The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1909-03-24

~ attachments. BY using them all the
This not only hastens the decay of
such matter, but also adds greatly to
the looks Of the field. Too many farm
ers do not pay enough attention to
looks. A ragged looking field may
raise just as large a crop as a smooth
one, it is true, but the farmer who is
careless In his blowing is likely to be
careless in everything else.
If the blowing is done in the fall it
turns up cloddy X not. The hard
freezes of winter are the best pulver-
tiers that eve tore a clod to pieces.
This is one Of the advantages Of fall
blowing. One Of the disadvantages is
that in an open winter the soil is liza
BILE to wash badly. This can be pre-
vented to some extent, however, by
planting a catch crop, such as oats or
millet, on the field after blowing.
The depth Of blowing will vary with
the conditions. A light, sandy soil
does not need to be plowed as deeply
as a heavier one. If the ground is
plowed the same depth every year the
bottom Of the furrow will become hard
and the roots will have difficulty in
getting through it readily. A good plan
Is to begin at, say four inches, and
pillow one-half inch deeper each year
until a depth of seven or eight inches
is reached. Then go back to four
inches and begin W again. In this
way a little new soil is turned up
every season and the layer of surface
soil gradually %deepened.
Spring blowing should be shallower
than that done in the fall. The soil is
full Of tiny pores, its structure being
much the same as that of light bread.
If you will put one corner of a slice
Of bread in a dish Of water you will
notice that it becomes wet for a con
siderable distance above the surface
Of the water. This is caused by the
moisture flowing upward through the
little holes in the bread. The force
that cause water to rise in a small
tube is called capillarity. 1t is this
capillarity that makes the water rise
from the subsoil up to the surface
where the roots can use it. The
smaller the capillary tubes the faster
and higher the water will rise.
When the ground is plowed these
capillary tubes are broken up, and the
rise of water is checked. To start it
again the soil must be allowed to settle
with the disk, harrow or roller. In the
fall the depth of blowing does not mat.
ter. since the furrow slice will have all
winter in which to settle. But in the
spring this %capillarity must be restored
almost at once or the surface layer
will become so dry that termination
and later growth will be checked.
Hence the Importance Of shallow plow-
ing, so a to reduce the labor Of disk
ing and narrowing. If the surface of
the ground Is crusted CT If there Is
much trash to be turned under the
field should be disked before It is
plowed. This will provide for a layer
of fine dirt in the bottom Of the fur
row, which will pack down closely
and help to restore capillarity.
If the furrow turns up ''shiny" or
shows any tendency to bake into clod'
1t should be narrowed every half da-.
or every day at least. This seems like
a great deal of extra work, but If q
harrow is kept in the field it does not
take long to hitch on to it and 60 over
the newly plowed strip Just before
quitting for noon or night. A fe-
minutes spent 4. ~harrov!nr ut 81 :