FARMING OJNT CUT-OVER LANDS. 



DESCRIPTION OF THE AREA. 



The cut-over district in the northern part of ^lichigan, Wisconsin, 

 and ^linnesota extends in a broad belt from St. Marys River and 

 Lake Huron on the east to the Red River Valley on the west. The 

 shaded portion of the map (fig. 1) shows in a general way the boimd- 

 aries of this district. 



The high price of lumber in recent years has brought about the 

 destruction of most of the pine forests in this region and has caused 

 big inroads to be made into the forests of hardwood. Fires have 

 also played an important part in the destruction of these northern 

 forests. The harvesting of the crop of timber and its manufacture 

 into lumber has made a few men very wealthy and for a long time 



Pig. 1.— Map showing cut-over district (shaded area) and location of farms studied. Squares show areas 

 where farm surveys were made and round dots areas where farm practice studies were conducted. 



has furnished employment to a large force of laborers at reasonably 

 good wages. 



Strange as it may seem, the lumberman rated the land that pro- 

 duced this heavy growth of timber as having little or no agricultural 

 value. Wliile this may be true of some of the swamp land and sandy 

 belt areas, it is by no means generally true of this extensive cut-over 

 district. At present prices for farm products the very sandy lands 

 can not be farmed successfully by the <n^dinary methods now in use 

 and the swamp lands must be drained before they can add to farm 

 profits, but a largo perron tage of both these soil types can and will 

 eventually be brought under successful cultivation. 



The soils (fi this region are largely of glacial origin, as the ice sheet 

 at ^)Me time covered tlie enlire district. Tlioro are large areas of 



