The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-11-06

equally affected by the process. The
stiffest clays receive the most benefit,
and the extent of the benefit decreases
with the divergence from clay in the
direction of greater porosity, until
finally a point is reached when the
benefit from subsoiling ceases entirely.
/ Where coarse sand, therefore, or gravel
lies near the surface. labor spent in
subsoiling would seem futile. The
power in such soils to hold more water
must be increased by other measures.
/ If increased at all. While the question
of subsoilingY therefore, is one Of great
moment TO many of the farmers, it
nesd give little concern to others who
may be situated differently.
The retention of soil moisture
Through MuIching.
has received far too little attention in
all the Northwest. The winds of the
prairie blow with more or less of con-
stancy through all the year As the
summer advances these winds become
hot and dry, and in proportion as they
! increase in warmth and dryness just in
that proportion do they bear away
more moisture from the soil And in
proportion as the soil is robbed of
moisture viii it be found that the crops
suffer from lack of moisture. Now
something can be done by means Of
mulching to stop this ra pid evaporation
of soil moisture The straw that now
goes up in smoke can be turned into
litter and manure and then used in a
mulch on meadow and pasture land
and in young tree plaDtations. If there
( is danger sometimes from burying such
coarse little under the soil there is no
hazard in thus spreading it over the
surface Soils thus protected will re-
4s,s hsar+
than if not 50 protected, and the litter
and the manure mixed with it viii also
tend to enrich them. The material for
mulching that now goes up in smoke
every year in testimony of the wanton
prodigality of the husbandman could
thus be maze to protect and enrich
many acres on every farm if properly
utilized.
Rolling.
Then there is the question of rolling
a land roller of suitable make could
assuredly be made to render most ex-
/ cellent service in giving the soil in
! creased power to retain its moisture,
and more especially during the period
when the grain is getting its hold upon
! the soil. Every farmer knows very
well how greatly important it is to
have the crops start quickly and also
vigorously. The use of the roller at tine
/ time of sowing viii help to give the
newly sown crops just such q start,
unless when there is an abundance Of
moisture in the soil And while speak
/ ing thus [ am fully conscious of the
objections that will at once be raised
to the use Of the roller Men viii say
that we cannot roll our lands as the
winds win then have greater power to
carry them away. No, farmers. the
wind viii have no more power to carry
away rolled soils than soils that have
not been rolled. providing the rolling is
done as it ought to be. Our prairie
soils are usually porous and spongy.
They lie so losely that walking over
them when newly ploughed is exceed
ingIv tiresome Now. with the increase
of porosity and sponginess there is a
+ decrease in power to resist the in
Auences which promote surface evapor-
alton. Any measures, therefore, that
can be used to impact such soils viii
give them greater power to retain
moisture. The great service which the
roller can render therefore on
prairie soils will be readily apparent.
but when used. Eastern practice should
be reversed The grain drill or the
harrow should follow the roller rather
/ than precede it. The danger of in
/ creasing the power of the wind to carry
away the soil is thus obviated. BY
thus impacting newly stirred lands
/ with the roller the quick sprouting OF
! the seeds of such crops as corn, millet,
! sorghum and even small grains would
be FASTENED. And although it has been
my lot to travel many thousands of
miles since coming to the Northwest, I
I have yet to see the first roller at work
I'm the fields