30 BULLETIN 896, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. - 
On many of the farms where no breaking was done bedding and 
rebedding occurred. This work is usually done with a one-mule 
turning plow. The crew generally consisted of one man and one 
mule. Exceptions to this were found in Greene County, Ga.; Ander- 
son County, S. C.; and Rusk County, Tex., where the crew included. 
one man and two mules. In Ellis County, Tex., 90 per cent of the 
farm operators utilized a crew of one man and four mules for bed- 
ding. The bedding was done in Ellis County chiefly with a four- 
mule middle buster. The normal time for bedding in Ellis County 
was about two man hours per acre. It required approximately 6 
man hours per acre to do this work in several districts. 
RUN MIDDLES. 
In bedding land for cotton a narrow strip of soil is left in the fur- 
row between the two beds. When this is worked down with some 
tillage implement the operation is known as “running middles.”’ 
Some of this work was undoubtedly given under other headings. 
Consequently a relatively small amount of time is reported in this 
connection. There were four districts in which this operation ap-' ° 
peared to receive considerable attention. (See Table X XVI.) 
TaBLe XXVI.—Run middles (seed-bed preparation). 
Reporting. Acres per farm. Crew. Hours pet acre. 
: t 
State and county. ‘ Ree ee ee 
um- | cent 0 Ov- ? 
ber. total | cotton.| ered. a ee \ 
records. | 
Se oa ae | S| Se le 
Georgia: . 
Greene County--..-.------ 4 5 | 34.50] 33.00 1.0 1 1.5 ile 2.5 
Sumter County........-- 44 Gis |= 68h Uy |v GBw7As) 1.0 1 1.0 2.1 2.1 
Alabama: | 
Tallapoosa County.....- 35 SO) 2a sl 1.0 1 1.0 219% 2.9 
Marshall County---....-- 24 PA Ns Ae file Ss Te Zl 1.0 i 1.0 1.8 2.0 
DaleiCounityaess ee eee 6 (eet OSsiseataOs 1.0 1 1.0 1.8 1.8 
South Carolina: 
Barnwell County .......- 9 TOs eee -eRsyealz/ 1.0 1 1.0 1.4 1.4 
Texas: . 
Rusk Counityas -sesseee se 23 31) 46.00 | 41.70 1.2 1 1.2 | 1.6 159 
This operation was not reported by cotton growers in Laurens | 
County, Georgia, Anderson County, South Carolina, and Ells County, | 
Texas. 
PLANT. 
Planting was done in Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina from 
March 15 to May 15. In the two Texas districts planting dates 
varied from March 15 to April 1 to June 8 and 10. In practically 
all of these areas cotton was planted on beds. This survey indicates ~ 
a very extensive use of the one-row planter for putting in the cotton ! 
