The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1881-12-19
DEEP PLOwING.

a
Foolish Notions in lavOr OF Shallow
lOwing--(Ircat Crops by Decp PlOM
ing-N0teWOrtIiy Experience.
When on an eastern farm some twenty
years ago, nearly all Of my neighbors, like
myself, fully believed it dangerous to the
crop to run the pillow deeper than four Of
Gye inches. But an editorial In the amer
lean Agricultural led several to try the ex
pertinent Of going down from two to foul
inches more into the hard.pan. The result
was disastrous. The crops were decreased
more than half as compared with portions
Of the same fields plowed in the old way
Several subscribers dropped tho paper as 0
very unsafe adviser. | wrote the cditol
rather n sharp letter about our experience
Ills letter in reply / have kept. After
showing clearly that we had only half read
the article, and had neglected It's plain
precautions, no went on 10 shy;
Nearly all soils contain iron; II is THU
that gives them their reddish color. BuI
iron has two oxides. One OF them contain
Ing the least amount OF oxygen, Is soluble
In soil water, and is therefore readily taken
into the roots Of plants. CoppGras, or green
yitriOl is composed Of this low or protOxidt
Of iron and sulphuriC acid. On exposure
to air for u time, this low oxide takes in
more oxygen, forming what Is called scsqui.
oxide OF iron, which IL insoluble in water
The subsOil which has never been stirred
to admit the atmosphere freely, contains
the low oxide, and when first turned up,
II sown, or planted soon, the roots OF the
crops take In this poisonous soluble com.
pound Of iron, and are much injured, II
not killed outright. Turn up u little Of
such sub.soils NJ II time, IN Inch or SO each
year; let II be exposed 10 air and frost Tor
u few months, and 1t will become innocu.
Gus. The new elements Of plant-iood in
this new soil will even act US u useful fer.
tillzer.
We accepted the explanation, acted
Upon 1t, and those old farms, deepened a
little, year by year, have improved in pro.
ductlveness. When visiting the old home.
stead two years ago, found tho average
depth Of the plowed land thereabouts was
perhaps nine inches, frequently twelve
inches or more, and 1t yields double what
It used to do under tho same culture ex.
cept asto depth.
When coming on to the deep, rich,
black prairie soil Of this State, with no
hard.pan, | and others fell into the 'cus.
tOln vi the COuntry"-shallOw blowing,
burning the strlw as nuisance, and
laughing Ut the idea OF manuring such land.
But WIS greatly impressed with mn item
which appeared in the September american
Agricuhuria, 1880, in the editors "Notes
by the Way in Illinois, describing the
success OF a yorkshire Man on Prairie
Farm" That account ought 10 be printed
In letters OF gold, and he framed and hung
upin the home OF every prairie farmer III
America. 1t has given me- and SOME Of
my nelghbots who read II, d good crop this
ygar when almost all others around lis
have lost half their expected yield by rea.
soil Of the drOuth. Please reprint the fol.
lowing extracts, and let me ask every
pnlifie farmer TO read, inwardly digest and
put In practice.
lie tNir. Mafwood) fidiCules the com.
mon practice Of burning straw.
From the first he saved and worked into
the soil every forkiul nj straw not eaten By
the stock. Though his land Is Ms
fertile Is the average new prairie, he finds
II pays 10 put in all the manure he can
makUand get. His large crop Of corn, oats
aud gtass prove he il correct, as does the
constant improvement in yield, instead Of
the usual depreciation after q few years Of
culture. Two tons per acre Of good tin.
Olhy, seventy bushels Of oats, sixty TO sew.
Unty bushels Of sound corn arc other eyi.
licences.
And now comes the even more import
ant point:
Another secret Of success Ia his belief
that he owns all the soil Under him, and
that some oil II can be tiirned TO account,
After the fitst thin breaking and rotting Of
the tough sod he pulsthe plow right down
from twelve TO thirteen inches deep, and
brings up the buried stores Of fertility. lie
plows the manure down to the bottom,
ihis tempting the roots Of crops to 20
down there, where they find not only food,
but moisture and GOODNESS even in the
dry season.
/ That, Mi Editor, "altikes the nail right
'La head" lnow do not wonder at
oeAs0i.
paFets -