99 



BULLETIN 7."..i, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



Tabi e VII. — Relation of crew labor to the cost of cultivating the sugar-beet crop 

 in the Billings region in 1915. 



Crew. 



Number 

 of farms. 



Acres of 

 beets. 



Average 

 times 

 culti- 

 vated. 



Cost of cultivating 

 per acre. 



Once 

 over. 



Total. 



1 man, 1 horse 



1 man, 2 horses 



Hired 



37 



265 



3 



537 



8,206 



98 



3.63 

 4.19 

 3.41 



$0.60 

 .41 

 .50 



$2.19 

 1.71 

 1.70 









305 



8,841 



4.41 



.42 



1. 71 







FURROWING FOR IRRIGATION. 



To furrow the average acre requires one hour of man labor, and the 

 team or horse labor is nearly two hours, being a little less than double 

 the amount of man labor because some men use only one horse for 

 furrowing. The average cost of labor for furrowing is 39 cents per 

 acre. Only seven growers furrowed twice, and only one did not fur- 

 row, the others furrowing once. 



The ordinary beet cultivator is used for furrowing, shovels that 

 make small ditches about 3 or 4 inches deep being attached. 



Implements covering two rows were used by 35 growers ; 12 fur- 

 rowed five rows at a time, one man did not furrow, and the remainder 

 four rows at a time. The furrower makes one extra ditch each time 

 across, but doubles back in it in cases where two or four rows are 

 furrowed at a time. Those growers who used 2-row furrowers did 

 not have very large acreages of beets, averaging only 6 acres per man. 

 Their acreage being small, it probably would not pay them to buy 

 more expensive machinery. They furrowed on an average 5.77 acres 

 per 10-hour day at a cost of 52 cents per acre, this being 13 cents per 

 acre more than the average cost for the entire area. 



In furrowing four rows at a time the average day's work of a man 

 and 2-horse team for a 10-hour day was 10.72 acres, at a cost of 37 

 cents per acre. 



In furrowing five rows at a time the man and 2-horse team aver- 

 aged 12.71 acres per 10-hour day, at a cost of 31 cents per acre. Al- 

 though this is the least in cost per acre for furrowing, it is very 

 doubtful whether it is the most economical method. It is necessary 

 that more care be taken to cover all the rows in the same order, as 

 they are planted by a 4-row drill. If the rows are a little wide or 

 close between drill rounds, this method will plow up some beets; 

 and cents per acre is a small saving, as a few beets will more than 

 amount to this sum. A dozen beets plowed out or covered per acre 

 would eliminate any saving, regardless of other losses. 



