The weekly times-record. (Valley City, N.D.) 1912-1922, 1915-02-11
CORN IN NORTH DAKOTA.
(Contributed.)

North Dakota Farming" is the glst OF
IN interview with Thomas Cooper, al
rector Of the North Dakota Expert
ment Station. He stated that corn as
a farm crop is a comparatively new
feature of North Dakotas agriculture
It has won its way slowly and against
great obstacles. Formerly, popular
disregard of the possibilities Of corn
culture and it's possible value as crop
resulted in it's being considered mere
~ as a catch crop to furnish late for
age. The use of inferior seed or OF
seed grown in the south tended to con-
firm the opinion that North Dakota
was not corn state.
With the use of home grown seed
corn of varieties suited to our climatic
conditions, corn production is begin
ming to assume it's place in the agricul-
ture Of the state. The crop now has a
material effect upon the total wealth
production OF the state, and its i'm.
portance is rapidly increasing.
In 1899 the acreage Of corn was g.
O00-a mere fringe along the south
eastern boundary. This acreage in
creased to $4,000 in 1909, and this
past year has reached the 100000
mark with total yield of fourteen mil
lions of bushels Of corn. This crop on
the basis of December list farm price
was valued at $8,12O,0O0.
1t is only by means of comparisons
that one may realize the Importance Of
the corn crop at the present time and
its value to the state. Last year the
state grew approximately seven and
one-fourth million acres of wheat, val
ued at farm price of December list at
approximately ninety million dollars.
The corn crop Of last year was valued
at one-tenth of the total wheat crow
and was grown on one-fourteenth Of
the acreage devoted to wheat; or in
terms Of value per acre, produced
about one half the income on the aver
age as wheat. The value of the wheat
crop in North Dakota fluctuates pe-
tween seventy-fve million and one
hundred million dollars annually. Civ
en- five years more at the rate of in
crease during the past five years and
the value of the corn crop as produced
on million acres of land will be ap-
proximately one-quarter the total
value of our wheat.
The fax crop has been important in
the agriculture of the state. We are
accustomed to consider the failure OF
the crop as a great disaster. Yet the
value of North Dakota's corn crop in
1914 was one million dollars less than
that Of the fax crop But it was
grown on five-eighths of the acreage.
Farther comparisons of the value Of
the corn crop might be made. Those
given are sufficient to indicate that the
production of corn in the state has al
ready passed far beyond the expert
mental stage and that it is factor to
be reckoned with as an income pro-
Queer. This fact stands out promin-
ently-the production of corn increas-
es the income per acre from so to 100
per cent as compared with the grain
crops ordinarily produced.
He further stated that there are two
sources of profit in corn production.
In market grain production there is
one, and that is often in question.
Profit in corn may be direct or indi-
rect. The latter is the most important
to the North Dakota farmer. Forth.
nately, it is not probable that corn
produced in this state will be general.
ly sold as a cash crop. Such inter.
changes as occur will probably be 10.
cally between farms. Thus the oppor.
tunity to make direct profit as a cash
crop is limited. I have known of a
number of farmers this year without
suf1cient live stock who have sold
corn at from $40 to % per acre.
The indirect profit or return obtain.
ed through the utilization of the CROP
on the farm is the important one and
offers the greatest opportunity to the
North Dakota farmer. These profits
are obtained practically in two ways:
first, through the feeding of the corn
crop to productive forms of livestock
and second, through the effect of the
corn crop on the following crops. So
long as grain production represents an
important feature of North Dakota s
agriculture, so long will the corn crop
have very important effect upon its
production of grain the year following
1t is well known fact that upon the
older lands of the Red River Valley or
In the newer parts of the state, the
crop yields of small grain are very
nn1,eh inorooco1 fa11>-r:.-