INTRODUCED PLANTS AND ANBIALS. 273 



or by huge steam plows. Where the character of the eouiitrv will admit, the 

 latter method is the one generally preferred. 



The machinery consists of large, double gang-plows that are drawn back 

 and forth across the fields by wire cables that wind and unwind from large 

 drums operated by traction engines located at opposite ends of the field. In 

 this way five or more furrows sixteen inches wide by twelve inches deep 

 are turned over at once. The field is then plowed crosswise of the furi-ows. 

 Occasionally a giant plow that opens a furrow thirty inches deep is employed 

 to reach the subsoil. The plowing done, the ground is allowed to fallow for 

 several weeks. After it has thoroughly weathered, it is harroAved to break up 

 the clods and level the surface; a heavy drag is sometimes used for the 

 purpose. 



If the crop is to lie grown l)y irrigation, the main ditch lines are ne.Kt laid 

 out by the plantation engineers. The trunk ditches or main fiumes usually 

 remain in the same place from year to year, and are frequently walled with 

 stone or wood, and often are cut throiigh the solid I'ock. Where they cross 

 gulches or are raised above the ground for any purpose, the flumes are made 

 of wood or metal, and much skill and money has been expended in these pre- 

 liminary operations in many sections. Water, which is the life of the land, is 

 transported in large quantities for long distances in this way. 



The secondary ditches are next laid out in such a way that water may 

 be made to flow along every row of cane on the plantation. The furrows in 

 which the cane is planted are made by a curious double plow which is so 

 constructed that it will thrown the earth both ways, forming ridges between 

 the furrows. These furrows are made from eight to twelve inches in depth, 

 and from four to five feet apart. 



Sugar-cane is propagated by cuttings called seed-cane. Each seed joint 

 must have one or more living buds. To insure sufficient buds they are usually 

 cut in sections having two joints to the piece. These pieces are dropped into the 

 furrows, a few inches apai-t, by the planter from a bag carried on the shoulder. 

 The seed cane is then covered an inch or two deep with soil and water turned 

 on. In about a week the cane sprouts. Prom that time on the growing crop 

 is hoed and watered as required. Often loose soil is drawn over the moist 

 earth from the ridges between the rows to prevent the rapid evaporation of the 

 M'ater; biit the processes of cultivation vary widely on dift'erent plantations. 



Several times during the growth of the crop the cane is stripped of the 

 dead leaves to prevent the water from being held along the stalks and souring 

 the juice. The bundles of leaves are piled on the ground under the tangle 

 of growing cane to support the stalks. 



The age at which the cane matures varies greatly, but ranges frcim one to 

 two years. The tassel is the index that tells when it is ripe. The crop should 

 be cut as soon as possible after it is through blooming, as the juice is at its 

 best at that time. 



In harvesting the crop the stalks are cut and trimmed in the field, the 



