Rocky Ford enterprise., 1915-03-19
PLoWs FOR THE WEST
Two-Furrow Gang Implement
Most Popular for Horses.
Percentage Of Work Done by Meehani
cal Power 10 Rapidly Increasing
Each Year-6reater Variety
Of Equipment Required.

The walking plow is not practical
Implement for regular use on the av-
erage farm in the west, owing to Its
waste of human labor. The large area
cultivated makes the two-furrow gang
plows the most generally popular
whea pulled by horses. The large area
of level land, free from distractions,
has created a remarkable field for the
engine gang plow, and the percentage
of blowing done by mechanical power
is rapidly increasing each year. In
this section the mold-board plow is by
far the most popular. writes l.. W..
Ellis in the Denver Field and Farm.
The disk plow is used considerably in
land which has first been subdued by
the use of the moldboard. When the
soil contains much clay or gypsum
and lime. the steel moldboard scours
better than the chilled. Cast shares
can be used with either moldboard In
all but few soils, and are cheaper
than the steel lays. The use of larger
animals has been accompanied by
gradual increase in the average size
of plows, even in the last decade.
suiky plow is growing in favor. owing
to the fact that no dead burrows are
left to interfere with the distribution
of water. This is a curious and un-
premeditated adaptation of plow
originally designed especially for billy
ground in New England. and it is
about the only thing we had back in
the Pennsylvania mountains. Disk
plows are used to subdue much of the
sage brush prairie found in the west
and increases in favor toward the
southern latitudes. The topography
and size of our grain farms in Colo
RADIO. Oklahoma, Texas and New Mex
leo favor the use of mechanical power
and engine gang plows. Probably four
fifths of the traction outfits include
the disk engine gang. Conditions In
our western states require greater
variety of farm equipment than in any
other section and practically every
type of plow found elsewhere In the
United States is used. Here the land
varies from level to mountainous. the
farms from tiny patches Of highly val
liable fruit and truck crops to inn
mense grain ranches.
We have all climates and attitudes.
The great diversity of crops, the varia-
ton in kind and depth of soil, make
the depths Of plowing widely different
In different sections. Not only are the
conditions varied in the extreme. but
much more severe than those prevail
Ing east of the Rocky mountain pla-
teaus and the demand for any particu-
lar type of plow is limited. Neither
machinery nor agriculture is standard
lied. 1t is therefore difficult to inter.
est eastern manufacturers in provid-
ing plows fully adapted to our local
needs. The same conditions discour-
age the establishment of factories on
the western coast, although many cir
cumstances are favorable. Buildings
are cheaper than in the east and labor
often as cheap. Crude oil furnishes
cheap fuel and freight rates on raw
material from eastern mines are less
than on finished products. Only local
manufacture or closer study by east
ern makers will result in plows salts
factory for every condition. The
plows must be made heavier stronger,
Of better material and more simple.
The sand and gravel in the soil call
for chilled, rather than soft center,
steel in plow bottoms, and in. dry land
the disk plow is popular. 1t allows
plowing to be done in the fall. The
pumice in volcanic ash soils necessi-
tates the use of chilled plow. The
soil is more easily pulverized. hence
a lower, straighter and less sarply
corved moldboard is used than in the
heavy soils. Prairie breakers are not
extensively used.