FARM MANAGEMENT 45 



It will be seen that practically all of the soil turned by the plow 

 can be cleaned reasonably well from weed seed. The thorough cul- 

 tivation before plowing cleans the surface soil before it is turned 

 under, and the subsequent cultivation cleans that which is turned 

 up to the surface. In this way a clean seed bed is obtained. Men 

 who are using this system say that land badly infested with wild oats 

 can be cleaned reasonably well in this way by two years' summer 

 fallowing, raising one crop of wheat in the meantime. 



A few farmers make a practice of discing land in the early 

 autumn that is to be fallowed the next summer. Were this to become 

 a common practice it would be a valuable addition to the present 

 methods. By early fall discing weed seeds are covered and caused 

 to germinate, the soil is put in better condition to take the winter 

 rain and snow, and stubble is covered, or partially so, and its decom- 

 position hastened. The soil usually works much better in the spring, 

 and less surface cultivation is needed before plowing. 



Where wheat is grown continually alternating with summer-fal- 

 low, removing the greater part of the straw with combined har- 

 vesters or by burning or otherwise, the humus supply of the soil is 

 gradually reduced because the small root system of wheat and a scant 

 stubble will not return enough humus to replace the amount that 

 decays during the growth of one crop. This deficiency is becoming 

 evident in many places by the soil puddling or running together in 

 winter, baking worse, working harder, washing worse on slopes, and 

 crops looking lighter colored and making less vigorous growth. To 

 avoid this condition work as much straw and stubble as possible into 

 the soil. Burn no straw and waste no manure. Scatter thinly over 

 the poorer parts of the fields. Chop it into the soil with a disc har- 

 row. The cutaway types seem to do the best work. If chopped in in 

 the fall the winter precipitation will beat the loose soil and broken 

 straw down so that the straw will begin to decay with the first warm 

 weather of spring and will plow under with little danger of drying out 

 the soil. The evil results so commonly attributed to plowing under 

 long stubble or straw result from plowing it under unbroken so tEat 

 it forms a layer between the seed bed and the moist soil beneath. 

 Much of the straw sticks out between the furrows, furnishing most 

 effective ventilation to dry out the soil beneath. 



Stubble land to be summer plowed for summer fallow should be 

 mulched as soon as the soil is fit to work in the spring by discing if 

 the surface is pretty firm or with a spike tooth harrow if the surface 

 is in condition to be loosened satisfactorily with it. The mulch 

 need not be deep, but should form a continuous blanket over the sur- 

 face. A disc set to gouge little creases in the soil with three or four 

 inches of unbroken surface between does very little service. If the 

 surface breaks up in slices or lumps, as it frequently does, the disc 

 should be followed with a spike tooth harrow to puiverize the lumps 

 and form a more perfect mulch. While it is vital that discing begin 

 as soon as the soil is fit to work, it is a mistake, particularly in heavier 

 soils, to begin when the soil is so moist as to slice up in cheesy chunks. 



