The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1914-03-26

made rich by adding manure with
each blowing or turning green crop
of some kind, preferably clover, COW
pea vines or soy beans.
Atmospheric Oxygen.
This gas is as necessary to plant
roots as it is to man or animals, and
if it does not exist in the soil the
plant will parish. Soil particles have
irregular surfaces, preventing close
contact. This condition is not acct
dental, but wise provision for the
express purpose of permitting the
circulation of air and the passage of
water and minute hair-like roots.
The spaces also permit the escape of
noxious gases, the result of plant
root excretions and organic decom-
position. If from any cause the air
spaces become clogged the phenome-
ma of life is stopped. If the soil be-
comes surcharged with water to such
an extent that the seed bed is satu-
rated with water, the air spaces are
filled and the air is driven out. Tile
drainage or bitches will remedy the
condition. If the excessive amount
of water in the surface layer of soil
Is uue W Il utll pan, MN ~ O'SAAIo
it from moving downward, deep
blowing or a subsoiler will relieve
the condition. If the ground is nat
urally low and soggy, drain tile is
the surest and best means to adopt,
for the reason that the tile not only
carries off the water, but through
them air is admitted. Drain tile
always improves the physical condi-
ton of the seed bed and usually the
increase of production in one or two
crops will pay the cost of the tile.
Water.
Water is indispensable to growing
crops, and how to control the supply
is certainly serious question with
the farmer Too much or too little
is disastrous to the growing crop.
Proper methods, however, will re-
duce the danger of damage to
An over abundance can
be taken care of by bitches, tile, and
the deep tillage, but in sections where
the annual rainfall is abnormally
low, the problem of storing a suffici-
ent amount to provide for the crop
during prOtracted drouths is SER
ious question. To make the opera
ton of storing, preventing the waste
and natures process of consuming
water, ! will offer the following ex-
PLANTATION.
Soil water exists in three forms,
/. Hydrostatic or graVltatlonal
water.
2. Capillary water.
3. Microscopic water.
HydrOStatic Water.
Hydrostatic water is the water that
falls on the surface from rains or by
irrigation. 1t grayitates into the
deeper subsoils through cracks, worm
holes and through air spaces. If the
soil is compact and the movement
slow, the air spaces are filled and If
the congestion remains too long the
plants die, as is often seen in fields
of grain, or any crop where water
has stood for a few days in low
place.
Capillary Water.
Capillary water is the moisture
that sustains the plant. The water
is first stored in the deeper subsoils
and by natures process, called capll-
larry attraction, it moves upward
passing from soil particle to soil par
ticle until it reaches the surface
where it is used by the plant roots
to sustain the plant or it is lost by
evaporation. This process is perfect
if the seed bed is so made that the
particles of soil are in close proximity
and the circulation of air is free. If,
however, air spaces exist in the seed
bed, so that the particles of soil are
not in close contact, the movement
of water stops.
Two things stop the movement OF
capillary water, and it is up to the
farmer to so till his soil that the abb
normal conditions will not exist. The
two conditions are
1. Trash on the surface, such as
weeds, stubble, corn stalks or coarse
manure.
g. Lumps in the body or on the
bottom of the seed bed
Trash turned under is responsible
or more crop failures or short crops,
dry years, than all other
causes together The trash turned
lnder prevents compact soil be-
ween the furrow slice and the bot
ON of the furrow The result is, |
arge air spaces and when the capil-
airy water reaches the break, it
stops, and the seed bed dries out.
Lumps in the seed bed produce
the same condition. There |
S but one good, sure remedy; that
S, disc all the trash well into the
ground before it is plowed, and disc
he ground thoroughly after it is
Flowed and in semi-arid regions
make the seed bed more compact by
lsing a surface packer.
Mr.. Farmer! The disc harrow is
safe insurance policy against loss;
whether you farm in humid section
IT in the semi-arid regions, you can
lot afford to ignore before and after
flowing With il you make available |
oil water regardless of drouths, and J
-ou increase the feeding area of
liant roots by pulverizing the Jumps.
Microscopic Water.
Microscopic water or vapOr water,
) the moisture that exists in the |
ir. When air enters the soil the |
noisture adheres to the soil par
icles. This moisture is of little
alue in dissolving plant food ele-
nents, but does in a measure, stimu-
ate plants in dry regions.
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