Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1873-10-09
Fall Flowing.

THE object Of all blowing is either tc
XIII weeds, cover manure, or the trash OF
previous crops, pulveriZe the soil AMI ren
| der it open to the influences that are con
stantly working by which it may be dis
| integrated and made permeable to gases
Frost is one of the prime agencies, in con
nection with moisture, in breaking down
the cohesion of stiff soils disintegratine
and rendering them friable and permea
bic to the air, the oxygen Of which is the
| great destroyer and at the same time the
great regenerator. A soil, sour and infer
| tile through putetactiOn or other agen
cies, is thereby oXygenated and rendered
| fertile; for when the putretactiOn is chang
ed to an oxidating process, carbOnic acid
one of the prime constituents of plants, is
rendered available; this is only one of the
| chemical changes produced by the action
Of the air upon soils.
| What we call mechanical changes ir
soils are fully as important as the chemical
ones, although the mechanical ones are
dition of soils" in nearly every case, it is
simply meant to convey the idea of want
of or locking-up of chemical action; as
for instance, a soil plowed wet becomes
baked through thermic force, or heat, and
| drying winds, and is thereby rendered in
| fertile. The mechanical action connect
| ed Herewith is simply the turning of the
soil. If dry, it is rendered permeable tC
the action of the air, chemical force. II
| wet, it bakeS, through chemical force, and
becomes dry and intertile. But, if pillow
ed in the fall, other action is again set ur
through freezing and subsequent thawing
and, through chemical action, the soil is
again disintegrated and fitted for the sus
tenance of crops.
That system of blowing which will
leave the soil in the toughest state will
naturally suggest itself to the observing
mind as the most fit for winter exposure
Therefore, blowing into lands, leaving
the burrows as rough as possible has long
been adopted. Observation has shown il
to be best, it being the result of expert
ment Man has been led on to other ex-
periments which have resulted in the
demonstration of facts that leave no doubt
Of the great benefit of fall blowing on
heavy loans and stiff clays Cogent con
illusions have been drawn as to the real
cause of the benefits so resulting.
In determining the depth of fall plow-
ing. every farmer must decide for himself
The mistake most usually made is that
land may be plowed to an indefinite depth
III tne ldu, WneH, N TACT, tneTe Is no
question which will allow more careful
study than the depth to which soils may
| be plowed. One illustration must suffice.
If the surface soil be light and spongy, as
is sometimes the case with some of our
prairie soils, and clay lie at such dis
lance under the surface that 1t may be
reached By the pillow and thin slice can
be thrown on top to give cohesion to the
surface, we'll and good; but the indis-
criminate blowing to great depth of our
prairie land would only result in injury
to the soil for many years.
The real value of fall blowing consists
| first in doing a certain amount of work
that may be done as well or better in the
autumn as in the spring. 1t is not the
absolute lightness of the soil, which might
better be rendered as f1uffiness, that consti.
tutes fertility. But its permeability may
! be just as marked, in a soil tall plowed, as
in one spring plowed; far more so if the
| spring blowing have been accomplished
when too wet, as is often the case. A soil
may be rendered infertile if left, when
| plowed, too soft or mellow. Hence the
! practice of rolling such land, to compress
it. The effects of fall blowing are scarcely
understood by many good farmers, but
| its advocates will increase as the true
causes which are brought to bear in the
operation are more carefully considered
Western Rural