SIXTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK — PART VIII. 711 



of fine earth so that wasteful evaporations may be prevented as far- as 

 possible. The important work of preparing the surface for planting has 

 been (and is in some localities to-day) carried on after the manner of our 

 fore-fathers until recent years when Mr. Tower devised and perfected his 

 justly celebrated pulverizer. 



The cultivation of corn is primarily designed to kill the weeds that 

 rob it of its food supply and occupy the space it needs for the spread 

 of its leaves to the heat and light of the sun. There is another side to 

 corn culture than that of weed killing, and of quite as much imporatnce 

 It is that of preserving the food supply dissolved in soil moisture near the 

 surface. Plowing and pulverizing are the processes by which this foe4 

 is collected and retained until the j'oung corn can utilize it. Therefore 

 the method of corn culture must provide not only for the destruction of 

 the weeds but must restore the blanket of finely pulverized soil to pi^vent 

 the escape of the soil moisture without disturbing or dstroying the roots 

 of the growing plant. It seems impossible that any one who is acquainted 

 with plant growth and knows that it is most perfect when provided with 

 an abundance of food should doubt the superiority of the shallow cultiva- 

 tion over deep cultivation. The various agricultural experiment stations 

 in the corn producing states have investigated this phase of corn raising 

 more carefully and persistently than any other, and for the benefit of 

 those unacquainted with the results of their tests. I will read a few 

 reports from the agricultural experiment station, of Champaign, Illinois: 



Deep cultivation 59 bu. per acre. 



Shallow cultivation 69 bu. per acre. 



Indiana experiment station at Purdue, Indiana: 



Experiments with deep and shallow cultivation show that in the 

 average yield for five years and the gain of 13.6 per cent in shallow culti- 

 vation. 



An experiment comparing deep and shallow cultivation of corn in the 

 state of Iowa during two years gives the following table: 



Shallow cultivation 72 bu. and 92.7 bu., an average for the two years 

 of 82.4 bu. per acre. 



"Deep "^cultivation 69 bu. and 89.1 bu., an average for the two years of 

 79.1 bu. per acre. 



The difference in the result of deep and shallow cultivation for corn 

 is fully equal to the difference between a poor crop and a good one. 



