[Fig. 29.--Under this plan the average distance to the fields in the major rotation is .56 of a mile, to the minor rotation fields, .20 of a mile. Compare this with the one shown in Fig. 30.]
| Home Library Contents |
|
A practical, well-balanced farm business cannot be built up without a great deal of careful planning. Among the most important plans to make is one of the whole farm, showing the location of the farmstead and its connection with the fields, also the size and the arrangement of the fields themselves. The ease with which the farm may be operated and the cost of the farm products are largely dependent upon the arrangement of the buildings and fields, and upon the plans for operating the farm. So important is this matter that several different plans should be made before adopting a final one. Often it will be found impossible to make a plan that can be immediately adopted. A tentative plan may be followed for a year or two, while the fields are being subdued and cleared, or it may be necessary to change the type of farming within a few years. These prospective changes, however, should not prevent one from working out the complete plan for future operation.
In fact, the more one works over the plan, the greater the possibility of having all features of the farm in proper balance. Owing to the great difference in the topography of the land used for farming, it is not possible to present a plan which can be adopted by everyone. Planning a farm is like planning a house in that the tastes of the individual family that is to live upon it must be consulted, and the size, shape, and internal arrangements should be determined by the use to be made of it. The principal factors are presented to serve as a guide to those who wish to work out a plan for operating a farm.
In laying out the farm, the farmstead should be located and planned so as to permit easy access to
79
80 Farm Management
all of the fields. (See Figure 23.) On
most farms the products of the fields are brought to the farmstead for
preparation for market or to be fed to live stock. The
manures from the barns and barnyards should all be taken back to the
fields to aid in maintaining soil fertility. Easy access to
all of the fields makes more certain the even distribution of manure
over the farm and lessens greatly the labor in hauling in the products
and returning the by-products.
[Fig. 29.--Under this plan the average distance to the fields in the
major rotation is .56 of a mile, to the minor rotation fields, .20 of a
mile. Compare this with the one shown in Fig. 30.]
The shorter the distance to the fields, the more economically can this be done. A large number of trips are made to and from the fields in preparing the land, and in cultivating and harvesting the crops. If each of these trips is only a few rods longer than is necessary, much loss of time will result. Such loss of time is expensive and increases the cost of producing the crops. As an example of how great this loss may be, attention is called to Figures 29 and 30, showing the average distance from the farmstead to the fields on a farm poorly planned and the distances on the same farm, well planned. It
Planning the Farm 81
is estimated that with the
farmstead 45 rods farther on the average from the fields than need be,
a distance of 107 miles would be traveled in raising a crop of corn on
a 27-acre field. The total trips to and from the field would
be 383, which multiplied by 90, the unnecessary distance from the
fields, would make 107 miles. This would be equivalent to
four days of extra time, which, at the ordinary price for farm labor,
would cost $16 to $20.
The cost of growing the other crops would be proportionately as great. One cannot over-estimate the advantage which comes from having fields well planned and closely connected with the farmstead. Provision should be made for the men and teams to begin working immediately upon leaving the buildings.
The shape of the fields also has considerable influence on the economy of handling the farm. A long, narrow field is more economically worked so far as the use of the teams and machinery is concerned. Such a field
82 Farm Management
requires less turning which consumes the time of the men and the team. A triangular field is very expensive to work as are fields with irregular outlines. Observations made on the time required to turn with the various farm implements, and calculations as to cost, show that the expense of growing crops on a square field is increased twenty to twenty-five percent by running a ditch diagonally across the land. So far as possible, therefore, with a view to economy in operation, the fields should be made comparatively long and narrow.
As an opposing factor, however, the expense of fencing fields of such shape must be considered. A piece of land one rod wide and 160 rods long, contains an acre. It would require 322 rods of fencing to enclose it. An acre of land square in form would be 12 2/3 rods on each side and would require only 51 rods of fencing to enclose it. The problem of fencing must be balanced against the ease of working the land and a medium
Planning the Farm 83
between the two reached. Ordinarily the rectangular field, about twice to three times as long as it is wide, works out to the best advantage when both of these factors are considered. The diagrams of an 80 acre farm fenced in each of three different ways, illustrate forcefully the wisdom of careful planning in this regard. (Figure 31.)
The size of the fields is also an important factor in planning the farm. So far as possible, the fields should be uniform in size, as uniformity in size leads towards making the farm business more systematic. Such an arrangement of fields provides a definite acreage of each crop each year and enables one to regulate the amount of live stock to be kept. It gives the assurance of a plentiful feed supply each year and a somewhat constant income. The amount of machinery, the work stock for operating the farm, and numerous other factors are also influenced by the size and uniformity of the fields. So far as possible, the fields should be of good size. They must be suited to the rotation that is to be followed on the farm. On many farms it is impossible to change the size or the shape of the field materially.
The topography of the land has much to do with the divisions in the fields. Creeks, rivers, or sloughs, often present unconquerable barriers to the proper division of the fields. Hillsides, rocky ridges, and even sandy bottoms may change materially the desired arrangements so far as the size and shape of fields is concerned. All of these matters must be considered, however, and the ideal followed as nearly as possible. Many people believe that the adoption of a rotation of crops will increase the number of fields on the farm and object to it for that reason. Careful study of hundreds of farm plans presented in the farm management class of the Minnesota Agricultural School show that the adoption of crop rotation and the division of the farms into fields reduces rather than increases the number of fields on most farms.
84 Farm Management
On many farms it is well to have at least two, and in some instances, three groups of fields, suited to different rotations. The major rotation may consist of three to six or seven fields, and should receive the greatest
[Fig. 32.--Original plan of a 160-acre farm. Note the numerous small and irregular fields.]
consideration because it covers the larger part of the farm. It is on the major rotation fields that the main crops of the farm will be grown and where most of the work will be performed. These fields should be comparatively large and the
Planning the Farm 85
farm so planned that there is a field for each year in the rotation. So far as possible, the fields should be of the same size.
On most farms it is possible to have a minor rotation group of small fields. The fields in this group should be located close to the farmstead and intimately connected with it by short lanes, and it is desirable that they be fenced. Minor rotation fields are calculated to grow pasture and early forage crops for the live stock and to supplement the major rotation in the production of certain desirable crops.
On large farms it is sometimes wise to have two or more groups of rotation fields. This arrangement permits of raising double quantities of some of the more staple crops, and of reducing the amount in the minor crops. The arrangement of the farm into groups for rotation purposes is illustrated in Figure 34.
The first step in planning a farm is to make an outline drawing, showing the plan of the farm as operated at the present. This original plan should show the natural subdivisions of the land and the topography so far as possible. It should show roads, fence lines, as well as creeks, tile drains, or open ditches, and the location of the farmstead and any groves or trees that may be on the place. Distances should be measured or closely estimated, and as many of the details as possible filled in. This original plan will serve as the basis for future development. It is illustrated in Figure 32.
The permanent plan when completed should show the location of the farmstead, the minor rotation fields, and the major rotation fields. It should show also the lanes and roads connecting with these fields;
[Fig. 33.--The transitory plan of the farm is shown in Fig. 35, showing the change in shape and size of fields. The land is now tile drained and a permanent plan of cropping is being developed.]
the location of the buildings; arrangement for water supply; and the complete plan of cropping for each rotation cycle. The more complete the plan is made, the less trouble will be experienced in following it. Provision should be made for changing
Planning the Farm 87
from time to time, as market conditions or the inclination of the owner should demand. Provision should also be made for catch crops and for filling-in when crop failures are experienced. The necessity for filling-in is bound to rise through
[Fig. 34.--The permanent plan, for the farm shown in Figs. 32 and 33, showing the arrangement of fields and the cropping system after the land has all been drained and put under cultivation.]
crop failure, but such failure should not interrupt for any length of time the plans for the permanent operation of the farm. (Figure 34.)
A very convenient form of recording the yield and production of the farm is shown in the crop
88 Farm Management
ledger plan. This consists of an outline drawing, showing the fields and their arrangements. It is planned that one of these maps will be used each year in filling in the crops grown, the
[Fig. 35.--The crop ledger plan. An outline drawing of the farm, as permanently planned. One of these forms is used each year upon which to record the crops and yields.]
yield per acre, and the total yield on each field of the farm. It serves as useful memoranda and when preserved it will often be referred to as a part of the crop history of the farm. The use of this system is illustrated in Figure 35.
Planning the Farm 89
A record should be made of the date on which each field is manured. [or otherwise fertilized, ed.] Ordinarily, barnyard manure is applied preceding the corn crop, and a record of
[Fig. 36.--By cross hatching or otherwise designating the portion of the land covered with manure each year, a complete history of the management of the land may be shown.]
this could be made in the regular rotation plan. Any deviation from the plan, however, would not be shown, and it seems advisable to use a separate outline map of the farm as a basis for the history of manuring [or fertilizing, ed.] each of the fields. By using the same outlines used in planning the rotations for the farm, the
90 Farm Management
history of manuring each field can easily be designated by "cross-hatching" the particular field manured and inserting the number of the year in which the manure was applied. Where only a part of the field is manured in a single year, that part of the field to which the manure was applied should be "cross-hatched." Figure 36 illustrates the method of keeping the record of manuring.
1. Make an outline map, to scale, of the home farm, showing the location of farmstead and all natural divisions of the land. Show the fences and field divisions, and the crops grown last year.
2. Make a separate plan of the farmstead, showing locations of the various buildings and the distances between them.
3. Make a revised plan of the farm showing how it can be laid out so as to be worked to better advantage.
4. Calculate the number of rods of fencing that will be required under the new and the old plans.
5. Calculate the average distance from the barn to the fields under the old and the new plans.
1. Under one plan the fields of a farm average 14 rods from the farmstead. Under another plan the average distance is 46 rods. How many miles would be traveled in going to and from the fields in each case in raising a 30-acre field of corn requiring 396 trips? Traveling at the rate of 3 miles an hour, how many more days, of 10 hours each, would be required in producing the crop under the second plan?
With a yield of 40 bushels an acre, how much more would it cost to produce a bushel of corn on the second field than on the first, if man and team are worth $4.50 a day?
2. How many more turns must be made in plowing a field 80 rods square with a walking plow turning a 14-in. furrow, than would be necessary in plowing a field 40 rods wide and 160 rods long?
If it requires 30 seconds to make each turn, how much longer will it take to plow the first than the second?
3. A man has a rectangular forty-acre field to manure. His manure spreader will hold just enough to go across the field. The spreader is brought back empty. Would the distance traveled in manuring the field be increased or decreased if he were to manure to the middle of the field
Planning the Farm 91
and back with the first load, and from the middle of the field to the farther side and back to the middle with the second load, continuing in this way over the entire field? the spreader covers a strip 4 1/2 ft. wide in spreading. How many miles would be traveled in manuring the field under each method?
4. Man labor is worth 16¢ an hour and horse labor costs 10¢ an hour. A man and team can cover 1 1/2 acres of land with manure in a 10-hour day. How many bushels an acre must the yield of the first crop of corn be increased in order to pay for the cost of manuring, if corn sells for 42¢ a bushel?
5. What will be the cost of fencing with woven wire 80 acres of land which is 160 rods long and 40 rods wide, if four fields are made, 40 X 80 rods? Woven wire fence can be erected for 65¢ per rod.
6. The wire fence in the above problem takes up 1 1/2 feet on each side. How many acres will be lost to cultivation on fencing the four fields allowing loss only on one side of the outside fences? How many, if only two 40-acre fields are made running the fence across the farm?
7. A swamp in a 150 acre farm makes 20 acres unfit for cultivation and necessitates $50.00 additional cost in working the fields already under cultivation. Disregarding the increase in value of the whole farm, what could one afford to pay an acre for drainage if money can be borrowed at 5%?
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Plant Industry, Bulletin No. 236.
Cyclopedia of American Agriculture, Vol. I. pages 142-161; Vol. II, pages 90-109.
Farm Development.--W. M. Hays, pages 96-126.
Farm Management.--G. F. Warren, pages 365-401.
Copyright © 2008 by Tumbledown
Farm