INDIAN CORN OR MAIZE. 19 



tains, so long as it may be classed as a loam and not 

 a clay soil, the moister its condition. The more 

 humid the climate and the more frequent the show- 

 ers, the more deeply may the land be plowed, and 

 vice versa. 



When light and springy soils are plowed deeply 

 in the spring, they lie so loosely upon themselves that 

 there is much loss by surface evaporation. The same 

 is true of these soils, but in a less degree, when they 

 are plowed shallow in the spring. And the drier the 

 climate, the more aggravated does this condition 

 become. As soon, therefore, as such lands are 

 plowed in the spring, they should be at once rolled. 

 The aim should be to roll them the same day that the 

 plowing is done. The pressure of the roller lessens 

 the surface evaporation. But the rolled surface 

 should ere long be followed by the harrow, to hinder 

 the soil from lifting with the wind, as it does in cer- 

 tain sections of the prairie, and to create a more per- 

 fect dust blanket, that will hinder the escape of 

 ground moisture. Cloddy surfaces should be made 

 fine by the use of the roller and harrow. 



The best time for applying fertilizers will be 

 dependent upon conditions, as, for instance, the sea- 

 son of the year at which the plowing is done. When 

 the land is plowed in the fall, farmyard manure 

 should then also be applied, when on hand. It should 

 be plowed under, except in leechy soils, and where 

 the rainfall is heavy in winter. On such soils it 

 should be applied on the surface, and in the com- 

 posted or reduced form when spread on fall plowed 

 s- >il. It may then be incorporated with the soil in the 

 spring by the aid of the disc or some other form of 

 cultivator. When the land is spring plowed, the 



