Inter-Planted Crops 147 



maintaining a good supply of humus in the soil especially 

 in connection with the moisture factor. These conditions 

 require particular effort in the direction of checking tree 

 growth so that the wood will ripen before dangerously low 

 temperatures occur; supplying a protective covering for 

 the soil, which among other things will catch and retain the 

 snow and the winter rains; and the conservation of soil- 

 moisture. 



It was found from the work at the Nebraska Station 

 that with peaches, rye as a cover-crop was disastrous be- 

 cause of its long-continued growth in the fall and its deple- 

 tion of the soil-moisture to the point at which the trees 

 suffer severely thereby during the winter. A considerable 

 proportion of the trees died. Oats were less objectionable 

 than rye, since they ceased to grow somewhat earlier than 

 rye, being killed by low temperatures. Examination of 

 the soil-moisture at various times revealed that it was 

 appreciably higher in the oat plat where few trees died 

 than where rye was used. 



The best results, however, were where millet, corn, and 

 cane were used, crops that were killed by the first frost, and 

 which, therefore, ceased to draw on the moisture in the soil 

 after that time. These plats contained a higher percent- 

 age of soil-moisture than the oat and rye plats and the 

 trees came through the winter in a correspondingly better 

 condition. 



Of these crops, the millet proved most nearly ideal. The 

 seed germinates readily ; a large amount of growth is made 

 which is available to plow under for humus; it forms a 

 fairly good cover for the ground ; it stands up well enough 

 after being killed by the frost to catch the snow and prevent 

 it from blowing away ; it checks the growth of the trees at 



