50 
BULLETIN 126, U. S. DEPARTMENT. OF AGRICULTURE. 
XXVIII contains the total labor requirement per acre for the three 
districts represented in this study. 
Table XXVIII. — Labor requirement in producing an acre of sugar 
District. 
Greeley 
Fort Morgan 
Rocky Ford. 
Year. 
1914-15 
1915 
1914-15 
Acres 
grown. 
5,028.4 
2, 455. 5 
2, 429. 
Yield per 
acre. 
Tons. 
15.57 
13.65 
12.99 
Hours per acre. 
Man. 
123.9 
118.1 
117.3 
Horse. 
104.5 
103.0 
132.7 
It will be seen that there is little variation in the number of man 
hours. There is a difference of about 6 hours of man labor between 
Greeley and Fort Morgan. A greater variation is apparent in the 
horse labor expended. At Rocky Ford about 30 hours more horse 
labor were necessary than at Greeley or Fort Morgan. A study of 
the farm practice tables shows that the tillage operations were per- 
formed a greater number of times at Rocky Ford than at Greeley or 
Fort Morgan. This was true, especially with such work as crowning, 
disking, leveling, cultivating, and furrowing out. Ordinarily the 
hours of man labor will exceed the hours of horse labor in the pro- 
duction of sugar beets. However, one of these regions furnishes an 
exception to this rule. 
PROFIT. 
In the last analysis the success of a given farm depends not so much 
upon the profit that may be derived from a single enterprise as it 
does upon the balance and stability of the entire organization. A 
certain enterprise on the farm may bring an exceedingly small profit 
at the end of the year, and in comparing the returns with the income 
from other crop or live-stock enterprises, the operator might con- 
clude that the one showing a narrow margin would have to be dis- 
carded, but in reaching this decision he may overlook the fact that 
the industry in question enables him to utilize hands and teams to 
advantage when otherwise they might be idle and merely entailing 
expense. Large direct profits from a single crop should not be the 
determining factor in leading the operator to increase his acreage 
greatly, since the seemingly less profitable enterprises may be con- 
tributing much to his success; indeed, failure might follow if they 
were dropped. This is merely another way of saying that farming 
is a complex business, and that in order to attain the highest success 
each enterprise should be considered not only in its relationship to 
others but also in its bearing upon the farm policy as a whole. Cost 
figures should be discussed in the same manner. However, it may 
be pointed out that estimates can be obtained more readily with a 
single crop than with all enterprises combined (Table XXIX) . 
