. Bulletin. Agriculture -- New Hampshire. May, 1925] FARM PRODUCTION IN CHESHIRE COUNTY 45 Commercial production of potatoes, on the otlier hand, must yield a return per hour of labor commensurate with what could be received from employment in other occupations. Farmers in many sections of the county have an opportunity to market their extra labor at good wages, and potatoes should return an equally large income if they are to be an ad- visable crop to grow. There are a number of farms, especially in Districts I, II and III, well adapted to the use of potato machinery and to commercial product
. Bulletin. Agriculture -- New Hampshire. May, 1925] FARM PRODUCTION IN CHESHIRE COUNTY 45 Commercial production of potatoes, on the otlier hand, must yield a return per hour of labor commensurate with what could be received from employment in other occupations. Farmers in many sections of the county have an opportunity to market their extra labor at good wages, and potatoes should return an equally large income if they are to be an ad- visable crop to grow. There are a number of farms, especially in Districts I, II and III, well adapted to the use of potato machinery and to commercial production. Potatoes require a large amount of labor, and the replacement of five or ten acres of hay land with this crop would help to balance the irregular labor demands of the present cropping system. They make a good cash crop with a high return per acre. The yields obtained are very satisfactory. The average was 146 bushels per acre in 1924, in most cases with very poor care. Certified seed was used on only a small number of fields, and only a small part of the crop was sprayed. The average application of fertilizer was 592 pounds, whereas more than double this amount should be used. With proper care and cultural practices, the yield on commercial fields should average at least 200 bushels per SIX ACRES OF POTATOES CxROWN FROM CERTIFIED SEED ON FARM OF J. W. WHIPPIE, MARLOW The average wholesale price to local stores in Keene during 1924 was SO cents per bushel. This is much below the average for the last three years, as shown in Figure 10, but at this price the return per acre would be $160. An estimate of the cost of production per acre on a ten-acre field at present prices is as follows: Returns per acre, 200 bu. at 80c $160. 00 Expenses: Certified seed, 15 bu. at $ $22. 50 Commercial fertilizer, 1800 lbs. at $36 Spray material 7. 00 Use of land 10. 00 Use of machinery 5. 00 Horse labor, 112 hrs. at 15c 16. 80 Miscellaneous 10. 00 Total cost outside of la])or
Size: 2649px × 943px
Photo credit: © Library Book Collection / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookauthornewhampshireagricultu, bookcentury1900, bookdecade1920
