Rocky Ford enterprise., 1902-02-14

face again In the same condition An
they We're pressed into the soil. In tr-
rigation districts the leveling OF the
land should be done at this time OF the
season. the harrow and leyeler being
pulled over the field iengthwise and
crosswise. as many times m necessary
tn put the field. In perfect shape to per-
init an even How OF the water ana u
uniform irrigation OF Its entire surface.
The tools to i,e used for this work
cannot be accurately described. as their
weight and size depend on the animal
power available as well ns on the con-
litiOn OF the Held and the quality OF
the soil. After the preliminary wc..
the land should remain well narrowed
until the time of seeding approaches.
In order to he ready to receive the
seed the soil must besides being In The
proper physical condition have suffi-
Client moisture and warmth 10 sprous
the seed quickly and bring the young
plants readily TO the surface. The
physical condition OF the soil must be
similar To that OF n garden bed. and no
palms should bc spared In the prcpnra-
lion of the seed bed. which can be
made perfect II the ground IL worked
tcrnate us. OF a roller and harrows OF
different weight. II must bc avoided
to work the land when too wet, and
thus pack II too much: while on the
other hand the different operations
must follow each other rapidly, In or
der to perform the preparation OF the
seed bed with as little loss OF moisture
as possible. The most desirable condi-
tion OF the seed bed when fully pre-
Iarcd Is To have the ground line nnd
solid from two to three inches from
surface. and below this layer have n
medium loose soil. Generally speak
Ing. II IL not advisable To plant into
rolled ground. ns there IL always dan
ger Of blowing OF the land In ease Of
heavy wind or OF the crusting and bak-
Ing OF the surface To u more or less
solid mass In ease Of rain. The seed
bcd should always he narrowed with
light onc.horsc harrow In the opposite
direction from the drill rows. followed
Immediately by the sccdcr.
Seeding OF Sugar Bccts: Thc
most important points to bc observed In
the performance OF this work are:
I. The distance apart OF rows.
. The depth Of planting.
3. The quantity OF the seed.
As to the first point. ! wish To say
that the distance OF rows IL OF consld.
cr.ibic Importance In the development
OF the beet later ON. for the followin.
reasons:
InD The farther apart the bccts nrc
planted. the larger In size grow the
roots.
,b) The development OF the tops ln-
crcnscs with the decrease OF space.
tc) The yield Will he small when
either planted too close or too far
apart. while u heavy crop can bc
grown when planted nj II proper dis
inncc.
OdD II II also claimed that the sugar
content OF the beet increases when the
plants ARE left closer together In the
rows, though the distance OF the rows
remains the same.
Oc) Bccts grown close together con
tain not only more sugar. but also
higher purity. which is Of Vital I'm
poriancc for the manufacture of sugar.
~ Close planting Is more beneficial
To the soil though II requires more
moisture to grow the crop.
t., The width Of the rows IN entirely
dependent on the quality OF the soil
and Its moisture condition. Where no
amount OF moisture Is present In the
soil. n space OF fourteen TO sixteen
Inches between the rows IL the most
advisable. leaving the bccts from six
to eight inches apart In these rows. ne.
cording TO the richness of the ground.
Where irrigation IL practiccd. rows
from eighteen to twenty Inches apart
prove the most desirable. ms this width
permits OF irrigation between the rows
without unnecessary waste OF land.
As to the depth OF planting. let us
state that In no case should II exceed
two inches. while with average moist
nrc conditions one inch to one and a
quarter inches nrc the proper depths
OF depositing the seed. II the seed II
buried too deep. there IL great danger
that in case OF rainfall soon after
planting. that the soil Is packed too
solid over the kernel. and instead OF
sprouting. especially when cold wealth.
er prevails, the seed decays In the
ground, or should II germinnte. the
sprouts are not strong enough to penc.
trate the deep layer of soil above and
soon die without breaking through the
surface On the other hand. IL too shall
low planting IL prncticcd. the thin lay
or of soil surrounding the seed quickly
out Vulte thN
which formed soon after seeding also
dry out on account of the lack OF
moisture in the surrounding soil. 1t Is
for this reason. of retaining moisture
as long as possible on the surface OF
the field. thnt the soil in which the
seed Is imbedded should be pressed
tightly around the kernels. so us to pre-.
vent drying out rs much rs possible
from penctrntion of the mir into the
surface soil.
While different ways of planting may
he advocated by Individual growers,
and while In some instances planting
in ridges may be permissible. the only
proper way of seeding is to deposit the
seed in nm absolutely level field. and to
plant with the slope of the land. pro,
yiding the same is not too steep SO as
to allow washing Of the soil by the ir-
rigation water.
The quantity of the seed to be plant