342 SOUTHERN FIELD CROPS 



should be avoided except when it may be made necessary 

 by the presence of the cotton boll-weevil. 



313. Methods of plowing. The greater part of the area 

 intended for cotton receives only one plowing before the 

 seed are planted. This usually consists in forming ridges 

 or beds. More thorough preparation may be given by 

 first plowing the land level or flush, afterwards forming 

 the beds by a subsequent plowing. The conditions under 

 which this double amount of preparation, namely, first 

 broadcast plowing and then bedding, is especially advis- 

 able, are the following : 



1. When the soil is a stiff loam or clay inclined to form 

 clods ; 



2. When the land has not been cultivated the preceding 

 year, or when the preceding crop is one that has left much 

 vegetation on the surface. 



The practice of plowing land twice for cotton, first 

 fallowing it, and then throwing it into beds, is on the in- 

 crease among the best farmers. 



314. Time of plowing or breaking. February and 

 March are the months in which the greater part of the 

 plowing of cotton land is performed. The time of plow- 

 ing is largely a matter of convenience. The general rule 

 should be that the larger the proportion of clay in the soil, 

 the earlier may plowing be done to advantage, provided 

 the surface be freshened later. The larger the amount of 

 trash to be buried and rotted, the earlier should be the 

 date of plowing. Some farmers begin plowing for cotton 

 in December or even in November. This permits freezes 

 to aid in pulverizing the soil and killing some kinds of cot- 

 ton insects that spend the winter in the ground. 



