American Falls press. [volume] (American Falls, Idaho) 1907-1937, 1916-11-30
DRY SEASON AGAIN IMPRESSES
NEED FOR DEEP FLOWING
Plants Want Room for Root Develop
ment In Moist Su5sOil.

farming, the precipitation having been
much above normal. This season, how
ever, shows a disposition to return to
the average, and n we consult the
records drier years may be expected,
for we now have an excess of several
inches which sooner or later always
has to be paid back-judging the flu
ture by the past.
Many new settlers from the humid
states who did fairly well in the four
wet years previous to 1915 by farming
on the eastern plan have raised little
or nothing this IA and will have to
buy feed for their stock this winter.
On the other hand, we notice that our
best dry farmers h use advanced
methods, filling the soil deeply and
conserving the extra moisture in good
years to carry over for the lean ones,
have raised good crops in the present
season.
When the dry weather is upon us it
Is too late to do much in the way of
conserving moisture. 1t is by using
the right methods of accumulation and
conservation when there is plenty of
moisture, that we are enabled to farm
successfully when precipitation is
scarce, for water in the soil is to the
dry farmer as money in the bank Is
to the merchant, for dry farming
means farming for the future as well
as the present.
What has happened this year hap
pens every time the rainfall returns to
normal after a season or W. above
the average and will always happen
to those who fail to use the methods
which practice has proved adequate.
The Improbable Way.
In a year like the present, all the
time devoted previously to shallow
blowing and stubble farming has
brought no benefit, and yet with fifty
cents more work to the acre good
crops might nave been harvested.
After three weeks of dry weather
the oats which were planted on stub
BILE began to burn up. The corn which
was planted on shallow land com
menced to wilt and became badly
stunted, and the crops which were
planted on W iches of o all went
to the bad.
In he last four years many of our
deep blowing subscribers have raised
from 30 to so bushels of wheat per
acre and also other small grain, be-
sides 40 to so bushels OF corn n alti-
tudes ranging up to $780, feet, and
three tons sorghum or other cattle
feed per acre, besides which so much
surplus precipitation has been con-
served In the subsoil that the indica-
tons are that these figures will be
only slightly reduced this year. owing
to the dry spell.
Deep blowing, deep breaking. fallow-
ing and efficient cultivation are re-
sponsible for these results: but of all
these, deep blowing Is the nos i'm
portant. An acre of soil plowed 10
inches deep contains in Its iced bed
twice as much titled soil as an acre
plowed only 5 inches and will natural
iy raise about twice as much stun.
This Is so obvious as to be patent to
everyone: but also on of the
moisture conditions successful dry
farming is more a matter of depth
than any other branch of agriculture.
Old World Flowing Average.
In the agricultural countries of the
old world average depth of blowing
is 9 to 10 inches. and deep blowing
is from 10 to 20 inches. In Germany,
England, France, etc. If the tenant
farmer plows less than 3 inches or
refuses to rotate his crops, fertilize
iHt SUN anu IttuIH All lnt TRlnSb 10
the land. the landlord can cancel his
lease.
In our own country our average
blowing is very low. somewhere about
d inches. but It is improving. The
crops, of course. match the blowing
and average per acre about half of
those raised in Europe. There III a
reason for this, however. When the
nrnGSttpa nf nAnnlafinp In tho INn.t
caused the first influx " settlers into
the middle west they found them
selves in a country of rich virgin soil
and abundant precipitation where
crops grew so easily that blowing be-
came almost "A lost art.
This IA quite a different expert
euc from that of the Pilgrim fathers
and their descendants in the New Eng
land states. There the soil was com
paratively poor m rocky and the
farmers learned that the only way to
make crops was by thorough tillage
and fertilization. In these states the
blowing has always been fairly deep
n is yet. and II We turn to the rec
ords of the crop reporting department.
We find that. In spite of their cool
weather and %northerly position. they
actually raised more corn to the acre
than the great corn states, Connecticut.
for instance. often averaging 40 bushels
to the acre against IL in Kansas and
rs in Missouri and Iowa. Small grain
crops were also In like proportion ac-
cording to the records. n these fig
ures demonstrate that good methods
are of more value than climate.
1, is a curious fact that some of the
men OF the department of agriculture
who have. been sent out to the west
are rather against deep tillage and
intensive cultivation. and yet their
most brilliant men. such as Seaman
Knapp. Bradford Knapp and others.
have doubled the crops of some Of the
dr:cst OF the southern states By sivo-
eating deep tillage and thorough cul-
tivation. DIR. Seaman Knapp always
said that the difference between shall
low blowing which raised half q crop