38 
BULLETIN 1446, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
cutting begins. As soon as the cutting is completed another 6-horse 
outfit would be added. With these crews all of the wheat could be 
hauled to market by August 4, and with an extra man to help pick 
up chaff this work would be completed by August 17. 
Some farmers reduce the number of work stock and the expense 
for hired-man labor by exchanging work with their neighbors during 
the period for harvesting and marketing wheat. Also during recent 
years the horse work has been reduced on some farms by the use of 
the motor truck to haul the grain to market. On most farms, how- 
ever, it is doubtful if the use of motor trucks will allow any appreciable 
reduction in the number of work stock. 
Table 34. — Standard requirements for field work on a 1 ,280-acre farm l 
Kind and amount of 
work 
Size of crew and 
size and type of 
implement used 
Work a c c o m - 
plished per 10- 
hour day 
Total 
Usual season for do- 
ing field work 
Man 
labor 
Horse 
work 
2 men, 24 horses, 
two 16-inch 3- 
bottom gang 
plows. 
2 men, 12 horses, 
two 24-foot har- 
rows. 
2 men, 12 horses, 
two 12-foot rod 
weeders. 
2 men, 12 horses, 
two 10-foot hoe 
drills. 
18 acres ... 
Hours 
550 
297 
240 
248 
300 
572 
77 
290 
20 
346 
184 
Hours 
6,600 
1,782 
1,440 
1,488 
450 
3,003 
308 
1,740 
80 
692 
46 
Mar. 15 to May 1. 
Spike-tooth harrowing 
1,485 acres. 
Weeding 480 acres 
100 acres 
started before all 
plowing is com- 
40 acres.. 
ued often enough to 
keep weeds down. 
Sept. 15 to Oct. 30, 
Hay harvest and storing 
when moisture con- 
ditions are favor- 
able to germination 
of seed. 
June 20 to July 1. 
51 tons. 
4 men, 21 horses, 
16-foot combine. 
1 man, 4 horses 
1 man, 6 horses, 2 
wagons. 2 
July 4 to Aug. 1. 
ing 429 acres. 
Picking up and piling 
3,874 grain sacks. 
Hauling wheat to market, 
7,532 bushels, 5 miles. 
Hauling grain to gran- 
500 sacks. . 
260 bushels 
ary, 1,184 bushels. 
Picking up and storing 
chaff, 78 tons. 
Miscellaneous work (haul 
2 men, 4 horses 
Six 1,500-lb. loads.. 
clean , and treat seed, 
hand hoe, and haul 
fuel). 
Total 
3,124 
17, 629 
1 The proper use of eveners and hitches would allow the spike-tooth harrowing, weeding, and drilling to 
be done by 1 man driving a 12-horse team. The use of teams of this size for these operations would release 
1 man for other work about the farm, or, if not needed all of the time it would allow some reduction in the 
hire of man labor during these periods. No doubt the use of large teams has a place on the 640-acre farm. 
However, if used on the smaller farm an additional harrow, weeder and drill would need to be purchased. 
See Mont. State Col. Ext. Serv. Bui. No. 70 for suggestions with reference to hitches and eveners and the 
use of big teams on large dry-land farms in the Northwest. 
2 On completion of the wheat cutting another 1-man and 6-horse crew would be added . 
Using the estimates of cash receipts and cash expenses as shown 
in Table 35, the larger farm should result in an increase in cash receipts 
of $4,097 over the smaller farm and in an increase in cash expenses of 
$1,614, resulting in an increased net cash return of $2,483. See 
Table 36 for quantities and values of farm-produced food for home 
consumption. 
It is impossible to receive a large return where the business is of 
small volume. On the other hand, while an increase in the size of 
