ly inter Meeting. 217 



intending to be, to avail himself of the means at hand for informa- 

 tion, for by this (in the language of Prof. Bailey), "We are now 

 able to comprehend that the soil is a compound of inorganic and or- 

 ganic materials. A realm of complex physical and chemical forces 

 and the scene of an intricate round of life. We must no longer think 

 of it as mere dirt. ^Moreover, we are only beginning to understand 

 it, and as the very soil is unknown to us, how complicated must be 

 the great structure of agriculture which is reared upon it." 



In the foregoing thoughts, so imperfectly put, I have tried to 

 emphasize the importance of cultivating the cultivator, believing that 

 this being well done, the question of how to cultivate the soil will be 

 already solved. 



A few thoughts now in reference to my experience and I will 

 relieve your patience. Cultivation cannot always be applied to crops 

 by an arbitrary rule. Uift'ering conditions call for different methods, 

 and when these are met and you, like myself, are short on a knowledge 

 of what the books would instruct you to do, use good common sense. 

 One thing, however, may always be relied on as the proper thing to 

 do. Make thorough preparation. There is no plant or seed but de- 

 lights in a deep mellow seed bed and labor done in bringing the soil 

 to this condition is usually saved by taking the place of after culti- 

 vation. I will give my experience in the cultivation of an eleven 

 acre field this last season, planted in three acres of potatoes, one of 

 Stowel's evergreen corn and seven of field corn. This field had been 

 in clover the past three years and used for pasture. And I attribute 

 the good yield of potatoes largely to it. It is the best growing crop 

 for renovating and keeping up fertility I know of. I turned this 

 ground with a No. 40 Oliver Chilled plow the latter part of February, 

 plowing about six inches deep. The latter part of March I double- 

 disked it both ways and followed with the springtooth harrow. I 

 furrowed it off with a two-horse cultivator, plows three feet apart, 

 using the large shovels making but one row at a time, one shovel 

 following back in the same row the second time. This thoroughly 

 cultivated the rows on each side and in the bottom of the furrow. 

 The seed was Alinnesota, Early Ohio and Burbank, cut in one and 

 two e3'ed pieces and dropped as straight as possible about fifteen 

 inches apart, stepping on each piece, pressing it firmly into the mellow 

 soil. The covering was done with the same plow used in laying off, 

 changing the shovels a little so as to. slightly ridge the dirt over the 

 row. I like this way of planting better than any I have tried, because 

 in planting you thoroughly plow the ground and the seed is put in and 



