Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1886-03-25
DEEP FLOWING.
Why Farmers should Move Slowly IN thu
Matter of Deepening the Soil.

..Plow deep, pillow deep. for down below
| lies the gold,'' indicates WIDESPREAD
belief among the farmers OF that foun-
try; but the protests that appear now
and then in our agricultural Hapers
against deep culture shows that II can
not be accepted as universal remedy
for poor crops. and that sometimes one
finds nothing but worthless distances
instead of pay dirt for his labor.
What is supposed to be gained?l The
lower layers of the soil being in this
operation opened up to the access of the
air, insoluble and unassimilable plant
food may be rendered more available;
in consequence of this, vegetation is in
duced to send its roots further down;
and especially if it be perennial vegeta-
ton, ike clover or grasses. this MORE
vigorous root development at gredter
depths, away from the reach of sumnAer
drouths, will often make a crop are
that might otherwise fail.
1t is said by those who have investi-
gated the subject that the bulk of the
root-growth of our agricultural plants
Is in the uppermost few inches of the
soil; but it has not been shown that if by
deep culture soil of uniform good
quality is made to q greater depth, the
root-growth will not be free and abund-
ant to a CORRESPONDENCE greater depth,
when the supply of moisture will be
more lasting. On the other hand, the
loosening up of the lower layers of soil
may facilitate somewhat the evaporation
of that excess of water which is an in
| jury to our ordinary crops; and for this
| reason also the root-growLh may be
| more vigorous in the more deeply titled
soil, which if full of water, the roots
wound shun. Furthermore, in the
loosened soil the roots can make their
way more easily and will be likely to
grow more freely. The main purpose
| of deep culture seems to be, therefore,
| to get deeper feeding ground for the
| crops, which shall at the same time
furnish a more reliable supply of
| moisture.
But if there is nothing down there for
the crop to feed upon, or if by deep
blowing a thin fertile surface soil is
| mixed with a thick layer of
poor sub-soil, deep blowing will do
| more harm than good. The crops re-
quire certain degree of concentration
of their food for remunerative pro-
| duction; rapid growth means a rapid
| taking up of food from the soil. The
food does not kindly travel in search of
the plant that wants it: the roots must
push out in all directions for the food;
| this pushing ahead can be accomplished
| only by slow process of root-growth;
the plant can not. one day, send root
in one direction for a supply of phos-
phate or of nitrogen, and the next day
send it in another direction for sup
ply of potash, as we send a boy to
| one store for some butter and eggs,
and to another for meat. The crop
which finds a rich store of food
concentrated together in a thin
layer of soil near the surface will
spread its roots freely in that LAYER.
| and will do better, if drouth does
not dry out all the water in it, that one
which has to forage in pastures deep
but poverty-stricken; even If it can get
all the water it wants, it can not thrive
on much water and little food
Hence the caution that must be used
in that sort of deep culture which mixes
surface soil and subsoil together. It is
sound advice to move slowly in the mat
ter of deepening a soil; to pillow perhaps
only an inch deeper this year, and after
a year or two to 90 an inch deeper still.
and so on till it does not pay to go any
further in increasing the weight of earth
that must be moved with each blowing.
1t would be better vet, unless one IS
very sure about the character of the
subsoil, to give this deepened culture
to few small plots in the field, and
note the effect: it may then appear that
it is better to let well enough alone.
There are good reasons for the advice to
subsoil before beginning to deepen the
arabic layer of soil. The deep soil is
thus exposed to some extent to the benz
eticial action of the air, and it may
thereby be put into a better condition
for being mixed with the surface soil,
while at the same time crops can more
easily send their roots into it for water;
and, moreover, soil stirred by the SUBJ
soil plow always contains more mois-
ture than one not so disturbed.
1t is probably very rare that when
subsoiling is done under proper condi-
tons any harm will result from the
operation, while accounts are not I'M
frequently met with of serious damage
done by spreading heavy layer of poor
subsoil over the surface, from which it
has taken years to recover. On the
other hand, instances are given of great
benefit to the crop grown on the land
Immediately after subsoiling, even in
season when there was no drought, and
even with such crop as the potato,
which has not generally the credit for
deep roofing. Prof. Sanborn reports
favorable results for subsoiling corn and
potato land, on the Missouri Agricul-
tural College farm, only in seasons
when drought prevailed, and unfavor-
able results in cold and wet season. or
in seasons when there was not drought;
and he quotes similar results obtained
in few other localities. Nothing is said
about the character OF the drainage of
these soils.
1t is generally acknowledged where it
is most practiced that subsoiling should
be combined with reasonably good
undertakings. While the loosening
of the earth may provide for the escape
of some of the surplus water by evap-
Grafton into the air, the most of it
should find a way out below; and how
ever well the operation has been per-
formed of stirring up the soil, if it
aftsrward remain saturated with water
for considerable time it Will soon be-
come as compact as before. 1t is well
known that when a trench in a road or
path is to be filled up. the easiest way
to get the earth all back again without
leaving ridge on the surface is to pour
in a quantity of water while shoveling
in the dirt. While it maT perhaps be
correctly inferred, from Prof Sanborn's
statements of his own results and those
of others. that under ordinary conditions
of the soil subsoilinG will not be likely
70 f. Ify