762 



Journal of Agriculture. 



[10 Dec, 1910. 



illustrated in Fig. 4 was being done in midsummer. As I was informed 

 by one of the owners, who were doing their own work, " il faut que le sol 

 se refasse " (the ground must remake itself). Summer trenching is a very 

 common practice in Europe. In Spain, the word Agostar, which signi- 

 fies to trench, has for its literal meaning " to work the soil in August " or 

 midsummer. 



It is always well to work the land a considerable time before planta- 

 tion. After preparation an excellent course is to sow a crop of wheat 

 or oats on it before plantation. By cutting this for hay the land is very 

 efficiently cleaned from weeds. In Victoria it is quite common to see 

 land subsoiled in July and planted the following month. Especially in 

 a dry .season, cavities are left in the subsoil which have not had time to 

 fill and which constitute so many air chambers, rendering it exceedingly 

 difficult for the young vine to thrive. The unsatisfactory growth of many 

 young plantations is traceable to these causes. The stiffer the land, the 

 greater is the need for working it some time beforehand and for 'paying 

 careful attention to its condition as regards moisture. 



(To be continued.) 



G. H. 







17. FOOT FOR 

 HOME-MADE STAFF. 



IRRIGATION. 



Tolley, Manager, Wyuna Irrigation Farm. 

 {Continued, from -page 689.) 

 Levelling Staff.— The staff may be any piece of straight well-planed 

 softwood timber, and can if desired be graduated by the farmer himself. 

 Half inch, f in., or f in., will be found the most 

 convenient thickness, and of such length as will resist 

 the tendency to bend, and 3 in. wide. To prevent the 

 end sinking into soft ground, attach a piece of red-gum 

 or other hardwood 3 in. x 3 in. x 2 in., and shoe it with 

 a plate of thin metal. 



Staves are all graduated in feet and decimals. 

 Feet and inches may be used, but decimals are much 

 more convenient for working out subsequent results. 



The following drawing shows method of graduation. 



The large etched number, " 3,"' generally painted red, 



represents feet. Black numbers represent tenths of 



feet, each horizontal line being one-hundredth of a foot. 



Thus, a reading of the staff at the point marked " A "' 



is 2.96 feet ; at B, 2.80 feet, and so on. If a staff is 



made as described above, the graduations are most 



easily marked by means of a stencil covering i-ioth of a 



foot or more, and repeated along the length of the face. 



Such a stencil can be conveniendy cut in a small sheet 



of thin zinc or copper, or in a piece of oiled paper such 



as is used in offices with copying letter books. When 



using the stencil, first carefully measure off and mark tlic 



staff at foot intervals, and try the spacing of the stencil 



before applying stencil brush. Any good black paint 



will do ; the numbers can be painted on when the 



stencil work has dried. When the whole is dry, cover 



with at least one coat of clear varnish to preserve from the 



18. GRADUATION 

 LEVELLING STAFF. 



