The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1886-12-03


This question has been discussed
threadbare, says the Practical Farmer,
and yet there are many farmers who
adhere tenaciously TO the one or the
other side of the question without TAX
ing the various conditions into consid-
Grafton. The first inquiry should be:
What is the character of the soil and
the subsoi? What is the quantity and
nature of the manure, if any be supplied.
The last question is auxiliary to the first.
1t must be also borne in mind that fall
rains and winter frosts only act in the
clayey portion of the soil; the vegetable
portion is converted into plant food by
the action of heat and moisture. twill
now be seen that the clay-iields should
be the first object of attention, and that
the beneficial effects depend QirsD upon
the quantity of clay exposed on surface,
and (second upon the depth loosened
up to the action of the frost, so that the
rougher the surface the greater will be
the area exposed, and the deeper the
blowing the greater will be the cubic
Dimensions acted upon by the frost, and
a minimum will produce maximum
effect III the unlocking of the insoluble
constituents of plant food. These re-
marks are based upon the presumption
that the subsoil is not inferior to the soil
on the surface; small quantity of stiff
bottom clay will receive the greatest
benefit by being exposed to the surface
over winter. When farmyard manure
is spread over the field before it is plow-
ed, it will, by leaving the clay more
L. coil c,tconnfih1a To
the action of the frost; but if the manure
lies spread evenly over the field until it
has received considerable quantity of
rain the soluble matter in the manure
will be more evenly distributed in the
soil than when plowed in before any
rainfall. Manures are not benciicially
acted upon by frost; like the vegetable
portion of the soil, they require heat for
their conversion to plant food. From
| these considerations it will also be seen
that late blowing is more beneficial
than early, for the soil will not likely
be so compact; the more compact the
| soil the more frost-proof it will be. In
order that the frost may have its great
est effect water must not be allowed to
stagnate; and even if the soil is not
| urdlncu Jnc wafer VIII uSu;tlly cSCdpC 1T
least to the depth of the blowing. The
better the land is drained the more it
will be benefited by deep blowing. No
farmer can pillow intelligently now with
| out knowing what the succeeding crop
is to be. 1t takes twice as much manure
| to fertilize the soil ten inches deep rs
five inches, and if the coming crop is a
surface feeder and if the manure is
scare, there may be an advantage de-
rived from the surface blowing. 1t will
take twice rs long to exhaust ten inches
| of soil as five other conditions being
equal. But then it must be remembered
that shallow soils are favorable to
drought. In many respects feeding soil
is like feeding stock. and it is u bad
practice to stint it for several years and
then cram 1t all ut once. The main
points therefore, for the farmers con-
sideratiOn are! Pay attention to the
stiff fields in the fall, leaving the mix
ing of the soil and the getting of it into
proper condition for the spring work.