St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1911-08-26

placed end to end they would reach
more than a III and if allowed by
the blowing the will ill the soil to
a consfderaa q epth and feed in all
portions OF Sat. n the principal corn
producing areas Of the South the
annual rainfall IS 35 inches or more,
and here in a soil properly prepared
for corn the great body of the roots
will. lie from 3 to II inches from
the surface and will feed within
inches of the surface if allowed by
shallow cultivation.
THE ROOT SYSTEM OF CORN.
At the Wisconsin agricultural Ex-
pertinent Station it was found that
when corn was 8 feet highathe roots
had penetrated the soil for feet
and thoroughly occupied it. At ma
turity the roots were feet deep. AT
this time the upper laterals We're
about inches from the surface.
At the North Dakota Agricultural
Experinec. Station the corn roots
lhad - - ated 8 10 feet deep and
fully G.. j ed the ground ninety days
after / esss!tlng.
At the Minnesota Agricultural Elk
pertinent Station the corn roots had
penetrated IL inches deep and had
spread literally Is inches eighteen
days after planting. In most por-
lions of the South nothing less than
s-inch seed bed will insure even
fair corn crop, and 10 inches is safer.
Some soils may require more. From
6 to inches of preparation for cot
ton corresponds to to 10 inches for
corn, so far as the requirements OK
the plant are concerned.
WHAT is DEEP FLOWING?
Flowing 3, 4, and 6 inches deep
/ is onyl common blowing. In our in
structions nothing less than 8 inches
is considered deep blowing. We
are not advocating single breaking
of 8 inches in depth once in two
or three years, but the preparation
of an s, 10 and IL inch seed bed
thoroughly pulverized and filled with
humus 1t is not intended here to
insist that this should be done at
once in all cases.. These are the
depths that must be reached finally
to secure the best crop results. The
farmer must determine how soon he
can secure these depths under his
conditions.
WHEN SHOULD THIS FLOWING
BE DONE.
Alawys pillow in the fall before the
winter rains set in-the earlier after
the 1st of October the better. Al
ways use a cover crop of oats, barley
wheat, rye, vetch or crimson clover
lif possible. Every observant farmer
has noted that seeds terminate more
quickly and that plants grow more
rapidly on fall-breaking than OF
spring Fall-plowing rend-
ers more plant food ready for use
while the preparation of the land in
the fall saves work in the spring
when everything on the farm il
crowding A cover crop is a net
gain. 1t keeps the soil from washing
l. it Utilities the plant food that other
wise might escape into the air, and
it adds humus. The soil is improved
, by the crop, and winter grazing !:
provided. In plowed land properly
, handled the loss of plant food i:
less than in unplowed land; more
: plant food may be produced hn6
more can be stored. In case cOvel
crop is used the loss of plant foot
, is light
Il An objection is sometimes urget
that fall-plowed soil becomes satu
, rated with water during the winte
, and remains wetter and colder late,
, | in the spring than land left un
broken in the fall. This is true onl.
upon land not sufficiently drained
+ and where the. breaking is shallow
Water passes through deep break
. ing readily, and with reasonable
. drainage is ready for planting earle
T than lands broken in the spring.
II With deep breaking and an abund
ance of humus it will be possible
to dispense with many terraces an,
lyet have no washing Of the soil
: Terraces are seldom required on tn
steepest hillsides of the North. Dee
O freezing opens the soil for the absorb
' ton of the rain.
r When land is nearly level, with
! stiff subsoil, it should be f1at-broken
r but left in ridges or narrow land
about 5 or feet wide, suitable 70
, planting, with a dead furrow be
/ tween. This provides winter drain
O age and keeps the pulverized sol
/ out of the water, which is importan
: even if unbroken.
a DEEPENING THE SOIL.
+ The advice to go down gradual
. is given solely because the inexperi
enced farmer may try to pillow to-
n deeply the first time and bring t.
: suface too much of the subsoil. TIL
1 best plan is to use the disk pillow
! so set that it will not bring tn
q subsoil to the surface. Generally i
i may be sent down 8, 10 Or IL inche
i with impunity, and, if done in tn
fall, with slight addition to the cos
o Of shallower breaking. Double pillow
: ing-that is, to break at the usua
; depth and then follow in the sam
e furrow with a narrower pillow o
: scooter and go down as deep as de
: sired-is better than shallow pillow
v ing, though little more expensiv
v plan than the use of disk pillow an
v not so effective. Many trials mad
+ Oh great variety of soils show tina