UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



BULLETIN No. 654 





Office of the Secretary 



Contribution from the Office of Farm Management 



W. J. SPILLMAN, Chief 



fLW^mTU 



Washington, D. C. 



June 14, 1918 



FARM ORGANIZATION IN THE IRRIGATED VALLEYS 

 OF SOUTHERN ARIZONA. 



By R. W. Clothier, Agriculturist. 



CONTENTS. 



Page. 



Object of investigations 1 



Summary of results 1 



General description of localities 4 



Method of investigation 15 



Standards used in this bulletin for measuring 



success 17 



Types of farming 21 



The adaptation of the farm enterprises to the 



size of the farm 42 



The relation of capital invested and size of 

 farm to farm income and labor income ... 47 



OBJECT OF INVESTIGATIONS. 



This bulletin presents the results of a farm survey of 627 farms 

 conducted in the three larger irrigated valleys in southern Arizona. 

 The general object of the investigations was to determine those factors 

 of business management and farm practice which influence financial 

 returns and lead to success or failure, in order that recommendations 

 might be made that would lead to general financial improvement 

 among all farmers in the districts studied. The valleys are located as 

 follows (see fig. 1) : Salt River Valley, in the southeastern part of 

 Maricopa County; Gila Valley in Graham County northeast of the 

 Pinolenos Range of mountains ; and Yuma Valley, in Yuma County, 

 in the southwest corner of the State. 



SUMMARY OF RESULTS. 



The facts brought out by this study indicate that the selection of 

 farm enterprises is of great importance and should be carefully 

 studied both by new and old settlers. Over 25 per cent of the farms 

 in the three valleys failed to pay current interest rates on invest- 

 ment, owing largely to a farm organization based primarily on rela- 

 tively unprofitable enterprises. 



Dairying was found to be the most stable as well as the most popu- 

 lar enterprise in the three valleys, contributing 67.7 per cent of the 



32657°— 18— Bull. 654 1 



