The Science of the Soil 107 



1. The upper crust is kept in a finely powdered condition. 2. Weeds are 

 unable to grow and rob the soil of food and water, nor the air of carbonic 

 acid gas. 3. By pulverizing the soil, fresh mineral foods are liberated 

 for the roots by the action of the weather. 4. In hot seasons the freshly 

 moved soil acts as a mulching and prevents the moisture escaping (see 

 p. 123). 5. The dews are absorbed at night and are soaked down to the 

 upper rootlets with fresh food. 6. The use of the hoe, especially during 

 the summer months, prevents many insect pests from nesting in the soil, 

 and the chrysalides of others are brought to the surface for the benefit 

 of the birds. 7. As large supplies of food are liberated by the hoe, there 

 should be a corresponding saving in the chemical manure bill, and as water 

 is conserved, there is not only a better crop, but it also comes to maturity 

 more quickly owing to the accelerated growth. 



Taking these advantages into consideration it would pay every market 

 gardener to keep his ground regularly hoed from February or March to 

 October, and the money spent on it would be refunded over and over again. 



6. THE BEST TIME TO WORK THE SOIL 



Whether the soil is to be ploughed, dug, or trenched in spring or 

 autumn will depend largely upon its nature. Generally speaking it is 

 better to turn up heavy soils in the autumn and light soils in the spring. 

 As heavy soils contain a larger amount of dormant food than light soils, 

 and as it takes longer to transform them into a soluble condition, it is 

 better to have them ploughed, dug, or trenched during the autumn and 

 winter months. Fresh surfaces are thus exposed to the action of the 

 weather; clods are crumbled down into powdery masses by the action 

 of frost, rain, snow, wind, &c.; the air enters more freely between the 

 particles, and sourness and acidity are driven out by the sweetening action 

 of the atmospheric oxygen. The soil thus becomes "sweeter"; it also 

 becomes warmer, because better drained, and owing to the action of the 

 carbonic acid in the air, and arising from decomposing manure, supplies 

 of potash, phosphoric acid, nitrates, and other valuable foods become 

 available by spring. At this period also the over-harsh clods are easily 

 broken down by the rake or harrow, and can be rendered sufficiently 

 fine for the reception of seeds of various crops. 



If "light" land is ploughed, dug, or trenched in autumn precisely the 

 same beneficial results would follow, but much more quickly. This would 

 be a distinct disadvantage to the farmer and gardener at this season. 

 Having no growing crops on the land to take up the freshly liberated 

 food, there is a danger that this would be washed down into the lower 

 layers out of reach of the roots. Thus, when sowing and planting time 

 arrived in spring, although the soil would be easily worked, it is possible 

 that the upper layer would be much poorer in plant food than it was 

 before the autumn breaking up. 



