Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1883-05-24
Deep or Shallow Flowing.

Twenty-Five years ago large ms
jority of farmers believed deep plow-
ing to be the best for all soils and all
crops, but since that time many have
changed their opinion. To-day but
few will advocate deep blowing without
some qualification. Experience has
proved that what is best for one soil, or
crop, may not be best for another. soil,
or for a different crop; in fact it is
found that blowing, like other occupa-
tons on the farm, can not. with any
surety of success, be brought under any
rigid rules. but that each lot of land
and each crop must be considered by it.
self; that the depth which it is best TO
pillow must depend mainly on the char
acter of the soil and the nature of the
crop to be grown; for example, if the
soil is a very sandy loan, and the crop
to be grown be Indian corn, it should
not be plowed so deep as if the land be
heavy loan and the crop be carrots
or parsnips. 1t is mistake to sup
pose that because one kind of a soil. or
crop. does better by deep blowing that
all soils and crops do. A soil that is
rich and full of partially decayed vege-
tation to the depth of ten or twelve
inches is, no doubt, improved by deep
blowing, for some crops, but a poor
soil that is deficient in partially decayed
vegetation, except few inches of the
surface, would be greatly injured the
first year by deep plo"-ing. This has
been thoroughly demonstrated by a
large number of experiments, but be-
cause this is so, deep blowing ought not
to be condemned, nor should farmers
who own farms with deep rich soil
insist that deep blowing is the best for
all farms, because they find it best for
theirs.
Nature has placed the richest portion
| of the soil very near the surface. and
she has constructed plants with their
feeding roots very near the surface also,
that they might be where the soil is in
| the best condition to feed them. When
man attempts to overcome these natural
conditions he soon finds it can only be
done at a great cost, if at all. Nature
does not object to having the soil made
rich to a much greater depth than it is
usually found in its natural state, but
when man reverSeS the natural con-
ditions by changing the four inches of
rich surface soil and placing it at the
bottom of furrOw eight inches in
depth. and at the same time covers it
with four inches of the poor soil which
nature has placed beneath the four
inches of the rich soil, she rebels and re-
fuses to produce so good crops rs when
L., 81, al 81,
verSed
While most crops grow best when
the soil is made light and loose eight
inches deep, it is not SO important that
the lower half of this eight inches
should be very rich, as it is that the
upper half should such being the case,
it will readily be seen that when Il soil
is rich only few inches on the top, if
this be changed to the bottom of a deep
furrow, and replaced with poor soil, it
will be difficult, if not impossible, to
make the poor soil thus brought to the
surface as rich as the natural soil which
has been covered so deep that but few
plant roots, that are particularly adapted
for feeding roots can reach it.
In deciding what depth to pillow land
it is important to know how deep the
soil has been enriched, so as not to 90
much below it. In deepening a soil it is
best to do it very gradually, not more
than one inch each year; even when this
is done it will require larger quantity
of manure than if plowed only the usual
depth.
Unfortunately our plOws are not con-
structed on plan to initiate nature, but
exactly contrary to nature. If we had
a pillow that would stir and pulveriZe the
SOIL and at the same time keep it the
same side up, there would be but very
little, if any, objection to deep stirring
of the soil; then the rich soil would be
kept near the surface, and the fertilizers
applied would be mingled with it, and
thus make the most desirable condition
for rapid plant growth. We trust that
the time will come when we shall have
an implement that will thoroughly stir
the soil and leave it the same side up,
and at the same time mingle the manure
with four inches of the surface soil; I'M
til we have such implements we should
be cautious how we pillow the land much
below the rich soil.
On land of ordinary richness crop
of Indian corn will grow better with the
same care ard manure, if it be plOwed
only four or five inches deep, than If
plowcd eight or ten inches deep. What
is true of corn is true of rye and similar
crops; but if it is desired to grow car
rots, or horsc-radish, or any deep-rOOt-
ed crops, it is important that the land
should be plowed deeper, and for such
crops it is also important that the land
should be prepared by gradually deep
ening the soil until it has been well en-
riched to the depth of eight or ten
inches When this is done deep plow-
inc NAV be rcsOrtcd to with advantage;
but to attempt to prepare shallow soil
in single year can not be done without
the application of very large quantities
of manure: and even then it would be
difficult, if not impossible, to mingie
the manure with the soil and make it so
well adapted to plant growth, as if the
deepening had been done gradually,
covering period of several years OF
time.
BY carefully examining the subject,
it will be readily seen that as long as
we use piows that turn the soil over,we
shall have to consider the condition of
our land, and make ourselves acGuaint
ed with the depth of the rich portion of
the soil, before we know what depth to
pillow. The question as to the proper
depth of blowing land should be left for
each farmer to decide for himself; let
him first make himself familiar with the
principles that he ought to be governed
by: then he will be far better able to