UNSOUND SYSTEMS OF TILLAGE 73 



when the land is not carrying a crop. Also that the 

 weeds always make their greatest growth amongst 

 any portion of a crop, where, for one reason or 

 another, the crop is poor. 



The lesson taught by these observations is obvious. 

 If the land at all times, as is the case with Continuous 

 Cropping, is occupied by useful crops, the weeds 

 never get the chance of becoming established. 

 Particularly so is this the case where such dense 

 foliage crops as giant rane. har^ y prA^ns find nt.hp.r 

 types of winter greens, and also such a smothering 

 crop as tares, are grown. 



To put the case in a nutshell. Once a Continuous 

 Cropping rotation is followed, the necessity for 

 weeding is practically dispensed with. 



RESULTS : A SMALL CAKE BILL 



Where inter-cropping methods are followed, that 

 is, where each crop serves as a nurse crop for the 

 next, there is no necessity for resorting to anything 

 in the nature of hand- weeding or hoeing. Cultivation 

 between the rows of the growing crops, with a 

 triplex cultivator, in order to prepare the necessary 

 seed bed for inter-crop, is sufficient to keep the weeds 

 in subjection. 



Another valuable feature of the rotation, and one 

 which has been indicated in an earlier chapter, is 

 the growing of a large bulk of albuminous food. 

 This, no matter what style of stock-breeding may be 

 followed, results in a very small cake bill. Again, 

 some of these albuminous foods, notably tares and 

 sainfoin, have the remarkable power of absorbing 

 nitrogen from the atmosphere, in sufficient quantities 

 as to serve not only for their own nourishment, but 



