POTATO CULTUKE. 13 



large plow. The wheel gives uniformity of work all through 

 the field, and slightly decreases the draft. The plow prop- 

 erly set, with a wheel on, on such clean smooth fields as a 

 farmer should have, almost runs itself. The days of " hold- 

 ing' 7 a plow are over. A mere touch now and then should 

 guide it. 



In plowing in the spring for potatoes, one should be very 

 careful about tramping ground unnecessarily. Winter frosts 

 have made it loose just right for potatoes. It is easily 

 packed too solidly when horses tramp on it, as it is usually 

 moist at this season. I got through " plowing around " years 

 ago. We back-furrow in lands ; and, if the lot is not too 

 wide, all in one land, so as to have no dead-furrows. It 

 takes a little more time, but we do more perfect work. Take 

 one of our strips, 16x60 rods. Beginning in the center, say 

 ten feet from one end, we go down and back, and so on 

 around, drawing the plow across the ten feet or so at the 

 ends, just plowing lengthwise. When within ten feet of be- 

 ing done on the sides, we plow the ends too, thus finishing up 

 the lot. In the fall we put in wheat without plowing. When 

 it comes around again in the rotation, we start plow ten feet, 

 say, from one end, and plow down one side ; stop ten feet 

 from the other end ; draw the plow across the end ; plow up 

 the other side ; draw the plow across the other end, and so 

 on. When done we plow the ten-foot head-lands all one 

 way, one at a time, drawing the plow back. Thus we get 

 land back level, and the horses hardly tramp on it at all 

 after it is turned. I wish I could harrow it with a balloon, 

 so the horses need not tramp it. I can't do this, but can 

 prevent tramping while plowing.* 



You will notice that my lap-furrow plowing, with the 

 edges of the furrows up in the air, and the grass shaved off 

 and buried out of the way, is in grand shape for the smooth- 



* For a more extended review of the matter of how land should be 

 managed in plowing, see Publisher's Appendix in latter part of this 

 book, 



