38 
Potatoes often follow alfalfa in the cropping scheme. When this 
is the case, the alfalfa is plowed very shallow or "crowned" during 
the fall or early spring, the latter being the common practice. After 
the alfalfa is crowned, it is gone over with a disk or spring-tooth 
harrow and then allowed to lie until time for planting. Just before 
planting the ground is plowed again, this time from 8 to 10 inches 
deep. To conserve moisture, it is recommended that the ground be 
harrowed not over four or five hours after it has been plowed. 
HOURS 
35 
30 
25 
20 
I 5 
I 
5 

20 
I 5 
I 
5 

1 i 
t 
MAN LABOR 
' 
■ 
1 I 1 
HORSE WORK 
H 
■ 
^^™ 
M 
H 
MAR APR MAY JUNE! 
■^H Labor usually done by 
MB farmer and family 
SEPT. OCT. NOV. 
I Labor usually hired 
Fig 12.— Distribution of labor for principal field operations on one acre of potatoes by half-month periods 1 
CONDITIONS 
Yield: 9 tons per acre after alfalfa. 
Equipment used: 14-inch 2-way plow and 3 horses; 8-foot disk and 4 horses; 8-foot spike-tooth harrow 
and 2 horses; 1-man planter and 2 horses; 1-row cultivator and 2 horses; digger and 4 horses. 
Material requirements per acre: 900 pounds Seed, 174 sacks, 1.4 pounds twine. 
Good strong seed potatoes should be used. Potatoes brought from 
outside the Yakima Valley are recommended because they produce 
better stands and are less liable to disease. The most successful 
growers are now planting 1,000 pounds per acre instead of 800 pounds 
as formerly. They are planting closer in the row and are planting 
larger pieces. Closer planting produces more potatoes of the desir- 
able market size and the larger pieces give the young plant a better 
chance against insufficient moisture in the soil. Later planting is 
i The data from which this chart was made, as we 
tions for potatoes, appear in the following: 
las other information on the principal field 
opera- 
Item 
Unit 
Crown al- 
falfa 
Disk 
Corru- 
gate 
Plow 
Harrow 
Cut 
seed 
Plant 
Rates per day .. 
Acres.. . .. ._ 
2 
5 
15 
Mar. 1 to 
15. 
10 
1 
4 
Apr. 1 to 
15. 
7 
1.4 
2.8 
M 
2 
5 
15 
ay 16 to 
15 
.7 
1.4 
31. 
6~ 
June 1 
3.5 
Man labor per acre 
Horse labor per acre 
Dates performed 
2.9 
...do 
Usual 2-week 
period. 
5.8 
to 15. 
Items 
Unit 
Harrow 
Cultivate 
and hill 
Hoe and 
weed 
Irrigate 
Dig 
Pick 
Haul 
to cel- 
lar 
Number 
Acres 
2 
15 
1.4 
2.8 
June 1 to 
15. 
5 
6 
8.5 
17.0 
June 10 
to July 
31. 
6 
1.5 
9 
Kates per day . 
2.5 
4 
3 
3.3 
9.9 
3 
26 
3 
Man labor per acre . 
Hour 
8 
Horse labor per acre. 
Dates performed 
. do 
8 
Usual h a 1 f- 
month period. 
July 16 to 
31. 
June 1 
to Aug. 
31. 
Octo 
ber 16 
to 31. 
