MARKETING AND DISTRIBUTION OF WESTERN MUSKMELONS. 17 
Table 5. — Average cost of production per acre of mushmelons in the Imperial Valley* 
Rent per acre 
Plowing per acre (hired) 
Disking per acre 
Leveling per acre 
Seed (at $1.25 per pound) 
Planting (2 acres per day) 
Thinning and hoeing 
Cultivating (4 times) 
Training vines out of furrows 
Watering (about 15 times) through season, at 50 cents per acre-foot. 
Total 
Low 
$10.00 
1.50 
Average. 
$22. 50 
3.00 
.75 
.50 
2.00 
1.13 
2.25 
3.00 
1.00 
2.00 
2.5$ 
41.88 
Yields are variable. One shipper controlling 722 acres in 1915 
reports an average yield of 167 crates per acre at one shipping station 
and of 222 crates at another. For 1914 the same shipper reports a 
grand average of but 126 crates per acre on 562 J acres. General 
opinion places 175 crates per acre as a good average yield, although 
this is somewhat lower than the 1915 yield, which was 185 crates 
per acre. On the basis of 175 crates per acre, the per-crate cost of 
production is 23.9 cents. Further costs are as follows: 
Table 6. — Total cost per crate on board cars of mushmelons from the Imperial Valley. 
Picking and packing (by contract) $0. 20 
Crates, nails, and wrappers. 20 
Hauling (average cost by contract) 045 
Shed fee 01 
Total 455 
Growing cost 23$ 
Cost on board cars 694 
The average grower, therefore, must receive a return of approxi- 
mately 70 cents per crate before he is repaid for his labor. 
Consuming Capacities of Markets. 
As a guide to consuming capacities of the various markets at prices 
returning the grower his net cost of production, Table A (in envelope 
at end of bulletin) is presented, showing the daily receipts of Imperial 
Valley melons in all markets throughout the United States during 
the past season and the average returns from such markets, net to 
the grower, after commissions and charges are deducted. These 
figures cover returns on every car sold by 11 of the 16 large shippers, 
approximately 3,500 cars, or 75 per cent of the total shipments. 
Every car sold in every market is not included, and cars arriving 
in bad condition have been omitted, but there are a sufficiently 
large number to form a good basis for calculation. 
In each case where it was available the average price for each sized 
crate in each car has been taken and the various brands on one 
52335°— Bull. 401—16 3 
