Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1909-02-16

In order to do a neat job Of plowing
a Golfer and a weed hook are necessa-
ry attachments. BY using them all the
trash can be turned under completely
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 plowing is likely to be
careless in everything else.
Il. the plowing Is done in the fall 1t
does not matter so much whether 1t
turns up cloddy or not. The hard
freezes of winter are the best pulver-
izers that ever 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 plowing.
The depth of plowing 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
plow one-half inch deeper each year,
until q depth Of seven or eight inches
Is reached. Then go back to four
inches and begin over again. In this
way a little new soil Is turned up every
season and the layer Of surface soil
gradually deepened.
Spring plowlng 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 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 causes water to rise in 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 1t. The small
er 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 1t
again the soil must be allowed to settle
for a long time or else be worked down
with the disk, harrow or roller. In the
fall the depth Of plowing 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 as to reduce the labor or DISK
ing and narrowing. If the surface or
the ground Is crusted or II there Is
much trash to be turned under the
field should be disked before 1t Is
plowed This will provide for 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 clods
it should be narrowed every half day,
or every day at least. This seems like
q great deal of extra work, but II
harrow is kept in the field it does not
take long to hitch on to it and go over
the newly plowed strip just before
quitting for noon or night. A rev
minutes spent in narrowing at such
times will pulverize the ground more
than hours of work after 1t has be-
come dry and baked.
The fall blowing will usually need to
be gone over with the disk to get 1t In
shape for planting. The superior con-
dition obtained by double disking-
that is, letting the disk LAP half'-will
more than pay for the extra LABOR.
There is an additional advantage in
that the surface is left smooth. Disk
ing spring plowing is seldom neces-
sary.
In cases where improper plowing has
left a field cloddy the roller may often
be used to advantage. A corrugated
roller is better for this purpose than a
smooth one, as 1t tends to crush the