76 THE OLIVER PLOW BOOK 



nate lumps and clods to produce a finely compacted and 

 moisture conservation seed bed. This process destroys 

 all volunteer plants which may grow and furnish a 

 means for propogating the fly. The principal step in 

 this process is to plow deep and cover all the trash. 



The crooked furrow, if the ground is trashy, is propitious for insect 

 breeding. It is impossible to always plow the proper width of cut and 

 as a result the furrows are not laid properly to cover the trash, and keep 

 the ground from drying out rapidly. Trash and air vents in the ground 

 are good incubators for insect eggs. The two combined keep out moisture, 

 the greatest hinder ance to insect eggs hatching. 



Cutworms, like white grubs, live in soil that has been 

 in grass for a number of years. Meadows infested with 

 cutworms should be plowed early the previous fall. The 

 earlier in the fall the ground is plowed the less probability 

 that the cutworm moths will have laid their eggs, con- 

 sequently the injury from cutworms the following year 

 will be diminished. Late fall and winter plowing is not 

 so effective as early fall plowing for the eradication of 

 the cutworm. 



