Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1893-02-16
THE AGRICULTURAL WORLD
MATTERS OF INTEREST TO THE
FARMER.
Some Ways Of -Sunflow-
err Seed for Poultrv--Make the
Land discriminating
Rats--Frozen Eggs--
Straw Shelter.
Some Ways Of Draining.

tlcular land depends entirely on its
natural consistency, and also on the
nature OF the subsoil. If the soil and
subsoil are both tree and open, it is
not necessary to have the drains very
close together, as water will flow out
freely if the pipes are laid consider
able distance apart. II the soil is
stiff clay, resting on all impervious
subsoil, it is necessary to place them
close together. In all land which
drains freely the water does not fall
into tile from above, but rises up
from below, entering the bottom.
This is because there is in most land
level, below which all the spaces be-
tween the particles OF soil are filled in
with water, and this top, OF which is
known as the level OF approximation
says Prof. j. Maldon in Tillage;
and it is this which must be kept
from rising near to the sur
face. Above this level OF supersat-
uration there may be an excess OF
moisture, which is held by capillary
attraction, but the amount diminish
es as it nears the surface. It Is neces-
sary to keep the level OF supernatural
ton far enough from the surface to
allow room for roots ofplants to grow
without having to come in contact
with it. As the water is held up by
capillarity, that which is far above
the drains does not sink so quickly as
that near to them; so as to make the
drainage complete and rapid inits &C
ton, the drains should be laid lower
than would be otherwise desired to
keep the water level.
To obtain through under drainage,
the tiles must be laid at considerable
depth. There is one point very COM
monty missed by those who follow
low drainage by theoretical teach
ings, which practice refutes, and it
occurs when dealing with some classes
OF very heavy land. Any soil with a
subsoil which is at all porous may be
benefited by deep under drainage,
but there are subsoils so impervious
that water does not sink into them,
as may be proved by digging q deep
trench and leavingi it open, when it will
be seen that little water finds it's way
in; and as this is the case it is obvious
ly useless to open up frequent chan
nels to become the graves of the tile
through which no water passes. 1t
would be no less foolish to drain thin
soils resting on rocks by means OF
tiles four feet deep. But there is no
land which suffers more from the ef-
fects OF water, for, beyond evaporation,
there is no outlet, unless it is conduct
ed away by shallow channels, and
the forms that these channels can
most conveniently take are water gut
tiers and shallow drains. 1t must not
be forgotten that the general princi-
pies of drainage do not apply, and are
not intended to apply to relieving the
Indrainab'e clays which are under
consideration. The water must be
got off the surface, and for this reason
the land is laid up in ridge and fur
row, so that the water can run into
the mould-furrows, and on into the
water cutters. The common signs OF
wetness are: Water standing on the
land after rain; difficult working OF the
land as compared with the surround
ing soil which is properly drained;
poor crops when it is known that
the land is otherwise in good
condition.; yelowness Of the crops,
especially In Spring; presence on grass
land OF PUSHES, sedges, water-grasses,
hassock-grass, and other weeds and
of willow weed, co]tsfoot, etc., on
arabic land, frequent presence OF in
sect-eating birds, such as plovers
Some very important practical points
to bear in mind are: That tiles ought
to be carted in slack time, but on
heavy land injury is done by hauling
when it is wet; therefore take advan-
| tage of cold weather: discard all bad
tiles; the fall must not be less than l
| foot in 22O; place main drains three
the outlets slightly down stream and
brick-face them, with a grating over
the mouth to prevent rats entering;
see that bitches are cleaned out
properly; the top furrow may
be plowed out; make drains
nearly straight. and only wide
enough to allow men working
room; springs must be drained few
inches lower than the rest of the field;
IN large systems provide main drains
with settling tanks; work from the
outlets, laying the main drains first;
do the work by the piece; allow no
filling-up until engineer or yourself sees
the tiles properly laid; fill in the drains
carefully at first, so as not to dislodge
the tiles; avoid accumulation of sedi-
ment; the side drains should never en-
ter central main ones opposite each
other; avoid hedge rows and trees
where possible; have a plan of the
farm, with every outlet marked, so
that if they are lost sight of they may
be found again.
/ Exterminsting Rats.
A subscriber wishes to know OF a
| ro,,,o5u sor n riyiDo a UNIV note 90 b,o