The Sumter banner. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1846-1855, 1853-06-14
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Flowing.
BY a. G. COMING.

ter Of piowing, is one Of the great
things necessary to good farming. II
there is among all your intelligent
readers, o man to be found who
knows all about plowins, he ought to
I writcTa book for the instruction of
the rest Of mankind.
In my intercourse with farmers, it
has become very evident to mo that
there is no settled and understood
theory Of blowing. Concerning the
time AMI depth Of blowing, every
man has his ideas; and there is
no common understanding of any
settled principle of action, for differ.
ent soils and the. soils Of different
attitudes, and different inclinations,
and different exposures.
& There are "a thousand things" to
be known about this one important
part Of the farmers work.
The different kinds of soil, from
the lightest to the heaviest, will
vary the necessary work of the
plowman. The man who woull rlow
stiff, clay soils, in the samo precise
manner that he would light, sandy
soils, is the man who would per.
haps live to learn to do differently.
Those who write about piowing, if
Lam not much mistaken, take in
to view too few items. We see but
little from the pens of the best wri.
ters, except upon the questions of
shallow or deep plowiny, fall or
spring plowing, sod plowing, stubblc
plowing, snbsoil blowing, &c.
IT we take up the single subject Of
fall plowing, the matter requires that
we consider the kind of soil, the
present state of the soil, how it will
DE exposeG to the frcsts Of win.
ter, how it will be effected by wash.
i ing in the spring, how it may be ex.
posed to the action Of wintry winds;
and, in addition to this, the farmer is
to consider whether the turf will be
more readily decomposed and the
soil more readily and suitably pre-
pared for use the next season, for
the production of the peculiar
crop which is desired.
If we are consid ring spring plow-
ing, tho subject involves great va
riety Of peculiar points, as 30 the
dryness and warmth of the ground be.
fore blowing. how deep each particu.
lar piece of ground should at the
time be plowed, how the furrows for
, each different piece should be turned,
what kind Of a plow will do the
I work best, what will do it easiest,
what will doit quickest, and what
plow, considering these points to.
gether, should be used; and how
should the plowman hold the plow, to
secure the best performance in the
shortest time, and with most ease to
himself and his team.
If we are considering the depth of
plowing, very many things are to
be considered, and ought to be un.
derstood. There must be consider ed,
the state of the soil and the amount
of manure to be put upon it for
the production Of what may be ne.
cessary the first year; the depth ne.
cessary for the continued fertility of
the soil, the depth necessary for
ground much exposed to drought,
for land much exposed to wet, for
sidehills where heavy rains are apt to
wash them, for long cultivated
land which has never been plowed
deep, and for land which has new
er before been plowed. Besides, there
is the question between the action Of
the Subsoil Plow and the Michigan
Double Plow.
If we inquire whether furrows
should be laid fat and smooth, it
must be considered whether the pe-
culiar soil or the peculiar season of
the year, when the peculiar soil is
plowed, has any bearing on the qucs.
tion.
All these things, and very many
81 others, have relation to the subject
Of plowing.
There are certain fixed laws in
nature, which the well instructed
plowman must understand. These
are not to be regarded as either
accidental or providential. They do
not happen. They are as naturally
to be expected as the moons chan.
ges are. They should. therefore,
be considered and understood.
There are also probabilities, to be
anticipated by the farmer. These
relate to the heat and cold of the
seasons--to wet and diy-and to
other circumstances which we may
call Providential probabilities.
To know how, and when to
p1ny reuuiras that q man aho,ld hn