The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1913-02-14
FARM INTERESTS
IN CONNECTICUT

NV OUHSVGU BVO U
The report of the state board of ag-
riculture was submitted to Governor
Baldwin recently by L Fl Healey, sec
rotary of the board. In its introduce
ton it outlines the history of the
board and, to certain extent, the
history of agriculture. Data as to the
leading field crops of the state is Civ
en- as follows:
Sd, 416, 900 potatoes, 1882, 900; corn,
$1,694 900; and oats, $161,0OO. By
far the most important crop of the
state in acreage and value is hay and
forage, it being almost eight times as
great in extent as corn, the second
than so per cent. above toacco, the
second crop in value. Potatoes, with
an acreage of about so per cent. above
that of tobacco, show a value less than
half as great. Corn, with acreage
a little more than double that of pota-
toes, is reported at 10 per cent. less
in value. while oats fail in acreage and
value, respectively, to one-hfth and
one-tenth of that of corn.
Corn gave an average yield in 1909
of forty eight bushels to the acre,
worth $32.13; oats, 1858 bushels, va1u
ed at $15.79. Rye and buckwheat each
yielded over eighteen bushels an acre,
worth $16.28 each. Hay and forage
averaged 1877 tons per acre, or s18;
potatoes 112 bushels an acre, or
$3.50; and tobacco 1888 pounds TO
the acre. worth $27B.27.
Both fruit growing and truck gar
dening are very profitable industries in
Connecticut, and yield handsome re-
turns. It is a thick1y settled state,
and the gardener is always close to
local markets, not co mention the al
ways eager market of New York city,
within a very few hours by rail.
The value of some of the various
kinds of domestic animals and Of poul-
try and bees, as reported in 1910,
were: Cattle, $6,T8O,2s7 horses and
colts, $5,739, 400; swine, &4T2,T41;
sheep and lambs. s112.s49: poultry.
$685., $50; bees. S41, sss The total vail
ne Of all domestic animals. poultry and
bees in 1909 was $14,163,9o2. During
the ten-year period, 1s0o-1010, dones-
tic animals. poultry and bees combtr.-
ed increased in value $8.9S2, 600 or
2e.S per cent.
OF all farms. 80 per cent. report
swine. the average number being near
crease reported In the number of
fowls on Connecticut farms during the
past decade amounts to 1873 per cent
while the value INCREASED from 9644,-
900 to $9S9.OOO, or 1915 per cent. The
nunaer of farms reporting poultry in
but the average number of fowls per
farm reporting incDeased from 4S to
80.
or an the farms IN the state, 1915
per cent. report cattle, TIT per cent.
report dairy cows and only 1873
per cent "other COWS" Only All farms
have cattle without having dairy COWS.
The average value OF dairy COWS i'm
creased from @33.T1 to $3.50 during
the ten-year period, 1eoo-1e1O. The
farms reporting dairy cows show an
average of nearly six per farm.
Over two-thirds of the states to-
tai land area is in farms. In each
county Of the state from SO to so per
cent OF all the land is in farms. New
London county shows the highest pro-
portion, T6.5 per cent. or land in farms
while Mfddlsse1 county shows the
smallest proportion, 644 per cent.
The four northern counties show high
the southern counties, New London
excepted.
The average value per acre of farm
Land for the whole state is $0S.0S. In
the eastern part OF the state the value
Of farm land is from SO to $26 per
acre, while in Fairfield county, which
Is in the extreme southwestern part OF
the state, the average value is $76 to
500 per acre, or over two and one
half times as high as for the state
a whole. New Haven and Hartford
counties, located in the central part
of the state. show an average value
for farm land of from $25 to $50 an
acre. The average value OF a. farm
with it's equipment in 1909 YVES Sd, 2o6,
while ten years Later it was $5,044.
The average value Of land alone rose
from $22.6s per acre in 1900 to s3S.08
IN 1910, this advance being accompan-
led by increases In the average value
per farm Of implements and xnaChin-
cry and live stock.
Over two-thirds of the farmers IN
Connecticut hire labor, and the aver
age amount expended by those hiring
is $685. About one-hfth of the
amount expended for labor is in the
form OF rent and board and the total
amount expended is more than one
and two-thirds times as great as that
reported in 1900. About four-ffths
of all Connecticut farms report some
expenditure for feed, while about
three-h1ths report the purchase of fer
tiIi7er. There Is a marked increase
Sic per cent-since 1899 in the total
amount reported as paid for fertilizer,
the average for those reporting being
$12b per farm.
The report warns the farmers of the
state against the use Of imported po-
tatoes for seed, a warning which be-
came necessary because of the high
price prevalent in the spring of 1912.
The danger of getting diseased stock
is emphasized and the point is made
that European grown stock is Inferior
even if not diseased.