Crop Production Advancements
Examples of Advancements in Crop Production in the United States Related to Machinery
CORN
| Decade | Labor Required (Hours) | Acres to produce 100 bushels | Tools Used |
| 1850’s | 75-90 | 2-1/2 | Walking plow, harrow, hand planting |
| 1890’s | 35-40 | 2-1/2 | 2-bottom gang plow, disk & peg-tooth harrow, 2-row planter |
| 1930’s | 15-20 | 2-1/2 | 2-bottom gang plow, 7-ft. tandem disk, 4-section harrow, 2-row planters, cultivator, pickers |
| 1970’s | 3+ | 1-1/8 | Tractor, 5-bottom plow, 20-ft. tandem disk, planter, 20-ft. herbicide applicator, 12-foot self-propelled combine, trucks |
| 1980’s | 3 | 1-1/8 | Tractor, 5-bottom plow, 25-ft. disk, planter, 25-ft. herbicide application, 15-ft. self-propelled combine, trucks |
WHEAT
| Decade | Labor Required (Hours) | Acres to produce 100 bushels | Tools Used |
| 1830’s | 25-300 | 5 | Walking plow, brush harrow, hand broadcast of seed, sickle, flail |
| 1890’s | 40-50 | 5 | Gang plow, seeder, harrow, binder, thresher, wagons, horses |
| 1930’s | 15-20 | 5 | 3-bottom gang plow, tractor, 10-ft. tandem disk, harrow, 12-ft combine, trucks |
| 1950’s | 6-12 | 4 | Tractor, 10-ft. plow, 12-ft. weeder, harrow, 14-foot drill, self-propelled combine, trucks |
| 1960’s | 5 | 3-1/3 | Tractor, 12-ft. plow, 14-ft. drill, 14-ft. self-propelled combine, trucks |
| 1970’s | Less than 4 | 3 | Tractor, 30-foot sweep disk, 27-ft. drill, 22-foot self-propelled combine, trucks |
| 1980’s | 3 | 3 | Tractor, 35-ft. sweep disk, 30-ft. drill, 25-foot self-propelled combine, trucks |
Table created from Bellis, Mary. "American Farm Machinery and Technology Changes from 1776–1990." ThoughtCo, Feb. 6, 2021, thoughtco.com/american-farm-tech-development-4083328.
