CULTURE OF WHEAT 8 I 



stalks are broken off by drawing a heavy drag over the surface — 

 an old railroad rail being frequently used for this purpose. In 

 many cases — and this practice is growing — the maize is cut and 

 shocked before the proper time to sow the w^heat. Then the 

 wheat is sown as in the standing maize, or the more common 

 practice on the heavier soils is to cut out the maize stubs with 

 a disk harrow and harrow down with some suitable levelling 

 instrument, preferably a spring tooth harrow. These methods 

 make it possible to follow maize wdth winter wheat and the 

 expense of putting in the wheat is small. It is thought also 

 that the stalks are some protection to the wheat at times in 

 preventing the snow from drifting off the w^heat. The effect of 

 this practice upon yield is hardly subject to determination 

 experimentally except where the maize is cut before seeding. 

 The experiments which have been made under the latter con- 

 ditions indicate that the relative yield will depend upon the 

 character of the soil. Where the soil is mellow and light, it 

 should not be plowed ; where it is heavy clay, plowing will be 

 found desirable. In the latter case rotation is generally such 

 that wheat does not follow maize. 



In the spring w^heat region, land that has previously been in 

 oats or wheat is sometimes prepared without plowing, by using 

 a disk harrow or similar instrument Minnesota ^ found disking 

 as good as plowing on burned stubble field; while North 

 Dakota found that plowing gave the best results.^ Among the 

 objects to be attained in preparing the seed bed are the preven- 

 tion of the growth of weeds and the conservation of the soil 

 moisture, and whichever method most nearly accomplishes these 

 results will probably be best. Plowing is not necessary for root 

 penetration in the friable soils of the spring wheat region. 



129. Time of Sowing. — The proper time to sow wheat 

 depends upon climatic conditions, the fertility of the soil, the 



i Minn. BuL 46. 

 I N. Dak. Bui 10. 



