was valued at $20 per acre. Adding to this value the cost of im- 

 provements we find its present value to be $40 per acre. 



2 Dividing S2.j1.60 d lie total cost of production) by 1,200 (the number of bushels), the cost of production 

 is found to be 80.209 per bushel. 



