28 MISC. PUBLICATION 702, U. S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 



ton an acre every 4 years. Every year superphosphate would be ap- 

 plied to the acreage seeded to oats and to the grass and legume mixture. 

 Approximately 250 pounds an acre would be applied. This cropping 

 system would rapidly build up the level of soil fertility. Because of 

 this, an allowance has been made in plan 2 for an increase in yield of 

 corn from 55 to 70 bushels an acre and in yield of oats from 35 to 50 

 bushels an acre. 



Cattle-feeding operations for the farm under plan 2 would consist 

 of feeding 77 head of calves a year. Two of these would be raised on 

 the farm, and 75 bought. Allowing for the loss of 2 calves during the 

 year, 75 head would be finished out. Western steer calves averaging 

 450 pounds and grading Good would be laid in during September or 

 October. They would be carried during the winter period on brome- 

 alfalf a hay and a small daily allowance (one-fourth pound) of a high- 

 protein oil meal. When turned on brome-alf alf a pasture in the spring, 

 feeding of ground ear corn would start and continue until the calves 

 were ready for market about the last part of September. By feeding 

 approximately 35 bushels of corn a calf, the animals should weigh 

 around 1,100 pounds when marketed and they should grade Low Good. 



Compared with the present production plan of the farm, cash ex- 

 penditures under plan 2. including $2,900 for feeder calves, would be 

 increased about 3V<> times. Keceipts would be more than enough 

 greater to cover the additional expenses. Even if interest had to be 

 paid on money borrowed to buy the cattle and to make the other neces- 

 sary capital outlays needed to handle the cattle-feeding operations, 

 net cash farm income of plan 2 would be larger than that for the present 

 plan. 



To get the higher net cash farm income by feeding calves, the farmer 

 would put in many more hours of work than in growing cash crops. 

 His work would be doubled. Half of the increase, however, would 

 come in the 4 months December through March, a slack work period on 

 cash-grain farms. Hours of tractor use would be similar under the 

 two production plans. 



More corn would be needed on the farm under plan 2 than would be 

 produced on the 35 acres planted to this crop. Approximately 900 

 bushels of corn would be bought. On the other hand, increased pro- 

 duction of oats under plan 2 would result in sales of about 1,330 bushels, 

 400 bushels more than under the present plan. 



A production plan that is suggested by some people as highly ef- 

 ficient for 160-acre farms in the western Corn Belt combines a number 

 of livestock enterprises with a well-balanced cropping program. In 

 detail, the plan calls for raising about 100 market hogs, finishing out 

 some 25 beef calves, a part of which are raised on the farm, and milking 

 8 or so cows. Butterfat is sold. Liberal amounts of forages would 

 be provided in the cropping system. A plan of this kind has been 

 worked out for the 160-acre cash-grain farm. Some of the details are 

 shown under plan 3 of table 7. 



The specific cropping program for plan 3 would consist of an ap- 

 proximate 5-year rotation on 145 acres and permanent bluegrass pas- 

 ture on 10 acres. The sequence of crops in the established rotation 

 would be corn, corn, oats, followed by bromegrass-alf alf a mixtures for 

 2 years. Following an initial application of limestone, as outlined 

 under plan 2, supplemental applications would be made at the rate of 



