The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1899-03-01

ground early has an advantage in sew
eral ways, as be must first plow his
ground as soon As the teams eau 60 en-
the land A weeks differences in the
blowing has much to do with getting
the soil fine, for should heavy frost
come on the pIowed land it viii great
iy assist in pniverizing the irmps, -
sell e destroy many fnseei5 which are
thrown 10 the suifaCe IN such casts.
The carly plowing also gives the far
mer more time to thoroughly harrow
the ground until it is in a very fine
condition, and that il one % the most
important matters connected With the
breaking up Of the soil in the spring.
One of the lessons that farmers have
received and which is confirmed by
their own experience is that the land
will yield a much larger crop when
plowed early and worked over until
fine than when simply plOwed and
narrowed once. Deep planting, espe-
cially If subsoiling Is practiced, permits
surface water to go down, and as the
water goes down the soil becomes wsrm.
Later on, when moisture is not so plcu-
tiful at the surface, the roots Of plants
will be better enabled to obtain supply
than would be the ease with hardpan
subsoil, but the working Of the soil
with harrow aud cultivator also does
much to prevent loss of moisture, IS
well as preserving a larger proportion
of plant food TO the crop by reason Cf
the soil being more friable and eapa-
BILE of absorbing a greater amount
of moisture than does soil Allied with
Jumps.
PLANTING EARLY.
There are advantages also to be gain
ed by planting early. When the seeds
are in the ground some Of them will
fail to germinate and may he replaced
by others, the full season for growth
being obtained, bat should the seeds go
in late and many Of them fail the whole
season may be lost, because to replant
may incur the risk Of frost in the fall.
Much loss occurs to farmers from late
planting. and should the rains in spring
not be up to the average in frequency,
with dry period early in summer, the
farmer will have to lose more time by
waiting for rain before he can prepare
his ground or replant that which is not
filed out in the rows. The best results
from fertilizers are also obtained when
the crops go in early, as it takes large
amount of water 10 dissolve them, and
if a scarcity occurs at any time the ef-
fects of drought will be more marked
on plots on which fertilizer has been
applied than on land not given such
material, for the reason that the plants
viii have made more growth and their
demands are correspondingly greater.
The loss Of fertilizer unused by reason
of insufliciency Of moisture viii also
be an expense or charge against the
crop which will reduce the profits.
Crops never "burn upr because of too
much manure OF fertilizer, but from
lack Of moisture, aud the earlier tie
seed goes in, other conditions per-
mitting, the less liability Of damage
should there be but little rain after the
growing season sets in.
EARLY WEEDS.
The early weeds do the most harm
to crops that are planted late, as the
weeds always secure a good start and
entail considerable work after the land
is prepared. Even if the land is plow-
ed early and the regular crops do not
go in until later there will be an op-
pOrtunity to destroy millions Of weeds
that appear as soon as frost leaves and
the ground becomes warm The har-
row, weeder and cultivatOr can easily
clean out the weeds when they are
young, but later on il becomes tedious
work 10 keep them down. In the
growing Of vegetables it is necessary to
plant early if supply is required as
soon as it can be obtained. Such crops
as beets, carrots and psrsnips should be
planted as early as possible, as the seeds
are sometimes slow in terminating,
which permits weeds to crowd them
out if the soil is not made fine and
precautions taken to keep the rows
clean from the start, frequently hand
tools being necessary. while an Oeea
sional narrowing OF the land intended
for summer vegetables will keep the
weeds in check and greatly reduce their
number The heavy SHOWS will serve
to protect wheat, but when they dis
appear aud the corn land is Plowed as
soon as it can be done the farmer who
loses 10 time in getting at such work
will s1ve much in time, labor aud an
noyance later in the season.