FARM MANAGEMENT ON IRRIGATED FARMS 59 
farm, with less family labor available for farm work than most oper- 
ators of medium-sized farms, managed to handle livestock enterprises 
with profit along with his crop work. If the operator followed the 
practice of a few crop farmers in the area and kept only one cow for 
family use and enough chickens to furnish eggs for the family, his 
net receipts would have been about $750 less than they were, as 
shown by the following comparison : 
Present organization (see Farm No. 4, Table 25) : 
Cash crop receipts $1, 612 
Cash livestock receipts 1, 235 
Total $2,847 
Extra cost of keeping additional livestock : 
170 bushels corn at 50 cents $85 
•100 bushels wheat at $1 100 
Miscellaneous 32 
Total 217 
Cash returns from organization 2, 630 
Same farm without additional livestock : 
Cash crop receipts (same as above) $1, 612 
16 tons hay at $15 240 
Total 1,852 
Cost of baling 16 tons of alfalfa hay 40 
Cash returns from organization 1, 812 
Difference in cash returns between the two organizations 818 
In these calculations only the extra costs and receipts, due to keep- 
ing the additional livestock, are considered. It is assumed that each 
of the four cows used 4 tons of ha,y which could be sold at $15 per 
ton, the average price for the year; that $3 per cow will cover 
breeding fees, veterinary, etc. ; and that $20 will cover grit, charcoal, 
spray material, etc., for the chickens and turkeys. All of the corn 
and wheat held over from the previous year was fed to the poultry. 
No feed was purchased during the year. 
By keeping the additional livestock this operator was able to in- 
crease his farm earnings approximately $800. It also helped him 
to obtain his extra high crop yields and to provide productive em- 
Eloyment for a large part of the farm labor which would otherwise 
ave been idle. Perhaps the most important advantage of the live- 
stock enterprises as a sideline was in stabilizing farm earnings, which 
in recent years have been uncertain on account of sharp fluctuations 
in alfalfa and potato prices. Many strictly hay and potato farmers 
in the area, such as the operator of Farm No. 3, Table 25, can insure 
better long-time average incomes by keeping at least enough live- 
stock to use a large part of the surplus and unmarketable crop 
pro ' 
ducts and the idle or unproductive family labor available for farm 
work. 
Planning the farm work and the utilization of resources in advance 
enabled farm No. 4 operator to obtain more efficient results from the 
utilization of his labor and other resources. To provide winter past- 
ure for his cows, this farmer seeded the potato ground to rye as soon 
as the potatoes were harvested. This furnished good cow pasture 
from aoout November 1 to March 15 on the land which was to be 
