The Raymer enterprise., 1912-12-05
DISK HAS IMPORTANT PLACE
When Land Is Broken In Spring I'm
plement Should Be Used Rather
Than PioWed for Crop.
cBy PROF. THOMAS SHAWL

may be used betimes In preparing
land for sowing In the absence Of the
plow. 1t has a place on the summer
fallow. 1t also has place on stubble
land, sometimes in the autumn and
sometimes in the spring.
When land Is broken in the spring
in growing areas. the land should be
dlsked rather than plowed for the
next crop. The reasons for this are
first. that the sod buried by the first
plowing will more effectually decay
when It is allowed to lie two years
buried than when allowed to lie but
one. Second. that the sods are thus
kept out OF the way OF the cultivable
processes that follow. particularly Of
the harrows until they have reason
ably well decayed. Third. on blow
land disking does not completely bury
the stubbles, and this Is decided ad'
vantage In holding soils that might
otherwise blow through the action OF
the wind. The stubbles thus left in.
corporated with the surface soil tend
80 far to prevent blowing. The seed
bed is left firm below and In very
dry year such condition is favorable
to the retention OF plant growth. and.
therefore, Is so far favorable to the
retention OF moisture. 1t would prob
ably be more accurate to say that be-
cause the process is more favorable to
the retention OF moisture. It is also
more favorable to successful plant
growth.
On the summer fallow the disk may
have a place betimes as well as the
harrow. First, 1t may have place
when weeds become SO rooted that the
harrow cannot dislodge them. and. sec
ond, In areas where the rains are tor.
rental In the manner In which they
fall In the summer season. Weeds fire.
Quently become SO deeply rooted that
the harrow will not dislodge them on
summer fallowed land. This is es.
pecially true OF wild oats. and Of near.
ly all perennials. It is also true OF Ger.
tain OF the volunteer grains In western
areas. To dislodge these. 1t Is neces.
sary TO use the disk. and In many In
stances the disk will not prove suffi
ciently effective. II is necessary to use
some kind OF an instrument that will
cut OF the weeds below the surface OF
the ground. The best implement for
this purpose has yet to be invented,
notwithstanding the disk on summer
fallow land will destroy many weeds
that cannot be destroyed with the har-
row.
Again. where the rain Is much liable
to be torrential In character. that is,
when II Is much liable to come in the
form OF downpours. the disk may be
used with much more advantage than
the harrow. The harrow when persist
entity used makes mulch SO fine that
the rains which come in the form OF
dash do not penetrate 1t. They run
away over the surface. This may in q
large measure be prevented by disk
ing the summer fallow land first one
way and then another The diskins
is single rather than double. II
creates an innumerable number OF lit.
tie pockets or basins which catch the
rain Of the downpour. or much OF 1t.
and holds II until It sinks into the'
soil. No more effective way can be
devised OF arresting these downpours
when they occur than by the handling
OF the land as indicated.
The place for the disking OF stub
bles in dry areas is an important one.
As soon as the crop has been removed
much good may result from the disk.
Ing OF the land under many conditions.
In the first place 1t opens up the com.
pacted surface soil. so that the rains
may enter It when they fall later. In
the second place II destroys weed
growth that would otherwise produce
seeds. and In the third place II makes
the ploYing OF the land subsequently
much easier than II would otherwise
be 1t would not be correct to say that
In all Instances the disking OF the
land after harvest Is helpful. but II
Is helpful in many instances. 1t Is
not greAtly helpful when there is vir.
tually no moisture in the soil after
harvest, and when none fall later.
which sometimes happens. But It is
greatly helpful in destroying weeds
when these are growing numerously
In the soil It prevents many OF them
from seeding and II destroys many Of
them outright, The effect which II has
upon the easy plowins Of the land sub
seQuently is very marked.
When soils blow. It 10 usually bet.
ter neither to plow or to disk the
land In the autumn. In the spring It
may be disked. The stubbles that are
mixed with the surface soil will so far
prevent the land from blowing. The
use OF the disk. however. has often.
times been abused by using It when
the land for sowing. when
the plow should be used instead.