Show POINTERS ON SPRING WHEAT CUL CULTIVATION I II II I I Government Experts Assert Climatic Conditions Are re Big 1 Factor in Great Plains Area W Washington May 29 At At the ten more northern field stations of ot the Great Plains PI area spring wheat has been grown at al A t profit h by at least one method of ot cultivation but has lias shown an actual loss at the four southern field stations located at Hays Haya and Garden elt City lien Kan Dalhart and Am Amarillo anno Tex lex Spring wheat wheal as a commercial crop Cratl Is Important In the states of ot North Dakota Minnesota South Dakota Washington Nebraska Montana Iowa Colora Colorado o Idaho Oregon Oreg Wisconsin Utah Kansas Cansas New Mexico and Nevada In the Ulf order named The Great Plains area familiarly known as a semiarid rt region lon Is toro fore an important contributor to thc the spring spring- wheat 6 of ot this country The Thc results of ot experiments at fourteen stations In this area are published l lIn In tho the now United States department of ot agriculture bulletin No Spring boring Wheat In tho the Great Plains Area Relation of ot Cultural Methods to Production In covering such a a. vast territory deductions must necessarily be general and ana cover oly relatively fey few w points It Is strongly brought out in the tho bulletin ho how hon however semiarid region of or orthe ever that cultivation Is not an unfailing solution In this the thc problem of ot drought Cultivation will doubtless alleviate drou drought ht to some somo extent but can never nc fully overcome It field flold stations are located In the western parts of ot North Dakota South Dakota Nebraska Kansas Oklahoma and Texas and the tho eastern portions of ot Montana Wyoming Colorado and md r New lew ew Mexico Extensive tests teats comparing the average yields at fourteen stations for tor the thc same years cars sho show shove that th there re was practically no gain s-aln In yield on ground that was fall tall plowed following corn and oats over o ground which was waR plowed inthe Inthe In the thc spring The small difference In cost of ot the tho two methods of ot preparing theland the theland land makes the relative e profits and losses from them follow tollow closely tho the differences differences dif differences dif dif- In yields Disked Corn CorD Ground YI Yields Yield Greatest Profit Pi of fit It The Tho greatest profit per nor acre at those stations where it has been possible to raise ralso wheat at a profit proUt was made on disked corn ground round This was made possible by the consistently high h yields together with tho the low cost of ot preparing preparing preparing pre pre- paring the land for wheat heat Of Ot course tho the realization of ot these profits depends to a a. certain extent on the tho successful growth th of ot corn HH itA a general farm tarm era crop cropIn cropin In competition with other crops It also should bo ho kept In mind that at all the stations the thc corn land lard was was' kept free freo from weeds an and t that if it weeds ar are allowed to develop In tho the corn curn as as' good results cannot be expected has proved of ot doubtful utility as a means of or increase in yields Althou Although h summer tillage has given the hl highest hest aera average c yields of ot any method under trial It requires the use uso of or land two years cars to product a crop and an extra amount of ot cultivation to keep it free freo from weeds In the fallow year ear Consequently It has co cost more to grow Erow wheat heat under the summer tillage method than any other method on trial except green The latter modo of or cultivation resembles the tho fall fallow 0 in that I It t also requires the thc use of ot land for two years ears for tor the production of ot one ono harvested crop with the added expense of or seed and seeding There Is Js a saving saving- In cultivation however during tho the spring while the green crop Is growing but this Is offset h by the necessity of plowing to turn the crop under and Is not sufficient to make makeup up the cost of or seed and seeding It was found that the yields of spring wheat t grown on green manure land were not commensurate with the Increased cost of ot producing producing- them However It Is hardly fair Calr tho observers point out to charge thc the whole expense of or green reen to the one crop that Imme Immediately latel follows It It as Is hero done donor Furrowing Furrowing- with a lister and leaving the thc surface ridged through the winter has resulted in a small increase in yield over o plowing at seven of ot the tho eight ht stations where It t was tried This Is a a. somewhat cheaper method of ot preparing the land for plowing and has therefore been more profitable Cultural Methods Discussed l. l Some soils soUs even oven In re regions lons where spring wheat has been produced with witha a a. profit show little response to cultural methods It has been only onh In those nann hn I. I 10 an th u. u v U T U moisture stored In the soil soU that the cultural methods under investigation have nave showed important effects upon the yields However that there thero aro arc certain localities not favorable to the growing of ot spring sprInt wheat does not mean that other crops cannot be grown It simply simply Indicates indicates that tho the soil and climate conditions are not favorable to the prod production ct on of this ono one crop At the southern southern southern south south- ern stations for tor example the grain sorghums have done well and should be bc considered the main crops The Tho experimental work with spring wheat was teas uniform at each of ot tho the fourteen stations The wheat was drilled In rows from six pix to eight Inches apart and in tune the more humid sections the seeding was lI lighter than In themore tho the more arid regions Tho The rate of or seeding varied from two to four tour p pecks per acre although at N N. D. D where summer rains are more frequent and weeds more troublesome the seeding rate was six pecks Thus the drier the condition condition condi condi- tion under which the thc wheat was grown rown the lighter the seeding seeding- In arriving at the cost of ot producing wheat un under er tho the various methods adopted a fixed wage of at 2 a day for Cor a man and 1 a a. day for tor a horse was adopted As these figures ures arc are considered rather high no deterioration was charged to farm Carm equipment See Seed d was charged at tho the rate of 8 83 cents per acre Interest and taxes on the land Investment In calculated at S 8 nor Del cent on a valuation of ot 20 O per acre and the thc deterioration and antI repairs of the tho binder at 15 cents per acre The average farm tarm price of ot spring spring- wheat on December 1 for tor the past ten years In round numbers Is SO 80 cents per bushel and as It costs 10 cents per bushel to take the grain from tho the shock thresh It U and put It In the granary on th th farm it is obvious that in the shock it would woul bo be worth 70 iO cents ApplyIng Apply Apply- Ing In this price to the accompanying table of ot cost of ot production It t Is seen that disked corn land according to the tho average a of ot the data from eight stations In Inthe Inthe inthe the Great Plains area must joust produce 68 63 bushels of or spring wheat per acre to pay for the thc cost of or production Wheat land prepared prepare by listing listing- must produce 79 bushels etc Costs Cant of ot Production Given n. n CO Cost t p per r acre of or producing producing- wheat In the shock in the Great Grent Plains area showing showing- average of ot data from eight ht stations Cost Per Acre Total cost ot of o g I- I Production h ho o 0 w Oj d C Method of o C p 2 n a P. P o 0 C. C 3 a n 1 at J r reparation Preparation il n o r o r J r Co c n m n nC C C n g p I n nn J g-g g g- g n 2 G c. au Disked corn land OI 16 68 8 Listed Sa 10 10 93 79 9 Spring plowed 95 85 40 10 93 I S Si 7 Pall Fall plowed lowed 86 40 93 94 85 40 93 10 Summer tilled 61 85 40 93 80 1160 1150 J I Green With ryo ro 1 40 93 3 0 1311 With peas 2 1073 85 65 40 93 3 30 0 1611 Average cost ot of green grcen r. r 1461 08 1 1 Tho The cost of ot r rye e for seeding one acre Is estimated at 1 2 2 The cost of peas for tor seeding one acre Is estimated at 4 H. If It the farmer has found after atter several one years ears of ot growing growing- spring spring- wheat that the various methods of preparing preparing- the tho soil produce no material difference in it yield ho can use more moro freedom in planning his farm tarm operations It Is of ot course most desirable to plow when it can be done most economically for in men en and teams If the cropping system includes crops an and disking Is as effective o and can be bo done with loss labor cost that Is the method welch should be bo to prepare land for fOI wheat Thus unless there is some gain from a certain method of ot tillage or crop sequence the work of or the farm should be adjusted from the standpoint of ot economical operation The results obtained at each station in the Great Plains area are Included in the bulletin No Xo copies coples of ot which may mav be he obtained b by residents of ot these states upon application to two too e editor and chief of ot the division of ot publications United States StatCH department of agriculture Washington D D. D C C. as long as th the I departments department's supply lasts lastS' |