86 How to Make the Garden Pay. 



of constructing the drain have to be found. I have used board 

 troughs with excellent results. The poorest kind of lumber may 

 be utilized for this purpose. Two boards are nailed together at 

 right angles, and held firmly in place by strips nailed diagonally 

 across. Such troughs may be placed directly upon a carefully- 

 graded, hard, stiff clay bottom, or upon a line of boards placed 

 upon soft bottom, in same way as the tile. Stones and pebbles, 

 where plentiful, can be used to good advantage also; but to get a 

 properly constructed drain with such material, the inexperienced 

 owner will always find it safest and cheapest to have the work 

 done by somebody that understands it. Tile is always best, and 

 drains thus made will be of more lasting value. All stone drains 

 are quite liable to get choked up after awhile, since it is almost 

 impossible to keep the soil from washing and working among the 

 stones, and finally fill up the throat. 



THE ADVANTAGES OF UNDERDRAINING. As one of the most 

 beneficial results of good underdraining on many soils, the crops 

 are given more root room. The roots of almost all our garden 



crops (and field crops 

 also) thrive in moist soil, 

 but not in that which is 

 wet or water-logged, and 

 they are stopped when 

 they come to the soil 

 water. Underdraining 

 lowers the soil water 

 level, allows the roots to 

 go deeper, and therefore 



gives them more room to 

 Board Trough In Bottom of Drain. WQrk fn Each plant 



needs a certain amount or weight of soil for its best development. 

 If it can feed deeper it will not require as much surface, and hence 

 plants in well-drained soil can be planted closer than in undrained 

 land. But good drainage gives still other benefits. It warms the 

 soil by admitting air more freely, lengthens the season at both 

 ends, and by promoting the circulation of air and moisture, 

 furnishes chances for chemical action by which insoluble plant 

 food is rendered available. 



But, after all, tile drains, if ever so well laid, cannot be 

 expected to last forever, and often they give out quite unex- 

 pectedly, making it necessary to take up parts of them for 

 repairs In an emergency of this kind it is quite convenient to 

 know the exact location of every drain, and to be able to find it 

 without having to dig over a large area. A map showing the 

 location of every tile drain put down, with distances marked in 

 rods and feet, will be of great advantage, and a valuable assist- 

 ance sooner or later. 



