The Canton times. (Canton, Miss.) 1893-1906, 1895-09-13
Farmers Department
--EDITED By
B. F. PASSMORE.
MOTTO:
He that ploweth should pillow in hope.
Stored Moisture and Crops.

n
But we doubt If many of them can Civ
the true reason for this result. Tw'
causes contribute to this condition
want of proper supply of the RICH
kind of availab moisture, and ces
sation of work at too early a stage u
development The supply OF moistur'
upon which we must rely for the pro
duction of any crop, must come from
the clay sub-soil and sub-stratums,
where God in his infinite wisdom pre-
pared them for this purpose, and hav'
ing done this He made the Winter and
rainy season during which time crops
are not growing generally, in which to
saturate them to their utmost depths
and to their utmost capacity. and the
cold weather to dissipate the prolonged
and intense heat of Summer, that the
earth might rest and recover or renew
the elements baked in and out OF it by
the heat just as steam engine must
not be kept at constant high degree
of heat, or be in danger of having its
coherency of particles disintegrated.
Just as our physical natures require
| .'tired natures sweet restorer, sleep"
| so the earth and all nature must have
their periods of rest, sleep or dorman-
cy, in which to recuperate. After they
have done this, and come with unvary-
ing annual recurrence to us freighted
with such rich stores of treasured ma,
terial, we must by an intelligent use OF
the part we must play in natures grand
and never failing plans, be prepared to
conserve and utilize these elements to
their best advantage along sensible
and natural lines, ii we expect to reap
all the benefits they hold in store for
us. The first thing for us to do, is to
prepare deep mulch of finely pulver-
lied earth as early as possible in the
season, and keep it SO until after the
crops have yielded their full amount
of ripened fruit in the fall. The earth
is full of little tubes through which the
moisture, under the influence Of the
summer sun. rises or evaporatcs; just
as our flesh is full OF sweat pores and
through which in hot weather the
sweat exudes when we are warm.
Just as saw dust, cotton seed or blank
cts, prevent ice from melting or evaL-
Grating, just so this mulch OF loose pull /
verified earth prevents the water from
evaporating too freely from the sub
soils, and holds it in solution about the
roots of plants ladened with its rich
mineral constituents, where the roots |
and rootlets drink it up and transmit
it to every part of the plant. nourish-
ing and keeping it green, and enabling
No rain or superficial moisture, can at
irregular and accidental periods fulfill
the same purpose as this regular, hour
ly, night and day supply from the sub
soils. And as our cotton crops contin-
ue to grow usually until frost, unless
this sub-soil moisture is preserved with |
scrupulous care, by the time the hot !
sun of July and August comes the
earth having each month grown hotter
and hotter since the vernal equinox,
when the days begin to grow longer
than the nights and the earth stores
more heat during the day than itparts
with at night,-it becomes heated SO
that evaporation is very rapid diiring
our long hot days in these months, |
and makes them the trying season on
our cotton. II the land has been brok- |
en- shallow and cultivated shallow, and |
is lumpy or cloddy, the sun soon and |
easily passes its heat through the crew
ices between these clods, just as it does
through crack in house; and not
only bakes the ground and renders it
hard but draws the moisture out of
the sub-soil rapidly, and the crops
cease to grow and turn yellow. God
puts plenty of moisture each Winter in
The soil to make good crop with only
q little supplemental rain, and it is our
business to preserve 1t there by deep
to cut off the tubes through
which IL escapes, low down, and keep
\ deep thoroughly pulverized mulch Of
earth as an obstruction to its escape,
md prevent the rays Of the sun pene-
rating TO it. Rain in reasonable and
quantities is essential. be-