The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1895-03-08
THE BENEFITS OF sUBsoILING.

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THE BENEFITS OF sUBsoILING.
In answer to numerous inquiries ia re-
gard to our methoh Of subscribing We
will endeaver to present q plain state.
ment from the commencement OF our
experiments as conducted during the
past eight years at Geneva, Nebraska,
In the spring Of 1887 we commenced our
nursery grounds to prepare the ground
for planting IN the ordinary manner
We plowed the ground about eight in
ches deep and planted ournursery stock,
among which was q quantity Of seedlings
which were dug the same fall. In order
to get the proper length Of root to sue
eessfully transplant the seedlings it will
become necessary to get under them
much deeper than the ground had been
plowed which was accomplished by using
a seeding digger set to run nearly SIX
teen inches deep. 1t required six horses
to do this work and the ground was
stirred up vs. it had never
been before. The next seaso this por-
ton OF the field was planted to corn and
the yield was nearly seventy bushels per
acre, while land ploWed in the ordinary
way yielded only thirty five bushels.
This led MS to experiment III preparing
the soil, our motto being: "Plow deep
and thoroughly prepare the soil, before
planting"
Each succeeding year gave us good re-
suits by deep stirring, though we did
not attain the full Measure ot success IN
our experiment until we began to use ~
pillow to subsoll the whole ground. In
the fall of 1891 we purchased u Mapes
subsoil plow with which We succeeded III
getting down to The depth Of six teen IN
ches below the surface. Our method Is
to first pillow eight inches deep With an
ordinary 14.lnch stirring plow which il
followed by the subsoll pillow cunning IN
the same furrow luusenlng the sou to
the uepn OF elght Inches but not
throwing it to tho surface. TINS gives
us d reservoir sixteen inches in depth To
catch and retain all the moisture that
falls and we are convinced that during
the twenty three years We have resided
in Fillmore county there has eve been
a season when the rainfall was not sui
fcient to ill this reservoir with water
before the growing season commenced.
We have been asked che following
questions by correspondents:
Q.-When do you subsoll--lall or
spring?
Ave have SUBSIDIZED both | u spring
and fall with equally good results.
Q.-HOw many horses 10 YOU ISL?
Ave use three horses on each plow
though two good horses VIII 40 the
work.
Q.-What kind OF a pillow do you use?
A.-The Mapes subsoll pillow, manu-.
featured by Deere aud Co., Moline LII.
Cost OF pillow $l4.OO.
Q.-What is the nature Of your soil?
A.-See analyses Of the soil, ana let
ter of Prof. Whitney appended hereto.
els your land upland or bottom?
At is upland prairie, the depth to
water being la feet.
Q.-What is the cost per acre OF plow-
ing by your method?
AIS the supsoll piow is drawn by a
separate team and follows in the same
furrow behind the stirring Wow, it SIM
ply amount to one extra blowing.
Q.-What is your method OF cultiva
ton?
A.-Our method is first to harrow each
evening all the land plowed during the
day. This breaks up the clods before
they become harden ed, and prevents
the soil from drying out by evaporation.
Before planting We again harrow, and
:pulverise the surface with a float
We are then ready for planting.
If we plant to small grain W. drill east
and vest, leaving the surface just as the
drill leaves it. AS the prevailing winds
are from the north and south, the sur
face being made rough east and west
helps to protect the grain and prevent
blowing out.
If we plant to Orr our metnod is to
plant about three or four inches deep,
follow the planter with the harrow, and
give surface cultivation, running the
-cultivator teeth just deep enough to
destroy the weeds and break up the SUI
face Of the soil. We endeavor to cultl-
yate the corn inst as soon after each