ANNUAL MEETING AT LEXINGTON. 193 



the sun it will draw the water out of both in a short time. jSTow re- 

 verse the order, put a dry sponge on a wet brick and no water will be 

 taken up, and if placed in the sun the dry sponge will protect the wa- 

 ter from evaporation in the brick. Thus it that by plowing we break 

 up the hard crust (a favorable condition for capillary attraction) with its 

 tubes and small continuous spaces, changing it to a loose earth with- 

 out continuous spaces for water to climb in, which acts like a sponge, 

 as it forms a loose pulverized mulch that protects the moisture in the 

 soil underneath it from evaporation, for then there is no water exposed 

 to the sun to evaporate into the above, for the wick is thus cut off. 

 Thus lands cultivated, but not planted in crops, will retain their moist- 

 ure all summer, as all of you must have observed. These conditions 

 are quickly changed when such ground is growing weeds or planted in 

 some crops. The reason of this is very simple and easily understood. 

 Moisture and sunshine, or warmth, are a necessity for the growth of 

 all plants. Water is taken up from the soil by the plants or weeds 

 roots and it is carried to every part of the plant — leaves and all — 

 where it is exposed to the sun and evaporated, and this movement 

 continues, as in the lamp, until the soil is exhausted of its water, when 

 growth ceases. This should teach us to keep our ground all clean of 

 weeds and every unnecessary vegetation, ; to allow them to grow at 

 all they rob our soils as well as our crops of water needed for their 

 use. It follows, therefore, that the larger trees, plants or vines are, the 

 more leaves there will be, and consequently the more evaporating sur- 

 face for the sun to act upon, and the more water will be required and 

 •evaporated. You must readily see that if you raise weeds you will 

 Jiave additional wicks to draw the water from the soil, and to rob the 

 crop you wish to raise. Therefore, plowing and cultivation of the soil 

 accomplishes both purposes by keeping the soil loose and by destroy- 

 ing the not wanted vegetation. Cultivation should be as often as a 

 Jiard crust begins to form on the soil ; this may be sooner or later, for 

 different soils differ in this fespect. 



Eaiii will form it as soon as the Siirface dries, and for this reason 

 light cultivation should follow every rain, when possible to do it, as 

 soon as the soil will work kindly, and then it will be found that such 

 rain will do twice the good and the ground will remain moist twice as 

 long as when it is neglected; and as often thereafter as eight or ten 

 days through the seasons growth, and your crops will show the benefit 

 of it in no doubtful manner by renewed growth and vigor. By this 

 coniinued process it is possible to stop the bad effects of a drouih on 



H. R.— 13 



