(2) Farming | Fields of Gold; Why an agricultura; Boom does not help rural America.
https://www.economist.com/united ... -help-rural-america
paragraph 3: "On the plains of North Dakota and Montana [on western border of N Dakota], as across the border in Saskatchewan in Canada, the biggest crop is spring wheat, which is planted in April and harvested in late summer. Planting m farms in Montana has begun already; Mr Volk will start soon. Thanks to the war in Ukraine [Ukraine and Russia are large producers and exporters of wheat], wheat prices are the highest they have been since 2008. * * * But they have to adjust for much higher input prices, too, particularly for fertiliser and fuel [a;so thanks to the war].
paragraph 5: "American farmers are making good money. * * *The price of farmland, an indicator of the profitability of farming, is the highest it has ever seen. Farmland in Iowa, America's most agricultural state, has sold for over $20,000 an acre.
paragraph 6: "Yet despite all this cash, rural America is in deep decline. According to the 2020 census, two-thirds of rural counties lost population from 2010 to 2020, and the total population of rural America fell for the first time in history. * * *
paragraph 7: "As farming becomes more profitable, so do the gains from mechanization. Today, just 6% of jobs in rural areas are directly linked to farming, points out Anne Schechinger, an agricultural economist for the Environmental Working group, a research NGO, Most farms, even small ones 'are highly capitalised agribusiness growing one or two commodity crops and employing very few people,' she says, Nr Volk says his farm is as small as can be competitively run, to cover the costs of the hardware. Over the decades, it has gradually grown bigger as neighbours have retired and split their land up among heirs -- many of whom end up selling their bit to Mr Volk.
paragraph 9: "Even if farmers are getting wealthier, the communities they live in are not. Mr Volk says that when he went to school, there were 40 children on his school bus. Today his youngest son goes on the bus with fewer than ten classmates. * * * Many young people end up moving to places where job opportunities are more exciting , if not necessarily moe profitable. Over half of the churches that used to serve the communities have closed. * * *
Note:
(a) There is no need to read the rest, which is insubstantial.
(b) wheat
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheat
("The many species of wheat together make up the genus Triticum; the most widely grown is common wheat (T aestivum). The archaeological record suggests that wheat was first cultivated in the regions of the Fertile Crescent around 9600 BCE. Botanically, the wheat kernel is a type of fruit called a caryopsis [p is pronounced]. * * * [section] 6 Naming: * * * Within a species, wheat cultivars are further classified by wheat breeders and farmers in terms of:
• Growing season, such as winter wheat vs. spring wheat")
(c) Gary Vocke and Mir Ali, US Wheat Production Practices, Costs, and Yields: Variations Across Regions. Economic Research Service, US Department of Agriculture, 2013 (Economic Information Bulletin No 116)
https://www.ers.usda.gov/webdocs ... 83/39923_eib116.pdf
(page 5: "Winter Versus Spring Wheat[:] Wheat varieties grown in the United States are classified as 'winter wheat' or 'spring wheat,' depending on the season in which they are planted. Wintertime temperature lows are a key determinant of whether winter or spring wheat is grown in a particular location. Winter wheat varieties are sown in the fall and usually become established before going into dormancy when winter cold arrives. The following spring, winter wheat plants resume growth until summertime harvest (fig 4 [showing Kansas is the largest winter wheat producer]). Winter wheat represents 70-80 percent of total US wheat production. Winter wheat has a higher yield potential than spring because of its longer growing season. Spring wheat is planted in the spring and harvested in late summer or fall of the same year (fig 5 [showing North Dakota is the largest sprng wheat producer]). It is grown largely in the Northern Plains, where cold wintertime temperatures would kill winter wheat in dormancy")
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发表于 5-9-2022 15:13:18
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