AMERICA'S WHEAT FIELDS.

Waikato Times, Volume XVIII, Issue 1486, 12 January 1882, Page 4

AMERICA'S WHEAT FIELDS.

The progress in wheat culture in the Unite I States possesses much interest, and especially in view of the high price which it now brings, as compared with a few years ago. As recently as 1850 only about 9,000,000 acres of land in this country were devoted to wheat culture. By 1870 the acreage had increased to about 20,000,000, and in 1880 to about 38,000,000. In New England in 1870 only about 80,000 acres are planted in wheat. Yet, notwithstanding the rocky character of the soil, careful cultivation has made it produce on the average 15 1-2 bushels to the acre. Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, and Illinois together have an aggregate of about 10,000,000 acres in wheat, and the product from these in 1880 was about 180,000,000 bushels. Winconsin, Minnesota, lowa, Dakota and Nebraska constitute the spring wheat belt. In these 10,000,000 acres were, in ] 880, planted in wheat, and the yield was about 110,000,000 bushels, or 11 bushels to the acre. During ten years the yield in the spring wheat belt was increased only by 34,000,000 bushels, while during the same period the increase in the yield in the four States of Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, and Illinois, was about 78,000,000 bushels. The small increase and the small average yield per acre in the spiing wheat belt is regarded as an argument supporting the assertion that a continuous cropping for wheat without fertilisation or rotation will decrrease the yield, and is also an evidence that old laud Avill m time have to be abandoned, and the wheat field moved faithcr West, or a rotation of crops, alternated with clover, be adopted The increase in the tour middle States bhow the effect of better cultivation uid the use of improved agucultural machinery. There ai c a millibar "f counties in the several States yielding more than a million of bushels each. In the aggregate yiell, Uoluwi county, California goes ahead of all the otheiC in the Union, i-i 1870 pioducing 4,r>00,000 bushels, an inei.igeof 17 1-4 bushels por.icie; but in the aveia^c yield per acre Stark county Ohio, occupies the front tank, pioducing : } A 7-10 bushels per acie. Next comes Poi Uge county, Ohio, pioducing 22 1-2 bushels pei acre. Michigan has seventeen counties that, in 1880, yielded ever a million bushels of wheat ; Illinois, eleven counties ; Ohio, seven counties — Darldff 1,070,292 bshls. ; Hancock, 1,003,019; Pick-way, 1,000,000 ; Saudusky, 1,00."), 023 ; Seneca, 1,574,522 ; Siaik, 1.:3 10,094 ; and Wayne, 1,239,534 — and Indiana four counties. It is estimated that the wheat yield of the United States will this year be between 310,000,000 and 40000,000,000 b-ibhel.s, oi ' etween 75,000,000 and 123,000,000 bushels short of last year.— Cim uuidh Comma cud.