DAIRY AND SEED IMPROVEMENT MEETINGS. 277 



I think boys' clubs are a great organization as they encourage 

 "us fellows" to love to work on the farm. I did not realize 

 until this year, that there was so much hard work and so much 

 pleasure in raising the crop that was all your own. And I would 

 say, Do not be discouraged under any circumstances if things 

 do not go on smoothly, but hope that the season of 191 5 will be 

 so favorable that it will induce other boys to join our club, and 

 help "To Make the Best Better." 



HOW I INTEND TO GROW MY CROP NEXT YEAR 



By Ulmer W. Davis^ Machias. 



(Prize Essay) 



For next year I have selected a plat of ground of black loam 

 because I think that is the best soil there is for growing pota- 

 toes. The land was sown to clover lasjt year and in the spring 

 I shall plow it under as this will help to fertilize it. I have 

 decided not to plow it this fall because I think that during the 

 early spring months, the melting snow washes the substance 

 from the top soil of the earth that has been turned over. The 

 plat is in a good sunny place and as it was plowed and harrowed 

 this season, it is level and free from rocks. 



I intend to do the plowing about the first of May. It will 

 be best to plow the plat lengthwise, first making the back fur- 

 row in the center. To do this, it is, necessary to make one 

 furrow and then turn over another on the opposite side of it. 

 After that, I shall go down one side of the plat and up the other 

 until they meet the center row. All will be eight inches deep. 

 The ground will plow smoothly because the land is level. 



The more times the ground is harrowed, the better it will be 

 and much easier to work. As I think a spring tooth harrow is 

 the best there is, I shall use that kind. The plat will be har- 

 rowed lengthwise and then crosswise ; repeating five or six times 

 so that the soil will be well pulverized. 



I shall stake oflf where the furrows are intended to be made 

 so as to get them even because if they are not, it will make the 

 plat look bad. I shall use a slow horse, for the cultivator will 



