Farm Land Development: Present and Future, by Clearing, Drainage, and Irrigation

Excerpts from the Preface: Many people looking for farms since the war have found that opportunities for obtaining good farm land are limited. A great many prospective buyers are not able to pay for fully developed farms at current prices. Many believe that good returns can be had by buying undeveloped land and improving it for agriculture. They think the undeveloped land they see about the country is cheaper and offers better prospects. So they ask, "What about new farm land development? Are any new areas being developed? If so, how much and by whom, and what kind of land it is? What will development cost?" These are reasonable questions. People with considerable capital to spend also are interested in areas where the land is new. Some of the larger, new land developments under way and proposed are being made by large farmers, businessmen, and land companies. Apparently, this work has a fascination for the businessman and professional man as well as for farmers. To provide information on what is happening in land development and the general prospects, this report tells something about new land areas brought into cultivation and pasture recently, and includes estimates of probable land development in the next few years. Even though choice of land is now restricted because most areas are already occupied, there are still some possibilities for creating farms from new land.