The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-08-14
Cultivating Wet Ground.

1t takes a pretty heavy summer shower
to so thoroughly wet down the field of
hoed crops that the surface cannot be
cultivated within one or two hours after
the rain has stopped falling. In light
showers there is advantage in putting
teams and cultivatOrs to work as soon as
the rain stops enough, says the Ameri-
can CultivatOr, to allow outdoor labor.
These light showers, which wet only the
surface, are dissipated by one or two
hours sunshine, and do scarcely any good
Covered with two or three inches or less
of drier soil, this moisture rises through
it and fits the whole mass for the rapid
growth Of roots. The moisture of light
rains in summer holds some traces Of
ammonia, and this. with its carbonic acid
gas, makes a very stimulating solvent of
fertility and a positive plant food of it.
self. Every one knows that rainfall
helps plants much more than artificial
watering. 1t is warmer, for one thing
and it has the ammonia and carbonic acid
gas that the artificial irrigation does not
supply.
1t is the greatest advantage of thor
Oughly drained land that it never for
more than four or five hours after the
heaviest rainfall becomes unfit TO work
Even though the rain may not be enough
to start deep drains to running, yet the
effect of the drainage in deepening the
soil and enabling the lower stratas to
hold more water without stagnation re-
heves the surface soil very quickly.
Hence all farm operations on drained soil
are advanced in wet springs two, three
and even four weeks earlier than is posi-
BILE where surplus water is disposed Of by
evaporating or by running off on the sur
face. In either case it is slow waiting
till the land is fit TO pillow, and often such
soil is plowed while so wet that water
runs in the furrow rather than wait
longer. No crop can grow well under
such conditions, unless it is grass and
weeds most of which thrive in compara-
lively low temperatures. The farmer
who thus begins late falls in the rear, and
works to the greatest disadvantage
throughout the season.
How different it is with the farmer who
has well-drained land. II is warmer
earlier in the season, and cannot only be
plowcd earlier, but everything planted
will grow. The first cultivation of hoed
crops can often be done before the farmer
who has undrained land is ready to pillow.
Weeds can be far more easily destroyed
while small and before they have done
any injury The narrowing of Command
potato ground after planting serves better
than cuitivating. If the farmer has to
wait until he can see the rows before
doing anything 10 destroy weeds, those in
the hill cannot be reached except by hand
labor, and that adds greatly to the cost.
The true purpose of cultivation is rath-
er to preserve moisture in the soil than to
destroy weeds. Indeed, there ought new
er to be any visible weeds to be DESTROYED.
If cultivated as often as is necessary to
keep the soil moist, the weed seeds will
perish as fast as they terminate. At that
time they have taken nothing from the
soil, and their germ rotting in the soil is
worth more to it than it could be if they
attained larger growth Cultivating
thus, there need never be any deep cutting
of the soil. Frequent stirring of the sur
face keeps the soil beneath moist and
without injury to the roots, which in a
dry time often makes the deep cultivation
do far more harm than good. If the cul-
tivator is put into the corn or potato field
quickly after every shower, a very small
amount of rainfall will make crop if the
preliminary preparation before planting
has been all that it should be.