Dewey County advocate. [volume] (Timber Lake, S.D.) 1910-1913, 1912-09-27
DEEP FLOWING NEG.
CESSARY FOR CROPS
SUPT. STONER TELLS WHY DEEP Pl0W.
ING WILL MAKE BIGGER YIELD TO
THE FARMER.

1T fAkMtk.
No matter whether it be fall or
spring blowing. early or late, the
land should be plowed deeply.
There are several reasons why this
should be done. In the first place
the soil is the home of the roots of
plants. Upon the development of
the root system of a plant depends
its power to produce crop. The
The plant food and the water
which plants must have are OBJ
tanned wholly from the soil. If a
good root system is developed the
plant is then in condition to ap-
propriate to its use these two pre-
requisites of crop production. The
roots of plants, in their search for
plant food and for water, must
force their way between the soil
grains, and it is evident to anyone,
after moments thought, that it is
easier for the root of a plant to
force its way between the grains of
soil that is loose and mellow
than it would be to force its way
between soil grains that had been
closely packed.
In the second place most of the
available plant foods which the soil
contains are found in the land that
is turned over by the pillow. One
of the essential plant foods, nitro
gen, becomes available for the use
of plants only after it has been ex-
posed to the wayfning influence Of
the sun and the'air. The roots Of
plants obtain very little nitrogen
below the depth at which the land
is plowed. Crops in the Dakotas
suffer more often from lack of
nitrogen than from any of the 9TH
err plant foods. The supply Of
available nitrogen can therefore be
largely increased by exposing a
larger volume of soil to the sun
and the air by deep blowing.
In the next place crop produc-
ton in this northwestern country
depends more often upon the mois-
ture content of the soil than any
other one factor. Especially in
the western half of the Dakotas
drought causes more crop losses
than all other agencies combined.
If the land is plowed deeply, so
that the rains, when they come,
may go down into the soil instead
Of running off into the creeks and
gullies much can be done to fore
stall the effects of dry weather.
The soil that has been talked about
so much OF late will do no good. if
there is no moisture in the SOIL
The first thing necessary in con-
serving moisture is to get the wat
er down into the soil, and the only
way this can be done. under our
limited rainfall, is to open up the
soil with the pillow so that it will
readily absorb the water and the
next step is to spread a blanket of
dry pulverized soil on top of it to
keep it there.
The reprehensible practice of
discing in small grain where small
grain was grown the year before
should be stopped and it should be
stopped right now. There is not
an agricultural state in the Union
that can stand up under that meth
cd of farming and the sooner we
quit it the sooner will the great
state of South Dakota come into
her own as an agricultural state.
Plow deep in order to provide
good environment for the roots of
plants, pillow in order to release the
plant foods of the soil, pillow deep
in order to conserve the moisture
that falls upon the land.
The recent rains have put the soil