The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-05-03
TILLING THE SOIL FOR A PURPOSE.

"He that tilleth the coil shall have
plenty of bread
The above is the promise OF the great
Creator and has held good for the past
5000 years, or upward; 1t still holds
good, and all that seems to be neces-
sary on our part is to "tilf the SON.
Understandings i. e. for a purpose"
The whole secret of success in ag-
riculture lies in the three words" tilling
the soil,' or in other words-cultivat-
ing. The essentials of success are:
A good seed-bed, good seed, rich land
or. at least, plenty of manure and thor
ough cultivation.
We have often derived considerable
amusement from the various answers
received to the simple but important
query of "Why We Plow" or culti-
vate? Every soil-tiller should be able
TO give, a any and all times, reason
for the faith that is in him; he should
be able to tell exactly what he expects
to accomplish by every manual opera
ton of the farm. let it be blowing, har-
rowing, rolling, cultivating or even
hoeing. A single furrow run without
a good and all-sufficient reason, is
wasting time, and is often a serious
detriment instead of an advantage to a
crop. 1t is not sufficient to give as a
reason that daddy done that way"
After the burying of a surface growth
of sod under the SOIL where, by its de-
cay, it will add it's elements of fertili-
ty to the general stock of plant-food to
that already in the soil; killing weeds,
thereby obtaining a clean surface, so
that the various cultivated crops may
enjoy undisputed and undivided pos
session of the soil; thoroughly pulver-
izing the soil, so as to make a perfect
seed-bed for the young and growing
plant, and the planting of tine seed,
comes the more important part of till
ing the soil, viz, the after cultivation
Though we have no desire to detract
from or lessen the Importance of thor
ough preparation, we certainly do wish
TO magnify Gf possible) the paramount
Importance Of thorough cultivation, as
upon the degree of thoroughness of the
decentralization hinges the success or
failure, not only of each individual
crop, but also of the fortunate or I'M
fortunate owner thereof. In this after
cultivation, we try % TO thoroughly
eradicate all weeds; (2) to break the
crust after each rain, so that the land
shall imbibe its full share of heat. air
and moisture. This "aeration' of the
soil, or allowing the air to enter and
to pass in and out of the soil freely,
is of such transcendent Importance
that no cultivated plant can thrive IS
1t should do without it. This loose sur
face soil is, in short, the lungs that en-
able both the soil and the roots of
plants to breathe. This breathing pro-
cess is not only of prime Importance to
the health Of the growing plant, but 1t
is also essential to that important pro-
cess termed "nitrification" by which
organic nitrogen in the soil is changed
into nitrates, the form in which nitro
gen is appropriated by plants almost
exclusively.
Thorough tillage, in addition to eradi-
eating all weeds, unlocks by chemical
action induced the vast stores of
mineral wealth the earth contains
wealth, too, which, without this thor
ough tillage and aeration, would lie
latent insoluble, inert.
The more frequent the cultivation
and the more complete the pulverza-
ton of the soil, the greater the guam
tity of plant food that is made avail |
able, and the more rapid and luxur-
liant will be the growth of the plants. !
We come now to what we believe |
the most important reason of all of |
why we cultivate; viz, conservation |
of soil-n1oisture. North, south. east !
and west, in the garden, the orchard |
and the field, the necessity for the |
earth mulch" consequently frequent |
cultivation in order TO form that |
mulch, is everywhere. at some time CT
other, apparent. The. whole country, |
more especially the great southwest |
and west, IS more or less subject to !
periodical droughts. To all who are
suffering from. or subject to drouth, |
we would say: Try the "earth-mulch,"
in the garden. the orchard and the |
field, and our word for it you will not |
be disappointed with the result. We |
have been there" have given it !
thorough trial. and over and over |
again established its efficacy.-G. H |
Turner, in Farm Field and Fireside.