COST OF PRODUCING WHEAT. 



17 



The next two and important groups, $20 to $25 and $25 to $30 per 

 acre, contained farms on which there was either a gradual or irregu- 

 lar increase in all or a part of the various items of cost over those 

 farms in the preceding group. These increases were most pronounced 

 in labor and rent costs, although a few farms came within these 

 groups because of abandoned acreage costs. 



Table VIII. — Range in cost per acre, by counties, spring and winter wheat, 1919 (481 



farms) . 



District. 



SPRING WHEAT. 



North Dakota: 



Grand Forks County 



Morton County 



South Dakota: 



Spink County 



Minnesota: 



Clay County 



Traverse County 



Total, spring wheat 



Percent of total 



WINTER WHEAT 



Kansas: 



Ford County 



Pawnee County 



McPherson County 



Missouri: 



Saline County 



Jasper County 



St. Charles County 



Nebraska: 



Phelps County 



SalineCounty 



Keith County 



Total, winter wheat 



Per cent of total 



Num- 

 ber of 

 records. 



197 

 100 



284 

 100 



Cost per acre. 



Under 



$20 

 (num- 

 ber of 



farms). 



to $25 

 (num- 

 ber of 

 farms). 



20 



45 



$25 

 to $30 

 (num- 

 ber of 

 farms) 



to $35 

 (num- 

 ber of 

 farms). 



$35 

 to $40 

 (num- 

 ber of 



farms). 



$40 and 

 over 

 (num- 

 ber of 

 farms). 



The farms in the three highest cost groups had one or more exces- 

 sive items of cost. Thus in the Grand Forks area the farm having 

 a cost of $30 to $35 per acre was a rented farm with a yield of 12 

 bushels per acre based on the acres harvested, but about one-half 

 of the acreage seeded was abandoned before harvest. In the same 

 area the farm in the $35 to $40 class abandoned 150 out of 210 acres. 



The two farms having the highest cost in Spink County came in the 

 $30 to $35 group. One of these farms had a very high rent cost 

 and the other a high labor and rent cost combined with a com- 

 paratively high cost for seed wheat. 



The eight farms in Minnesota with costs of $30 to $35 per acre 

 had high labor and rent costs, and the one farm in Traverse County 

 with a cost of over $40 was a small farm highly capitalized. The 

 26218°— 21— 3 



