42 FARM CROPS 



cultivating, but a farmer observing the crop and 

 soil conditions, and understanding the principles of 

 soil cultivation, may vary the manner and practice 

 of cultivation somewhat to suit the conditions and 

 accomplish the objects desired. 



It is very important to cultivate at the right time. 

 An experiment carried on for two years at the Kan- 

 sas station, in cultivating corn at the right time 

 and the wrong time, resulted as follows: Average 

 yield for wrong time cultivation, 61.9 bushels an 

 acre; average yield for right time cultivation, 67.8 

 bushels an acre, or 6.1 bushels an acre in favor of 

 cultivating the corn at the right time. The right 

 time means soon after the rain, when the weeds 

 have started and the soil is just dry enough to cul- 

 tivate well. The wrong time is a week or ten days 

 later when the weeds have become larger and the 

 soil is hard and dry and turns over in clods and 

 lumps. It costs more to cultivate at the wrong 

 time than at the right time, because of the slower 

 and more difficult work and greater draft of the 

 cultivator, due to unfavorabe soil conditions, and 

 yet the right time cultivation increases the yield. 



It is important to use the best implements, but 

 doing the work well and at the right time is even 

 of more importance than the type of cultivator used. 

 No one type of cultivator can be recommended as 

 superior to others, but different kinds of cultivators 

 are useful for different work and for different con- 

 ditions. The crop grower should have more than 

 one kind of cultivator. 



