American Falls press. [volume] (American Falls, Idaho) 1907-1937, 1913-03-27
s0IL MOISTURE IS REQUIRED


Iiilage gives such measures OF aefa.
uon 9 p coll ~ 70 develop plant
! Iood. Chemical action Hberates plant
Eood ~ dissolving the f~nerganic ele-
0snts and forming solutions contain
M plant food, writes =. y. Stephens
: ~ Denver Field and Tayu. The
more complete the aeratson ths strong
erstne solution q plant food contained
~ the soil moisture. We al know
that ne larger the amount Of plant
9 available tie lsss soil moisture
= required to produce 1 pound OF dry
natter. In other words, I tree can
o5ow and bear fruit In I ven aersted
~ with lsss scti moisture than 10 ~
9uired to produce the sams results
WITH the tree feeding on . soil less Il.
sscttvely cultivated.
Aeration therefore sets free in.
creased quantities. Of plant food and
enabIss the tree to get along with less
water. A pint Of very rich SOUP 10
more nourtshing than a quart Of thin
gEusl. The average planter win per.
haps irrigats his orchard three or four
umss IN . season. Each irrigation ID
preceded By running a corrugator or
some other method OF opening fur
rows This requires a team once over,
after men have been employed to
spread the water. Within forty-eight
hours some efficient implement must
Do run 70 get the soil under cultiya-
ton Of the land viii crust, bake, crack
open and soon be In worse condition
than before.
To get the soil back into a. good Z
state OF tillage AZ before the watering.
We md ourselves compelled I cover Il
two or three times, usually once with
the Planet Junior and then each way
With some implement like the Acme
pulverizer or the Tower ~cultivator.
Three and possibly four team opera,
lions will be needed with zach irriga,
Ion to recover the loose, lively, mel.
soil condition In which we had the !
'oil before watering. therefore three .
seriods Of Irrigation will mean cover. .
ne the held nine times with q team. /.
n y experience add these nine cul .
to seven to nine regular cuL !.
and we have sixteen to y
ight~en civilizations, which following !
winter n spring rainfall such as .
have had this season will In suit. u
ole soil go a long way towards con- {
CRYING moisture for the ummer. u
There seems to. be no question that !
tree that 10 efficiently and thorough :
J cultivated finds more favorable con- 0
itions for vigorous growth and early y
ruitfulness than the orchard that II &
ometimes too wet. sometime too dry.
nj handled In the manner Outlines r
This applies especially to g
Dung orchards. This method Is not u
pplcable In the came degree with the a
ider or bearing orchards since an or. u
naru aged sixteen to twenty years
probably seven or eight times
much soil moisture as does the one
y to the age of five yearse. To main. 4
ain soil fertility requires cover crops. o
Q grow q crop Of clover, vetch or n
ifaila In the orchard and thus keep =,
. fertility at the highest standard e
eeded for pro~ductiveness will doubt. "
'ss require several inches OF water 81
10 hardly practicable to maintain II
same high state OF tillage In the Al
"a orchard that can be given in the CO
one n water must either he C,
In the sub-soil or applied at Il
times by sufficient irrigation fl
maintain an ample supple OF mois. Il
ire In the aged bearing orchard b,