240 (Senate 



W'Milil absorb ti va^tt qiuuitity n( rain wntcr, arui becoitic a rescrvoif 

 lc) .suiJjily Om whuIs of ihi' jilaiii!!. Nothing is mma coiiunon in a 

 dry siunttu'c, iliaii the rolling of the lyaves ot corn; and that circum- 

 Klanc.e is ol'ten mentioned as an evid* mi of the severity of the 

 (bf)iiifi. 



There is another udvantwge in subHoiling. ll tin; season is wet, it 

 h'M tlie elFeet of partially draining the land, and causes the water to 

 settle and cirry wiili n ;iny vitrioliu or other noxious matters. 



I am not aware that !?ubsoil plowing has as yet, in this country, re- 

 eeived mueh altc<ntiori; hut from my own ex[K'rienee, anti srvnal ex- 

 periments mnde by ditFerent persons iti ditterent sections, and with 

 very indifn-rent Implements, the results ka^# been sueh that lam led 

 to hclicvc that it will piovc o! vcpy great ad\anta!.!,e on old soils 

 thill liav(! been lon^^' umU'r cultivation. 



\']. Phinney, ICso. a very spirited and successful farmer in Lexino;- 

 ton, Ma.ss., in a letter publislud in tlie New-England Farmer, in 

 speaking of an evpcniment made with a substitute for a subsoil plow, 

 in a li< Id of carrots, says, " A part of my crop of carrots was 

 sown Ujioii the fsame land apj)ropi iai* il to that crop last year; no 

 more maiiuie was applied than in the picvious year, and notwith- 

 stHnding the very severe duMiih which greatly injured most of our 

 luMt ( i'0|)s, my riop on this piece of land was nearly double that of 

 last year. There is no Icnown (;ause to which I can attribute this 

 great increase of the produce, but tlu; use «f my new constructed 

 substitute for a sid)soil plow. 'J'he soil was stirred to the depth of 

 loin teen inches; by this means the roots of the carrots were enabled 

 to strike deep, ami ihereby not only to find more nourishment, but to 

 overeome in agieat measure, tlu; <'lieets of a very |)in(dung drouth." 



It is stated in the New-England Farmer, "that ]J. V.French, 

 Es(|. of Ihaintree, Mass. raised the [)ast season, over 22 tons per 

 acreol whitt! carrots on ground mit uartii idarly well prepared for roots. 

 He attribute's this great crop principally to the u;se of the subsoil 

 j)!ow on the lan<l the j)r«ivious season." 



The subsoil plow has been tried in Pennsylvania and Delaware, 

 bill I h.ivc iiiii as yet seen any aiiouni of its effect on the crops. 

 For deep looted |danis, no one, | think, will [jrctciid to gainsay. 

 Why do our !',aid(iis produce so much more to the acre than our 

 fndds 'I Is ll not, in a great measure, owing to deep tillage and 

 mixinj", ilu' under with the uppet soil'? 



IVlr. Smith of I)eall^;lon, to whom is awarded the credit of first 

 suciu.'sslully introducing tin- subsoil plow, in a, lecture delivered be- 

 fore the |{o)al Ai'iiciiltiiial fSocicty of lOngland, in .July last, says, 

 " When I fnst be;i:aii to cultivate my own farm, although 1 hafl put 

 III I Ik diaiiis, I tniiiid they were not SO «^fl:icaciousas I at first cxpcctcd; 

 :iiid I then be-';an to think of stirring up the subsoil, which gave rivse 

 to the idea ol a subsoil plow. I thought I must construct an instra- 

 nii lit which would execute the work with the least possible power. 

 I made my plow v«'ry strong, ami o\' that form to which the least 

 resista,nc(> would be opposcMl, at lli(> sam<> tinn; taking care to have 

 suiVicicnt pow(>r fairly t(t r^tir up tlu> soil." 



