BUREAU OF CHEMISTRY AND SOILS, 1926


grown before 1850, when 191 bushels were reported, but during the
following 50 years there was a gradual increase in rye production.
Oats early became an important crop and has remained so. The
corn acreage increased with the growth of dairying. Potatoes have
always been an important crop, and the total yield has remained
rather constant.
  Dairying expanded rapidly after the Civil War. In 1860 there
were 1,198 milk cows in the county and in 1870 the number was
9,351. By 1880 the number was 14,505 and in 1890 it was 25,816.
As dairying grew, the number of swine gradually increased until
hog raising became of major importance.
  The agriculture of Manitowoc County at present consists chiefly
of general or mixed farming, with dairying as the most important
branch. The crops grown, in order of acreage, are hay, oats, corn,
barley, peas, rye, wheat, and potatoes. Crops of less importance are
buckwheat, beans, clover seed, sugar beets, cabbage, and tobacco.
Practically all the crops are grown to some extent for sale, but by
far the greater proportion of the corn, oats, barley, and hay is used
in feeding livestock and reaches the market in the form of dairy
products, beef, and pork.
  Hay is grown more extensively than any other crop, tame hay being
grown on more than 68,321 acres in 1924, according to the 1925 cen-
sus. The total yield of hay, both tame and wild, was 112,059 tons.
Most of this is timothy and clover grown both together and sepa-
rately, but alfalfa occupied 8,544 acres. Hay is grown on all soils
but does best on the heavy types such as Superior clay loam, Kewaunee
silty clay loam, and Poygan silty clay loam. Soils as light as sands
and sandy loams are not well suited to hay production. Oats cut
for grain were grown on 54,284 acres in 1924, when the total produc-
tion was 1,783,659 bushels. Oats are grown on nearly all soils of
the county but do best on soils of a fine sandy loam texture or
heavier.
  In 1924 corn, mainly for silage, was grown on 22,166 acres in all
parts of the county. The well-drained loam and fine sandy loam soils
are best suited to corn, the clay loam soils being too late and heavy
and the sands too light and droughty. This is not an ideal corn
country because of the cooling influence of Lake Michigan. Where
corn was allowed to mature it yielded 25.5 bushels to the acre in 1924.
  Barley, in 1924, was grown on 16,417 acres and gave an average
yield of 26 bushels to the acre. It is grown widely over the well-
drained soils, except those of sand texture. It does well on Kewau-
nee silty clay loam and Superior clay loam, but the loams are prob-
ably better suited to it.
  Rye was grown on 9,320 acres in 1924, mostly on sandy soils. The
average yield was slightly more than 19 bushels to the acre.
  Wheat was grown on 3,637 acres in 1924. Wheat does best on the
heavy well-drained soils, such as the heavy types of the Superior and
Kewaunee series. It also does well on Bellefontaine silt loam.
  Peas are grown mostly on soils as heavy as or heavier than fine
sandy loam. Rather large acreages are grown on the well-drained
clay loam soils and on the Bellefontaine silt loam and very small
acreages on sandy or marshy soils. Potatoes, although grown on a
great variety of soils, do best on well-drained sandy loam and fine


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