FARM MANAGEMENT IN CATAWBA COUNTY, N. C. 
13 
The cotton crop occupied 19 per cent of the crop area in 1912 and 
15 per cent of the area in 1918. The average yield per acre was 
0.6 bale (301 pounds) in 1912 and 0.59 bale (293 pounds) in 1918. 
In 1912 and 1918, 18 farmers raised no cotton. With the exception 
of sweet potatoes, cotton returns higher receipts per acre than any 
other crop that is extensively grown in this area. As has been 
pointed out in the preceding pages, from the standpoint of receipts, 
cotton is the leading enterprise. Table 1 (page 2) shows the in- 
creasing importance of the cotton crop in this county since 1850 
(see fig. 5) . 
In 1912, with cotton selling at 11.5 cents per pound, the study 
indicated that from 20 to 40 per cent of the crop land planted to 
cotton gave the highest farm and labor income. That year 37 per 
cent of all the farms came in that group. In 1918, with cotton selling 
at 28.7 cents per pound, the farmers who had 10 to 30 per cent of 
their crop land in cotton got the highest incomes. That year 63 per 
cent of all the farms came in that group. 
Table 9 shows very strikingly the effect of high yields on income. 
For example, in 1912 the farms had an average of 22.1 acres of cotton 
per farm, but with a yield below the average made an average labor 
income of $74, while the small farms that had an average of 9.1 acres 
per farm, but with a yield above the average, made an average labor 
income of $189 per farm. The farmers who had the largest acreage 
in cotton and the highest yields per acre made an average labor 
income of $683. 
Table 9. — -Effect of increased yields of cotton per acre on farm income and labor income 
on 120 farms for 1912 and 84 farms for 1918 with over 20 per cent of their crop acreage in 
cotton, Catawba County, N. C. 
1912 
1918 
Item. 
Yield of 301 pounds 
or less per acre. 
Yield of over 301 
pounds per acre. 
Yield of 293 pounds 
or less per acre. 
Yield of over 293 
pounds per acre. 
50.8 crop 
acres or 
less. 
Over 50.8 
crop 
acres. 
50.8 crop j Over 50.8 
acres or crop 
less. 1 acres. 
47.9 crop 
acres or 
less. 
Over 47.9 
crop 
acres. 
47.9 crop 
acres or 
less. 
Over 47.9 
crop 
acres. 
Number of farms. . . . 
Average acres in 
cotton 
52 
9.7 
238 
$214 
28 
26 
22.1 
242 
$451 
74 
28 14 
9.1 27.9 
369 396 
$388 I $1,423 
189 683 
39 
9.1 
232 
$727 
466 
11 
20.2 
225 
$1, 266 
647 
22 
7.9 
374 
$1, 106 
744 
12 
19.4 
Average yield per 
acre pounds.. 
Farm income 
Labor income 
361 
$2,076 
1,488 
In 1918 the farms that had an average of 20.2 acres of cotton per 
farm, but with a yield below the average, made an average labor 
income of $647, while the small farms that had only 7.9 acres of 
cotton per farm., but with a yield above the average, made a labor 
income of $744. The 12 farmers averaging 19.4 acres of cotton per 
