24. BULLETIN 1435, U. 8S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
TaBLE 18.—Labor practices, by operations, on 100 groves in Polk County, Fla., 
averages for those performing operations in 1922 
Average crew Total days per | Percent- 
: Times Acres ope age of 
Operations e farmers 
over per day reporting 
Man Horse Man Horse use 
; Number | Number | Number | Number | Number | Number | Per cent 
Plowing yee poh hae eye © 88 Po 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.6 0.7 0. 9 
ETATEO Wii Goes eee A sen 1.0 1.8 9.8 6. 4 iene 2.4 100 
Applying fertilizer___.__-__-.2.- 2.6 lee 2.7 11.4 ah 4 98 
IPM Be ee Sate See ee ee a Tee Lp Lae ee pe 1.0 .3 Pip) 9 Reva ate ty Ah ee 99 
1B ieyodbualee | oyquolsee eos Se Paes 12 ere 1.0 2.8 5 5 99 
EOeIn pe ERs ot tae SE ENE TOG Eee est 1.6 1.1 NAY. pl ata ee 2 100 
SPLa yi e ess Stee ee as 2.6 2.2 4.1 eal 1.4 1.3 93 
VEO Wir it Ue Ne an 1.0 1.9 1.3 6.2 72 13 50 
Fic. 4.—Fertilizer is. applied two or three times a year to the bearing trees. The distributing is 
done by hand, making it easy to vary the rate of application according to the condition and the 
quantity of fruit set on the individual trees 
The trees with better than normal yields received dn application 
of fertilizer greater by about 10 pounds than the average application 
for all trees. The grower applies fertilizer with a view to the effect 
on the general condition of the tree (fig. 4). An overdose of fer- 
tilizer makes a tree sick. Therefore, from the standpoint of intensive 
use of fertilizer the growers on this particular type of soil are not 
guided by diminishing returns so much as by judicious increases in 
the use of fertilizer in order not to reach that point where an addi- 
tional quantity of fertilizer will create an unhealthy condition of the 
tree. For trees above 10 years in age, in good condition, 50 pounds 
of fertilizer per tree of a 3-8-8 (nitrogen-phosphoric acid- potash) 
mix was regarded on the average by the more successful growers to 
be about the right quantity to use. 
am | 
: 
4 
fi 
4 
4 
