I 



ROLLING 



H9 



ots, if any, are so close to the surface that the whole 

 op will perish if the top layer is allowed to dry. The 

 feet of rolling is to increase the capillary lifting power 

 the top soil, so maintaining it in a moister condition, 

 though the land as a whole is made dryer by the extra 

 'aporation which must accompany the rise of subsoil 

 ater to the surface. It is a maxim in farming on the 

 lalk, where there is always a store of subsoil water at 

 >me depth or other, and where also the surface soil is 

 sculiarly liable to become open in texture through the 

 :tion of worms and the rapid decay of dung, that the 

 nd will become moist if it can only be got " tight " 

 lough. On any light cultivated land it is easy to 

 otice how much moister the soil remains when it has 

 een consolidated by a foot mark ; a gardener again, 

 hose rich and deeply-worked soil is apt to get very 

 pen, always treads the ground as solid as possible in 

 reparing a seed bed for onions and other small seeds, 

 'he following figures given by King as mean values 

 om a number of measurements show how rolling dries 

 le soil as a whole when samples are taken down to 2 

 let or more, but maintains the surface soil, sampled 

 nly down to 18 inches, in a moister condition : 



>ince rolling dries the soil as a whole, it is only desirable 

 /hen shallow-rooted crops must be kept supplied with 

 vater at any cost ; as soon as they get their roots down 

 loeing should begin in order to diminish the inevitable 



