SHERID-4.K FIELD STATION, 1917 TO 1923 
T-A.BLE 5. — Annual and average yields of spring wheat, oats, barley, flax, and corn 
on fall plowing and on spring plowing and of winter wheat on early and on late 
fall plowing at the Sheridan Field Station for the six years from 1918 to 19'2S, 
inclusive 
Preceding 
_ crop 
1 
1 
Yields per acre 
Crop 
Treatment 
unii 01 
measure 
1918 1919 
1 
1920 
1921 
1922 
1923 
Aver- 
age 
Spring wheat... 
Do. 
Do 
Small grain - 
do 
Corn 
do .- 
Small grain - 
do 
Corn 
do - 
do - 
do 
Small grain. 
do 
do 
do 
Barley 
do 
Flax ■ 
Spring plowed 
Fall plowed--- 
Bushels 
-.-do.— 
do 
22. 3' 
23. 2i 
28.3 
19.2 
22.1 
24.5 
0.5 

4.0 
4.0 
4.3 
1.0 

1,650 

1,350 

1,383 

867 
s 
I 
.6 
3.0 
2.3 
25.4 
26.9 
29.5 
29.3 
44.4 
44.3 
23.6 
2,100 
24.6 
2,030 
22.1 
1,707 
20.7 
1,617 
29.2 
36.9 
11.1 
7.5 
10.0 
12.1 
11.8 
24.3 
21.2 
15.1 
19.0 
19.3 
20.5 
41.9 
42.9 
42.4 
2,150 
49.9 
2,850 
37.5 
2,203 
34.2 
2,007 
19.8 
23.8 
2.9 
3.8 
9.8 
10.5 
9.4 
7.2 
7.3 
13.8 
15.2 
17.6 
Do.... 
Oats... 
Fall plowed. --!... do 
Spring plowed i...do— . 
Fall plowed-.- ...do.-. 
Spring plowed .--do 
do 1 Pounds 
Fall plowed..-! Bushels 
do .--j Pounds 
Spring plowed I Bushels 
do. Pounds 
Fall plowed... Bushels 
do ' Pounds 
Spring plowed Bushels 
Fall plowed do 
Spring plowed ..-do 
Fall plowed---i-.-do 
Spring plowed do 
26.5 
53.6 
54.7 
32.3 
2,460 
32.4 
2,410 
30.4 
2,740 
29.5 
2,827 
28.6 
26.4 
12.3 
12.5 
18.0 
16.0 
11.7 
34.5 
33.8 
24. 2 
0' 50. 1 
17.4 
32.4 
Do.... 
Corn: 
Grain 
Stover 
Grain 
Stover 
Grain 
Stover 
Grain 
Stover - 
Barlev - 


100 



277 











51.5 
18.8 
1,590 
19.2 
1,460 
16.3 
1,627 
17.1 
1,513 
31.3 
39.4 
7.1 
6.1 
9.1 
8.6 
7.9 
21.3 
20.5 
32.4 
19.5 
1,675 
21.0 
1,683 
17.7 
1,656 
16.9 
1,472 
18.6 
Do 
Flax 
21.1 
5.6 
Do 
Do 
do - 
Corn. .- 
do 
Small grain - 
Winter wheat 
do 
5.0 
7.8 
Do 
Do 
Fall plowed--. 
Spring plowed 
Late fall 
plowed. 
Early fall 
plowed. 
—do-... 
...do— . 
-.-do..„ 
...do.... 
7.9 
6.9 
Winter wheat.. 
Do 
15.1 
14.2 
Very little difference is evident in the average yields of flax on fall- 
plowed and on spring-plowed land, each method yielding better than 
the other in just half the j^ears in which a crop was produced. It has 
been generally held that fairly early seeding, not much later than for 
wheat, is most likely to insure a crop. Early seeding was the practice 
at this station until 1923. Control of weeds, however, has been a 
difficult problem. Results of recent experiments at other stations 
and with the 1923 crop at this station tend to indicate that better 
results may be had by preparing the land as early as practicable but 
delaying seeding until late in May or perhaps even the first of June, 
working the land meantime to kill the weeds as they appear. 
Corn following corn shows a slight advantage for fall plowing, but 
in five out of the six years there was a better growth of stover on the 
spring plowing. Following wheat and oats and with a larger number 
of plats than following corn, spring plowing made the highest yield 
of grain in three of the four years that a crop was produced. The 
average for the 6-year period, however, was only 0.8 bushel of grain 
and 184 pounds of stover more on spring plowing than on fall plowing. 
Considered as a whole, no significant differences have appeared 
in the results between fall plowing and sp)ring plowing. Nearly all 
the differences shown are within the limits of experimental error, 
being so small that the results of a single year might change the 
averages for the entire period. 
There was considerable variation in the time of plowing in the fall. 
It is not possible, however, to identify any relations between the time 
of fall plowing and the yield as compared with that on spring plowing. 
