The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1901-01-15
Horticulture.
SOIL EROSION I'm strawberry FIELDS.

B0dB OF SOIL 6rOS1Ou-OWO
effects of heavy rains. d - ="
more serious matter with them 6hah
with h tillers of the soil because
the strawberry is usually grown on
a very low bed or ridge, across whlch
h water of heavy rains readlly
sweeps to collect in damaging VOL
rrn and tear across the field IN
search of the lowest level. Most
other CROPS in such regions are neces-
sarilv planted on more or less OF a
ridoe and so cultivated as to increase
this ridge or bed as the crop IS LAID
nv" AS each of these beds If given
a gradual fall carry off most OF the
water slowly and harmlessly and
even if not so run off they hold in
the middles in the aggregate a great
deal of it, this matter is less import
ant to the ordinary farmer than to
the strawberry grower.
AS the result of many years ex-
~perience| and observation l have
adopted and am exhaustively testing
three modes of preventing or greatly
lessening the effects of soil erosion.
One is a series of bitches or rather
waterways-for they consist o Of
banks on the lower sides than of
deep cuts in the sOil-run through
the fields on an average of twenty
five yards apart. 1t is possible to
n so that this ditch and bank
should not cause the loss of but one
row of strawberries, as a row of
plants can be set very close to the
upper and lower side of the ditch
bank.
These bitches or rows should have
as little fall or slope as is consistent
with safely carrying off the water
without breaking over the banks.
If the fall is too great the water will
run off too fast and wash the ditch
and adjacent soil. 1 find that if
carefully and evenly run a fall of
n inch in twenty feet to be best.
The strawberry rOws r run off
parallel with the bitches. The above
system is known as hill side ditch
ing.
Another system is known as the
sloping or falling terrace system.
The terrace is run off with the same
fall as the ditch. But the bank on
the lower side of the ditch is made a
great deal broader and some higher.
The rows instead of running parallel
with the terraces are run so as to
cross the terraces with a gradual
slope up hill, as it were. That is,
although the rows have a slight fall
towards the terraces, they approach
and cross it in a direction nearly OPP
posite that in which water would run
in passing down the upper side of
the terrace or bank.
In this system each row holds and
conveys it's own water to the depres-
sion just above the terraces. The
rows are u on across the terrace
and the crop planted on it just as if
it did not exist. The water thatruns
down each row into the depression
above the terrace finds its way off
gradually down this depression. Of
course it has to cross the rows in so
passing off down this depression.
This retards it flow and causes it to
pass off too slowly to do harm. In
fact this depression, which is made
by drawing up the earth in forming
the terrace, soon becomes the richest
part of the field, owing to the de-
pOsit from the slowly passing water.
Then there is the system of level
terracing. In this terraces are built
just as in the falling terrace system,
but they are given no fall or slope
whatever. In fact, both terrace and
rows are run off as nearly on an alb
sOlute level as possible. The object
of this is that every row and every
terrace and every part of every row
and terrace shall hold it's own share
of water. If the rainfall should be
too heavy for this the water flows
evenly and in the thinnest possible
sheet over every part of every row
and every part of every terrace alike.
This is undoubtedly the ideal way
of protecting land from washing.
But it requires much care and no lit.
tie skill in running off both terraces
and rows. Yet if successfully &C.
n- n.-0-A ca r