452 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS 



2 GEORGE V., A. 1912 



The growing of winter wheat in southern Alherta gives an added reason why, in 

 this province, farmers should give summer-fallowing even more careful consideration, 

 if possible, than where spring wheat alone is raised. In this connection, summer- 

 fallowing certainly has a distinct advantage that is not mentioned in the quotation 

 above, for it must be admitted that there is a somewhat greater risk in getting a stand 

 of winter wheat on sod than on well-prepared summer fallow. In seasons like that of 

 1909, in which there was little or no precipitation during the months of August, Septem- 

 ber and October, it is very difficult to get the, grain sown on fresh breaking to come 

 up. Although there is ample moisture in the subsoil, the sods themselves have become 

 very dry and have not rotted sufficiently by August to allow the discs or shoes of the 

 seed drill to out through them so that the seed may be deposited on the moist subsoil. 

 Under these conditions, opportune rains must be depended upon to bring the seed up. 

 On well prepared summer-fallow, conditions are quite different, for if the land is 

 . ploughed in May or June, while it is moist, before the rainy season is over and while 

 the weeds are not more than a few inches high, little trouble is experienced in getting 

 the lower part of the furrow slice firm and and keeping it moist. The depth of the 

 ploughing should not be less than five or six inches and eight is recommended. The 

 harrow should immediately follow. Too much stress cannot be laid on the importance 

 of doing this ploughing early, i.e., before the weeds have had a chance to grow large 

 enough to pump out the moisture that should be stored in the subsoil for the crop that 

 is to follow. If, for example, the weeds and volunteer grain are allowed to grow a 

 foot or more high and it is necessary to use a chain on the plough to get them turned 

 under, the work on the summer-fallow is practically thrown away, for the land is 

 certain to turn up lumpy and loose and the supply of moisture that should be in the 

 subsoil has already been heavily drawn upon. 



If, after the land is ploughed, hard rains form a crust, it should be broken up 

 with a drag harrow before the land had a chanceto dry out to any extent. Suffi- 

 cient surface cultivation should be given during the summer to prevent all weeds from 

 growing, i.e., the land should be kept perfectly bare. Two of the best tools to do this 

 with are an ordinary harrow and a duck-foot cultivator. The latter implement is too 

 rarely seen on the grain farms of southern Alberta. A serious mistake is made when 

 a disc is substituted, for the reason that it cuts down too much and so forms too deep 

 a mulch. It also pulverizes the land excessively, causing it to drift too readily with 

 the wind. The duck-foot cultivator can be set very shallow, just deep enough to cut 

 off the small weeds and it merely loosens the surface without making it fine, leaving 

 it in a granular rather than in a powdery condition. Another great advantage of the 

 cultivator over the disc, that will appeal strongly to farmers, is that a summer -fallow 

 may be cleaned much more economically with it. Whereas it is necessary to double- 

 disc a piece of ground if a satisfactory job is to be accomplished, with this cultivator 

 the same four horses will cover at least twice as much ground in a day and do the work 

 better. 



TIME TO SOW. 



Winter Wheat. — Our results for the past three seasons certainly indicate that from 

 the middle of August to the first of September is the best time to sow. On well pre- 

 pared, summer-fallowed land, where it is possible to maintain the moisture zone 

 relatively near the surface, we have reason to believe that the August or early Septem- 

 ber sowing will give more satisfactory results as a rule than will July sowing. 



Spring Wheat. — Early sowing is of prime importance. Every effort should be 

 made to conclude the seeding of this grain by May 1. 



QUANTITY OF SEED TO SOW. 



This, as well as the proper time to sow, is a point about which we have not yet 

 sufficient data at hand to draw very satisfactory conclusions, consequently, any state- 



