Philip weekly review. [volume] (Philip, Stanley County, S.D.) 1907-1912, 1911-05-04

There are three factors that together
bring about this peculiar condition
referred to. First, the country b.
more or less rolling. Second, We have,
generally speaking, very hard clay
subsoil, making 1t practically Inn
possible for water to soak into It.
Third, our rain comes In heavy down.
pours; with these conditions you can
readily see that we do not get much,
If any, benefit from the rains that fall
from time to time and these together
have made this peculiar condition
referred to; namely, dry, hard
blanket formation covering practically
all Of the west. We can 60 out on the
prairie In the spring and dig down
from SIX to twelve inches from the
surface, and We come In contact with
this hard dry soil that II from four to
six feet In depth. And Is long Is this
dry blanket formation Is In evidenoe,
we can not expect to be successful In
the growing Of crops for the reason
that we would have to depend entire
ly upon the summer showers, having
no reserve moisture to draw from.
1t isn't the rains that come from
above that insares our crops. But
the moisture stored below that comes
up by capillarity. There 10 no state
In the United States that gets enough
rain, at just the right time, to insure
a good crop every year. Real deep
plowing will In time gather and hold
moisture ecough to soak through this
dry blanket formation; but the sub
soil pillow will bring about this result
much sooner, for the reason that you
can get down deep In that hard sub
soil, and by so doing make reservoir
for catching and storing the melting
SHOWS and heavy rains, instead Of
allowing them to run Of the land,
into the ravines, into the creeks, into
the Missouri river and eventually into
the Mississippi to assist In swelling
the great floods that cause the loss OF
life and property. A subsoiler makes
the subsoil more pervious to water
and to plant roots. A suhsoiler II not
intended to bring the subsoil 10 the
surface, In fact, 1t would be = detri-
ment rather than . bens6t to the
crop to do so, as subsoil 10 usually
devoid Of humus. 1t does, however,
create loose condition whereby
water Is rapidly absorbed. instead OF
running away on the surface and often
washing the land and carrying fertil-
ity with 1t.
In nearly all of the west the subsoil
must be loossned up to sufficient depth
to admit Of the psrcolstion OF Ill the
water that falls. Whenever the
farmer cdi 90 ont on hts ploweA Holds,
regardless OF how hard 1t Is raining,
and see any water escaping, his
ground has not been plowed or sub
soiled deep enough. / know by obser-
walton and actual experience, that
subsoil opened up to depth OF sigh-
teen inches will absorb oil Of the
moisture that comes In any of our
downpours of rain.
A farmer that began subsoiling
few years ago, and has by proper
cultural methods conserved - much
moisture as possible, has succeeded
In soaking up this dry blanket forma-
tion and made the connection between
the moisture below and the moisture
above, and made 1t possible for she
water to rise by capillarity, and with
a fine and we'll nrmed seed bed, raised
good crops producing as much Is
twsnty-one bushels Of good market
able wheat to the acre. And by the
use Of the subsoil plow, and practicing
the up-to-date farming methods, the
sO-called ssmi-arid counties of the
west will raise IS good crops every
year as are being raised In the more
humid districts.