The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-10-03
BENEFITS OF
DEEP FLOWING
About a Fifth More Yield on Deep
Titled Fields

primitive system OF agriculture such
as that practiced today for example,
in Mexico, or formerly followed by
the American Indians. it was GUS
tomary to tickle the soil slightly,
scatter the seed, and wait for kind
hearted Mother Nature to produce
whatever portion of 8 crop she
deemed best.
Gradually more improved meth
DDS of scratching the soil were used,
as the forked stick gave way to the
wooden pillow; which in turn Welded
to the steel plow such as is so wide
iy used by the farmers today. Ma
turelv these improved implements
made it possible to loosen the sur
face of the soil to a greater depth,
exposing a larger amount Of the
soil to the action of the sun and air
thus permitting the roots to peae-
trate deeper into the earth in search
of nourishmeDt and moisture.
This deeper seed bed allows the
ram to enter more rapidly, instead
OF running it away, and forms a
reservoir for retaining moisture un-
til drawn out either by the roots of
the plants themselves. or by being
drawn upward in the capillary tubes
of the soil and evaporated from the
surface by the sun and wind.
The question Of what is the pro-
per depth to pillow. of course. cannot
be answered in a general way, but
must be determined by actual tests
in any given locality. There is no
question however. but that within
certain limits. deep blowing is prov.
ing a factor in increasing the yield.
which can by no means be overlook
ed.
An experiment carried on at the
University farm, at the Ohio State
University to ascertain the value of
deep blowing for corn and wheat,
gave the following results ! n the
year of 1910;
Corn
Land plowed about six inches
deep yield 42.8 bushels per acre.
Land cultivated with the deep till
ing machlng 46.5 bushels per
acre.
Wheat
Land cultivated four inches deep
without fertilizer, yield 81 So BUSH
els per acre.
Land cultivated four inches deep,
with fertilizer 1884 bushels per
acre.
Cultivated with deep tilling ma
chine without fertilizer. yield rs. 10
UuSiiCio per acre.
Cultivated with deep tilling ma
chine with fertilizer, yield 90 BUSH
per acre.
The fertilizer consisted of zoo
pounds of acid phosphate per acre.
An Illinois farmer, Mr. F. l. Brow
nell, experimenting with a seventy
acre field, blowing with the gang
pillow and with the deep tilling ma
chine. On the ground pIowed the
ordinary depth he secured twenty
four bushels of corn to the acre, in
while on the land plowed with
the deep tilling machine fifteen
inches deep he secured sixty. one
bushels to the acre The field was
all put in corn, thirty acres being
plowed deep and forty acres to the
ordinary depth
Nh Brownelf used a deep tilling
machine, drawn by four horses of
ordinary size. and he reports that
the seed bed on the land plowed
deep was in much better state of
filth. and easier to get into condi-
ton for seeding His results seem
extraordinary, but they were not
based on guess work. but on actual
weight of the yield of corr.
Deep tilling machines are being
used extensively in such states as
Maryland, Tennessee and Ohio
among the eastern states, while ex-
reports are received farther
west from su IN states as South Da.
kota and Minnesota.
South Oak. Scores on MinnesOta
The foot ball team of the State