The Dickinson press. (Dickinson, Stark County, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1883-1927, 1906-09-08
period of three or more years.

FSAAoN VI
SOIL TREATMENT AFTER FLOWING.
If one were to examine a freshly
plowed field, he would find the soil loose
in texture, and containing many air cav
tiles communicating with the surface.
If the ground is left undisturbed, there
is thus furnished excellent means for the
drying of the newly plowed soil. In
order to prevent such drying the soil
should Immediately be packed and
dirt mulch formed on top. Packing may
be done with an ordinary roller but the
results are not generally satisfactory.
Probably the best tool for this purpose
is the sub-sur!ace packer which consists
essentially of a series of wedge-shaped
skeleton wheels about "a inches in diam
eter. These are weighted and when the
machine is drawn over the freshly
plowed field, the lower portion of the
freshly turned soil is frmed, the air
spaces are filled, and as the soil is
packed against the furrow bottom, cap
illarity is reestablished thus allowing
water to be drawn up from below. The
packer is followed by harrow which
reduces any clods that may be present
and leaves a dirt mulch on the surface,
thus preventing any undue loss of mois-
ture. The dirt mulch should be retained
and should be kept as fine as is consist
ent with other conditions. The surface
should not be kept so fine and smooth
that the mulch will blow or its value will
be lost. 1t is probably not necessary to
state that this method of farming does
not contemplate growing crop of weeds
on ground that is being prepared for a
crop.
After the crop is drilled, the prepara-
ton of the soil for the ripened crop
should be- continued. Wheat may be
narrowed with slanting peg-toothed
harrow until it has attained height of
five or six inches, and if it is deemed
necessary a weeder may be put on until
the grain is knee high. The main OBJ
jects of the cultivation of the grain are
three: 1t forms dirt mulch thus con-
serving moisture, it destroys the young
weeds, it derates the soil, thus aiding the
growth of bacteria which are so essential
to plant growth. Narrowing grain is not
an uncommon thing at the present time
and one need not be much of a prophet
to assert that in few years, narrowing
again in the semi-arid regions will be
considered as essential as cultivating
! corn at the present time.
CROP ROTATION.
Past experience has plainly shown the
necessity of having well-planned sys-
tenn of crop rotation if the fertility of the
soil is to be retained. Other things
being equal, the more radical the rota-
tions the more satisfactory the results.
1t does but little good to rotate from
wheat to oats, from oats to barley and so
on. In North Dakota, at least, the most
important crop in the eyes of the farmer
will be the small grain crops, preferably
wheat. The aim of the rotation should
be three-fold: The retention of soil fer
tility, the conservation of moisture, and
with the two foregoing attained, the pro-
duction of the largest number of small
grain crops. We shall discuss that
phase of the rotation which deals more
directly with the conservation of mois-
ture.
| At the present time, the principle of
the dirt mulch is considered of prime
importance in the conservation of mois-
ture. Therefore we may expect this to
figure largely in any system of dry-land
farming. AS was seen, the practice of
the dirt mulch can be brought into play
to some extent when growing grain con.
tinuously. 1t has been found that as a
rule such practice does not conserve
enough moisture to grow grain contin.
ually. Even if enough were conserved
the continued cropping would not be
wise, as it would place the soil in poor
physical condition and entail too con.
stant drain upon the elaborated plant
food. These difficulties are largely over:
come by growing cultivated crops por:
ton of the time. In growing a. crop o1
corn, results are not only obtained the
season the crop is grown, but certain
conditions accrue to the soil which be.
come of marked benefit to succeeding
crops of grain. Important among these
is the saving of soil moisture. This re
suit follows, however, when the corn i!
we'll cultivated, thus maintaining the dir
mulch.
The success of this method depend.
largely upon the character of the soil
In the lighter soils and those containing
small amounts of humus or organic mat
ter there will be an increasing tendency
to Gift" or blow as the cultivation o