Farmers' champion. (Elgin, Okla.) 1912-1922, 1913-07-17

important Implement in Prevent.
ing Escape Of Moisture.
Some Authorities Claim When Surface
10 Smooth II Does Not Hold Snow
a. Well a. When Left Rough
Other Facts.
By PROF. THOMAS sHAwA

II would seem correct to say that no
implement Is so patent to prevent the
escape Of moisture from the soil as the
harrow. The ways in which it may be
used to effect this end are many.
These include the narrowing of sum.
mer fallow land, autumn plowed land.
land that Is plowed late in the spring
for immediate sowing and land that
has been sown to grain both autumn
and spring.
Summer fallowed land should be
first compressed as soon as 1t is
plowed II is then at once narrowed
when the management Is what Is
should be. The narrowing makes
dust mulch. This mulch OF fine earth
dries out to the extent OF one or two
inches. When moisture ascends from
below, as 1t always does, on the prin-
ciple Of capiarity, 1t cannot pass this
dust mulch But when rain falls In
sufficient quantity 1t passes down
through this dust mulch to the moist
soil below and destroys its effective
ness. In order to again be effective
It must be renewed, and In order to re-
new It the harrow must be again
used The best time to use 1t Is as
soon as the harrow can be used on the
soil without the earth adherlng to 1t.
II II Is not then run over the ground,
the surface soil will contract In dry
ing, with the result that numerous
cracks or assures will appear In 1t.
and through these the moisture Will at
once begin to escape from below. BY
narrowing at such a time the dust
mulch will be renewed. Such renew
al must be given after each rain or
sufficient volume to destroy the dust
mulch This may not call for many
harrowings as such rains are not very
frequent in dry areas
When land is plowed in the autumn
Il should usually be narrowed quite
soon after 1t Is plowed. Some authori-
ties object to such narrowing. They
say that when the surface Is thus
made smooth 1t does not hold the
snow so well as when II Is left rough.
as the burrows are by the plow. There
Is some force I'm the objection. But
when the land is left thus rough 1t
dries out more than II it were impact
ed with the harrow. In the spring the
ridges on the crest of the burrows dry
out more than would be possible If the
land were smoothed and impacted
with the harrow. This is true of those
ridges both fall and spring. 1t would
seem reasonable to claim, therefore.
that there is distinctive advantage
from narrowing -plowed land.
Land that blows may make an excep-
tion to this rule.
When land is plowed late in the
spring for crop OF millet or other
crop that should be sown late, 1t Is
always important that it shall be har-
rowed at once. II is important for the
reason that the moisture escapes very
readily from such land at such time.
SO rapidly VIII 1t escape. especially
from near the surface, that 1t Will
soon become so dry that seed sown
on IL viii not germinate, and when 1t
does not, Oi course the result is crop
failure and ihaa failure may be so
complete a. ~ be total
The harrow may be used with ad-
vantage On crops sown both in the au-
tUmn and 81 the spring in dry areas.
When soMD 90 the autumn good re-
suite VIII usually follow from running
the harrow over the land when the
grain IL Jus, beginning 10 appear. The
harrow should usually be of the ad-
Unstable type That means that 1t
should BE- Of type that will admit OF
tllting the teeth backward at any
slant that may be desired.