Farm Types in Nebraska 
39 
another illustrate how a farm in the Great Plains adjusts its 
area to overcome the effects of low crop yields and short pas- 
ture growth. The base-length of a block represents the total 
farm area. (Note here Table 3, columns 1 and 5.) The divi- 
sion of the farm area between crop and pasture land is 
brought out by shading. The height of one block relative to 
another (the height above the shading) is in harmony with 
the crop index of one farm type relative to another. The crop 
index of each of these farm types was calculated from the 
census and applies only to the crop year 1909. When the crop 
and pasture growth in the Thayer area was assumed to be 100 
per cent, the Harlan and Hitchcock types measured 60.2 and 
32.0 per cent respectively. Tho these measurements are based 
on only the crop year 1909, they serve very well as an index 
to normal conditions. According to the results obtained, 100 
acres of the Harlan type of farm were equivalent, in 1909, to 
60.2 acres of the Thayer type of farm. Comparing the Hitch- 
cock type of farm with the Thayer type in this year, 100 acres 
of the former were about equivalent to 32 acres of the latter. 
This principle of adjusting the size of farm to the quan- 
tity and value of plant growth is as old as dry land farming. 
It is practiced in all of the dry border regions of the world. 
Field studies in Nebraska lead one to conclude that until this 
principle is complied with the would-be dry farmer is barred 
from success. 
MONTH-DEGREES 
TJ 
S 
m 
r 
o 
z 
Fig. 15. — The size-of-farm lines for 1910 plotted on a diagram which uses 
rainfall as degrees of longitude and month -degrees as degrees of latitude. 
