GROWING FIELD CROPS IN SUGAR-BEET DISTRICTS. 



43 



Figures on costs are used not to indicate the absolute rates per 

 bushel or per ton in 1917, but to show the comparative cost of pro- 

 ducing an acre of wheat and an acre of alfalfa, potatoes, beans, or 

 beets. 



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Fig. 39. —A cantaloupe field, showing a roadway for hauling the melons. 



Where the quantities of materials, labor, etc., are determined, the 

 cost of producing a given crop for any year can be computed by 

 applying the prevailing prices and wages for that period. 



Costs are grouped under three headings: Labor, materials, and 

 other costs. " Labor " includes the work performed by men and horses, 



Fig. 40.— A cantaloupe packing shed. 



whether such employment is paid for by the hour or at a contract 

 rate. " Materials" embraces such items as manure, seed, fertilizer, 

 and water. The item " Other costs" covers the remainder of the 

 cost items, chief of which is the use of the land. Many charges under 

 this group are against the farm as a whole, and the proportion of the 



