248 



REPORTS ON FOREIGN CROPS. 



Crops in the United States. 



The report of the Statistician of the United States Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture for September furnished the following 

 particulars as to the condition of crops in that country. The 

 general average condition of wheat when harvested was 85*7, 

 or 1 1*1 higher than last year's average. 



The July returns as to maize indicated a decrease of 1*2 per 

 cent, in the acreage as compared with last year. This 

 estimate, which was preliminary, represented a decrease of about 

 one million acres, the area being returned at 80,095,051 acres. 

 The average condition was 79*3 on September 1, or 11-9 points 

 lower than at the same period last year. 



The average condition of rye when harvested was 90*1 as 

 compared with 82*0 last year. The condition of oats when 

 harvested was 84*6 or 10 points higher than at the time of 

 harvesting last year. The consolidated returns received indi- 

 cated that about one per cent, of last year's oat crop w T as still 

 on hand. Of barley the average condition was 86*4 or 3*3 

 higher than last year. The area sown to buckwheat this year 

 is 4*8 per cent, less than last year, or about 719,000 acres, 

 while the average condition was 95*1 in September. 



The condition of potatoes was returned at 667, which is a 

 fall of ii*2 points from the August figure and 16*5 points 

 worse than last year. The total area of the hay crop is said 

 to be 1 *9 per cent, below last year's crop, which would be 

 equal to about 42,438,000 acres. 



The apple crop was in the main very unfavourable, and the 

 peach crop more or less of a failure. The average condition 

 of the pastures was very high, reports from three-fourths of the 

 States making it about 100. 



