|»fepare the ground for a single crop, but will thereby greatly 

 iniprovc^the soil. 



When your sward land is intended fof spring crops, it should 

 always when circumstances will admit, be broken up early in 

 the fall preceding, and if it is a very moist soil, should be 

 thrown up into ridges by repeated ploughing, that it mtty be 

 fertilized by being exposed to the winter frosts. 



In fact it is well ascertained by experiment that the sediment 

 or settlings of dew water are greater in quantity, blacker 

 and richer, than those of rain water ; hence the utility of 

 ploughing w^hen the dew is on is obvious, as it tends to fertil- 

 ize the soil. 



The farmer cannot, it will be said, always wait to have hie 

 lands ploughed while the dew is on, and neither can he always 

 appropriate as much of his labor to repeated ploughings, as the 

 benefit of his crops may require ; but when he comes to duly 

 appreciate this measure, he will find himself well compensated 

 for so arranging his business as to devote much more of tis 

 time to this subject, than has usually been practiced by the A= 

 merican husbandman. 



The repeated and thorough ploughings, as well as maiiy 

 other practices necessary to enhance the productive powers of 

 the soil, if properly attended to, will leave to the practical agri- 

 culturalist but a very little leisure. The more science he obtains 

 relating to his occupation, if he would properly improve it, the 

 less time he will find to devote to idleness or dissipation. 



Since writing the above the following instances of the utility 

 of frequent ploughing has come to my knowledge, which is 

 worthy of notice. A farmer in Connecticut owned a certain 

 piece of very light sandy soil, such as generally constitutes 

 the plain land which produces a natural growth of pine tim- 

 ber. About two acres of this soil which had been cleared, lay 

 a great number of years in a barren state without producing 

 any useful vegetable. He ploughed it eight times successive- 

 ly during the summer months; some part of the ploughing he 

 performed in the morning when the dew was on. At the 

 usual season he sowed it with winter wheat, without applying 

 any kind of manure ; and the next summer it produced a very 

 valuable crop. The barrenness of this kind of soil and its usual 

 properties are well understood by farmers throughout the U- 

 nited States. It is impossible therefore to account for the in- 

 crease of its fertility, on any other principle whatever, but thai 

 of the repeated ploughings. 



It is believed that ploughing any soil juet previovw to tlic 

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