The Kadoka press and Kadoka reporter. [volume] (Kadoka, S.D.) 1910-1923, 1911-02-17

time in the spring when the snow was
melting, and the ground frozen.
A still further reason why different
systems have to be practiced is the
fact that the evaporation is so much
greater under our conditions than at
the lower altitude.
Hence we see that it is more largely
owing to other conditions than insult
ficient rainfall, that different systems
Of tillage have to be adopted in what
has been termed the semi-arid west.
Use of Water.
So long as we get moisture enough
during the seasons of the year when
we can get it into the ground, we
have no reason for complaint If our
crops suffer for want of it. That we
do get enough of it almost every year
is evidenced by the TACT that some
one in each locality raises fairly
good if not a bumper crop. Some
times it is only a garden, and that
titled bV the woman of the house.
But if she raises a garden without
irrigation, there is no reason on e4rth
why her husband could not raise a
good crop in the field. AS a matter
of fact the garden is a success while
the field crop is a failure because of
different systems Of tillage. The wo-
man who grows a good garden
insists on having it plowed deep. No
four inch plowing does for her in the
garden. Then it must be dragged
time and time again. In fact dragged
until the big feet of the horses have
tramped it down until the soil is COM
pact. And then she hoes and rakes,
as long as anything in the garden is
growing, And this is Dry Farming"
1t did not rain any more where the
garden was, than it did out in the
field, but what rain did come settled
into the soil, and then was conserved
by the use of the hoe and rake.
Deep Tiilege.
The first operation in the process
of dry farming is to disturb the soil,
loosen it and put it in condition to
receive the immense downpour of wa
ter as rapidly as it comes, and hold
it in the fields for the use of the crop,
instead of letting it escape into the
ravines. The only obligation of Ma
ture, and all we have any right to ex-
poets of her is to give us enough mois-
ture. We must not expect to dictate
just when. If she gives us enough il
is our business to take care of it..
With only four inches of the surface
soil disturbed by the plow, we only
have four inches of saturated soil at
ter our heaviest rain. There will be
a little Of the subsoil wet, but over
most of the area it will be very little.
The disturbed soil becomes so satu-
rated that 1t settles together in
compact mass, and the water contain
ed in it eyapOrates almost as rapidly
as rain usually falls at lower attitudes
1t is soon gone, carried away by the
wind and sun, and our crop is again
suffering. Not suffering because we
have not had rain enough, hut be-
cause the field was not in condition
to retain the water that did fall, in
shape that the crop could avail itself
of it for long period of time.
If instead of having only four inch
es of loose soil we had had 16 or 20
inches, the big rain would have dis
tributed itself through all of this,
thoroughly moistening it. 1t would
not have saturated the two or three
inches of the top and left it in a COM
pact condition as is does where the
plowipg has been shallow. There
would not any OF it nave escaped. 1t
would have simply been stored there
for the crop to draw on, as the flame
draws upon the oil in the bowl of the
lamp.
Then the first operation is to get