132 THE BUSINESS OF FARMING 



enter. If the soil stratum above this plow sole is 

 from three to six inches in depth, it quickly be- 

 comes saturated with water in flood time, which 

 rapidly runs off carrying with it the dissolved soil, 

 resulting in great erosion and badly washed fields. 

 And what soil remains, being of so thin a stratum, 

 quick evaporation of its moisture results, and 

 havoc is wrought to the crops growing upon it, 

 and the plow sole prevents any moisture coming 

 from below by the process of capillary attraction. 



The true theory of deeper plowing is that the 

 soil may be loosened up to that depth which will 

 gather a large quantity of moisture, when mois- 

 ture is available, and which can by proper meth- 

 ods of cultivation be retained in dry weather for 

 the use of the growing plants, and that will give 

 plants, especially the deep and extensive rooted 

 ones, the best environment for their proper and 

 full development. 



Eecent experiments in dynamiting the plow sole 

 and hard sub-soil of soils which resulted in the 

 thrifty growth of fruit trees, alfalfa, corn and 

 better crops generally, prove that the theory of 

 deeper plowing is not an idle dream of the theo- 

 rist. 



The success of dry farming is due to the fact 

 that the soil is plowed deep so that it can gather 

 a large supply of moisture when moisture is avail- 

 able, which is afterwards conserved by its prac- 

 tices of cultivation, especially designed to con- 

 serve this gathered moisture. Where green ma- 

 nuring and the plowing under of cornstalks or 

 other matured organic matter upon the farm is 

 practiced, deeper plowing must be practiced upon 



