Progressive Agriculture 61 



Experience with summer tilling, however, is 

 what has brought out the spring tillage idea, which 

 points to a successful harvest every year for all 

 spring planted crops, barring hail storms. 



We have already found that for large results 

 from spring tillage there is a necessary preciseness 

 in the work the same as there is in any other line 

 of work. It is also true that some of the ideas 

 are radically different from all past practice. 

 This is especially true as to the delay in planting 

 time of nearly all crops, to permit of time for the 

 necessary tillage to obtain the best results each 

 and every year. 



In the following chapters we shall refer to very 

 marked results in the hot drouthy years of 1913 

 and 1914, where fields have had early and careful 

 preparation followed by continued timely cultiva- 

 tion, to a considerable later period of planting 

 not only produced large crops but were the only 

 fields to fully resist the ill effect of hot weather. 



In later chapters we will go more into detail as 

 to the reasons for early and perfect fitting of the 

 soil and this to be followed by late planting, as 

 it relates to crops of corn, potatoes, cane and 

 other things. We shall urge reasonably later 

 planting, always to permit of the prolonged spring 

 fitting, by from two to six weeks than has been 

 the practice prior to 1915, depending always on 

 the kind of crop. A better and more perfect seed 

 bed is made possible, by the delay of planting to 

 permit of a longer period of preparation. This is 

 especially applicable in sections of light rainfall 

 in growing feed for cattle and hogs. 



