FARM ORGANIZATION IN SOUTHWESTERN MINNESOTA 81 
However, their importance in obtaining the most profitable utiliza- 
tion of the resources of a particular farm is obvious. 
The succession of a large number of different operations from season 
to season on the farms in this area necessitates frequent labor adjust- 
ments. — The operations on a general farm, unlike those of a factory, 
are not standardized and can not be reduced to routine. The suc- 
cession of a large number of different operations from season to season 
renders any general plan of division of labor, specialization by tasks, 
standardization of operations, etc., practically impossible. These 
different operations require different conditions as to soil, weather, 
climate, etc. Thus, it is possible to perform certain of the operations 
when weather or other conditions are unfavorable for the performance 
of others. In this way some of the difficulties due to encountering 
constantly the exigencies of weather in farm work are eliminated. 
For example, a heavy rain in June may stop corn cultivation for a 
time. Meanwhile the work of mowing hay may proceed with very 
little interference. This characteristic must be kept in mind both in 
the organization and day-to-day management of resources. 
Certain wmmarketable resources must be utilized when and where 
they are available. — At various stages in the conduct of their business 
the farmers in Cottonwood and Jackson Counties find themselves 
in possession of certain nonmarketable feeds, nontillable pasture, and 
idle time of man and horses. These are worth just what the operator 
can make them add to the value of the product of the farm by proper 
utilization. A noteworthy example of this is found in the case of 
the labor supply on many of these farms. When the crop labor con- 
stitutes the major portion of the farm work, there is generally a 
surplus of labor during the winter months when little crop work can 
be done. Unless an enterprise is introduced which will provide 
productive employment during these months this labor will be wasted. 
Such labor may get a lower return than that spent on the major 
enterprises, but nevertheless the total returns of the farm will be 
increased by making the best use of it possible. 
Similarly, on many of these farms there are supplies of corn stover, 
skim milk, straw, wild hay, or other frequently nonmarketable 
feeds, which must be used on the farm in connection with other feeds 
or allowed to go to waste. The existence of a large amount of non- 
tillable pasture may justify the keeping of livestock which give a 
relatively low return, but which afford the best market for this par- 
ticular resource. 
The use of intermediate products presents a complicating factor. — In 
the system of general stock and grain farming common to this region, 
intermediate products appear at various stages in the production 
process. This requires decisions on the matter of using these inter- 
mediate products in further production or marketing them directly. 
Thus a producer of hogs who grows his own feed must decide whether 
the corn, oats, and other feeds are to be sold on the market or through 
the hogs. The milk or butterf at producer must make similar decisions. 
The conduct of these livestock enterprises constitutes a method of 
marketing the products of other enterprises. 
Such decisions are rendered more difficult by reason of the effect 
of the fertility by-product from marketing these feeds through live- 
stock. The value of this fertility added to the soil depends upon the 
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