SHERIDAN FIELD STATION, 1917 TO 1923 
11 
bushels on corn ground, an increase on fallow of half the yield on 
corn ground. The yield on fallow was the higher every year and 
was 11.2 bushels in 1919, when drought was so severe that winter 
wheat grown by every other method failed completely. Table 9 
shows the yields each year and the averages for the entire period. 
Table 9. — Annual and average yields of winter wheat, spring wheat, oats, barley, 
and corn on fallow and on corn ground at the Sheridan Field Station for the six 
i/ears from i918 to 1923, inclusive 
Yields per acre 
Preparation 
Unit of 
measure 
Crop 
1918 
1919 
1920 
1921 
1922 
1923 
Aver- 
age 
Winter wheat 
Fallow 
Bushels- 
...do--.. 
47.7 
36.0 
11.2 

34.0 
32.0 
24.8 
10.2 
33.0 
25.3 
35.8 
19.6 
31. 1 
Do-- 
Corn ground 
20.5 
Spring wheat.. 
Fallow 
—do--.. 
30.3 
5.0 
23.7 
20.5 
34.0 
24.2 
23.0 
Do 
Corn ground- 
...do 
.26.5 

24.2 
4.0 
29.3 
20.5 
17.4 
Oats 
Fallow - 
Corn ground 
—do-... 
— do---. 
58.9 
59.1 
2.8 

58.4 
51.7 
25.3 
7.7 
39.1 
45.7 
66.3 
48.5 
41.8 
Do 
35.5 
Barley 
Fallow 
Corn ground- 
...do---. 
..-do--.. 
47.9 
42.3 
4.2 

42.9 
44.0 
13.5 
3.8 
36.9 
55.2 
34.4 
36.3 
30.0 
Do-- 
30.3 
Corn: 
Grain 
Fallow 
—do 
28.1 

19.9 
15.4 
23.4 
42.3 
21.5 
Stover 
do 
Pounds . 
2,370 
630 
1,710 
1,600 
1,760 
1,600 
1,612 
Grain 
Corn ground, 
spring plowed. 
Bushels - 
32.3 

18.8 

23.6 
42.4 
19.5 
Stover 
do 
Pounds 
2,460 
100 
1,590 
1,650 
2,100 
2,150 
1,675 
Gram 
Corn ground, 
fall plowed. 
Bushels. 
32.4 

19.2 

24.6 
49.9 
21.0 
Stover 
.....do... 
Poimds . 
2,410 

1,460 
1,350 
2,030 
2,850 
1,683 
With spring wheat and oats the increases in yield by fallow over 
corn ground are considerably less. In the comparable rotations the 
average yield of spring wheat on fallow was 23 bushels and on corn 
ground 17.4 bushels, an increase of only 5.6 bushels due to fallow. 
The yield of oats on fallow was 41.8 bushels and on corn ground 
35.5 bushels. Corn ground outyi elded fallow one year with spring 
w^heat and two years with oats. In the dry year of 1921 fallow out- 
yielded corn ground with both crops by a considerable margin, and 
in 1919 small yields were produced on fallow and none on corn 
ground. 
From these data it appears that winter wheat may be depended 
upon to produce fair yields on fallow even in the dry years when the 
crop is more or less completely a failure with other methods of soil 
preparation. The average yield for the 6-year period is about 50 
per cent more on fallow than after either small grain or corn. With 
spring grain, however, the increase in yield by fallow over the other 
methods is not so great. Fallow undoubtedly may be depended 
upon for light yields when other methods may result in failures. 
On the average, however, the increase in yield by this method is not 
sufficient to warrant the practice of seeding more than a small part 
of the spring ^rain on fallow in preference to the other tillage prepa- 
rations, especially that of corn grouncf. 
With corn, comparisons are afforded between alternate fallow and 
continuous cropping b}-^ different methods. The yield of grain aver- 
aged 2 bushels per acre more on fallow than on spring plowing con- 
tinuously cropped to corn and half a bushel more than on fall plow- 
ing. The yield of stover was slightly less on fallow than on either 
