The Sisseton weekly standard. (Sisseton, Roberts County, S.D.) 1892-1929, 1912-09-27
FARMERS INSTITUTES.
Plow Deep
(By III. III. Stoner' Superintendent
Of Farmers Institutes.

(By III. III. Stoner' Superintendent
Of Farmers Institutes
No matter whether it be spring
or fall blowing, early or late, the
land should be plowed deeply
There are several reasons why
this Shoalld be done. In the first
place the soil is the home OF the
roots of plants. Upon rhe de
Kelopment of the root system OF
!: plant depends its power to
4foduce crop. The plant food
and the water which plants must
have are obtained wholly from the
SOD. Ii a good root system is
developed the plant is then in con-
dition to appropriate to its use
tlpese two prerequisites OF crop
production. The roots OF nlants
il their search for plant food and
Cor water, must force their way
between the soil grains, and it is
evident to anyone after moment
Thought, that it is easier for a
fuot Of a plant to force its way
between the grains of a soil that
is loose and mellow than it would
be to force it's way between soil
grains that have been closely pack
ed.
In the second place most Of
the available plant foods which
the soil contains are found in the
land turned over by the plow
One of the essential plant foods,
nitrogen, becomes available for
the use of plants only after ii has
been exposed to the warming in
ffluence of the SUN and air. The
roots of the plants obtain very
little nitrogen below the depth
at which the land is plowed. Crop
in the Dakotas suffer more often
from the lack of nitrogen than
from any OF the other plant foods
The supply OF available nitrogen
can therefore be largely increased
by exposing larger volume OF
soil to the sun and the air by
deep blowing.
In the next place, crop pro
duction in the northwestern
country depends more often upon
the moisture content of the soil
than any other one factor. Es-
pecially in the western half of
the Dakotas drought causes more
crop losses than all other agen=
cies combined If the land is
plowed deeply, so that the rains,
when they come, may go down in
to the soil instead of running Off
into the creeks and gullies much
.an be done to forstall the eff
fects of dry weather. The soil
that has been talked about so much
'oif late viii do no good, if there
lis no moisture in the soil. The
first thing necessary in conserv
ing moisture is to get the water
down into the sold, 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 method Of farming.
and the sooner we quit it the
sooner will the state of South
Dakota come into her own as
an agricultural state.
Flow deep in order to provide
good environment for the roots
of plants, plow deep in order to
release the plant foods of the
soil, pillow deep in order to cen
serve the moisture that falls up
on the land.