CAMBPELL'S SOIL CULTURE MANUAL 87 



movement of moisture by capillary attraction, and last 

 but not least, conducive to a more prolific growth, and a 

 more general and uniform distribution of the roots. 



Fourth, and by no means least, is the fact that under 

 this condition of the soil, we are able to carry in the soil 

 just the proper quantity of both air and water, which 

 together with the heat, brings about that certain chemical 

 action necessary for the development of the large quanti- 

 ties of fertility. When the pores in the soil are too large 

 and soil coarse and loose, too much air is prevalent and 

 little or no development of plant elements is possible. 

 All four of these conditions are exceedingly important 

 in seasons like that of 1901, when weeks go by with con- 

 tinuous extreme heat and no rain, and such seasons or 

 conditions always come without warning. 



POSSIBILITIES IN THE SEMI-ARID COUNTRY. 



It is our opinion, based on practical results and ob- 

 servation of conditions similar to those in western Kansas 

 that by the summer culture plan, storing the water the 

 entire season and raising crops the following year, much 

 larger average crops may be grown than the present aver- 

 age in Iowa or Illinois. In fact, we do not believe we 

 overdraw when we say that in the more arid portions of the 

 semi-arid belt, by the summer culture plan, only cropping 

 every other year, we can raise more wheat at less cost 

 in ten years than can be grown in the more humid portions 

 of the belt in ten consecutive crops by the ordinary plan. 

 By our method we have the advantage of only seeding 

 half the land and only harvesting half the land. The 

 great value of work along this line lies in grasping fully 

 the idea of storing and conserving the rain waters, and 

 studying carefully the necessary physical condition of the 

 soil and endeavoring to bring it to the highest degree of 

 perfection. 



