agriculture

• prices rose by 25% between 1953-6
• cost to Kolkhozy cut; cost of transport and to hire equipment from MTS
• peasant taxation reorganized so it was paid on plot size rather than on fruit trees or livestock
• peasants without livestock not expected to provide meat
• increases in production of fertilizer and farm machinery announced
• K's plan to cultivate 'virgin lands' of Western Siberia, Kazakhstan 1954> huge propoganda gain to increase Russia's power
• successes in 1954 harvest, area ploughed was increased
• by 1956 35.9 million hectares were cultivated, total area of Canada,
• Komsomol members flocked out to help in experiment
• increase in number of collective farms x4 from 1950-60
• collective farms cost cut and peasants able to set own targets; gives more control
• increase in production of fertilisers
• set up repair stations, when machines broke down could take to garage and could be fixed however uneducated and did not have stuff to fix it
• 50,000 volunteers went east, popular as people wanted to take part and believe in K
• more positive attitudes to peasants and attempts to reduce poverty
• before agricultural production was low, collectivization had destroyed morale of farmers, income too low, too much time spent on private plots, taxes too high
• fewer animals in USSR than before revolution
• farmers income far lower due to state procurement prices
• productivity low
• party had been misled by 'biological yields'
• high taxes on farmers
• people had terrible conditions: inadequate housing and uncertain crop yields
• 1955 drought year however 1956 was a good year
• humiliation of importing grain from west 1963
• 85 million acres of planted land however 1/6 ripe enough to harvest
• private plots providing most of production ad 1/2 of peasants income
• 3% of cultivated land (private plots) produced 30% of USSR's production
• shortages in meat and dairy
• 1955 doughty year led to erosions, edge of cultivated land, 13,000 square miles had top soils removed by 1956
• impossible targets e.g. increase fertiliser by 700%
• craze for maze scheme
• Virgin lands was successful at increasing fertiliser
• abolishing MTS led to inefficient farming, tractors breaking down, machinery ended up rusting
• bad drought in 1963
• had to import grain 1963
• 86 million km destroyed when had to get rid of top layer
• agricultural production increased by 43 million tons