i8o Our Farming. 



next the row. You must see that fourteen teeth will pulverize 

 more than five. I can do much finer, nicer work faster than with 

 any other cultivator I ever saw, and it holds easier. It is practi- 

 cally a harrow, the teeth are so narrow, but it will dig. I feared 

 it would clog, but it does not on our land. We have long wanted 

 something to stir the soil thoroughly, and not throw a particle, 

 just leave it level; in fact, I made a cheap affair of this kind for 

 my own use, as I could not find anything in market that suited 

 me. I have to thank my friend E. M. Titus, of Villa Ridge, 111., 

 for taking pains to write me and tell me of this tool that he hap- 

 pened to know of. He had read in my strawberry book that 

 I badly wanted something of the kind. To do the first cultivating 

 before potatoes were up, I would prefer a heavier tool to tear up 

 more and deeper, such as the Planet Jr. 



We cultivate at least once a week, and more often twice, and 

 always as soon as it is dry enough after a shower, no matter if we 

 had just finished before the rain. This to check evaporation of 

 moisture, of course, more than to check weed growth. This sub- 

 ject is fully treated in chapter on Tillage. Weeder is used in the 

 same way until plants get too large push over too much. When 

 potatoes get nearly ready to fall down we put one side shovel on 

 Planet Jr. horse hoe, the right one, cultivator teeth, i^-inch wide 

 on three centre standards, and take off the left side standard out of 

 the way. With this go twice in a row and throw about an inch 

 of soil in under the plants from each side. This should meet in 

 the centre and check weeds from starting and raises soil a little 

 around the hills to prevent any tubers working out where they 

 will be injured by light. All these operations, well carried out, 

 should give a crop practically free from weeds, and at slight ex- 

 pense above what was needed in the way of tillage to check evapo- 

 ration, etc. Some years a few weeds may escape these tools. 

 These we pull by hand, if wet, as soon as they show above potato 

 tops, or cut off if too dry to pull. We do not want them to go to 

 seed. Years ago I have hoed a field two or three times by hand 

 and not got it as clean as we usually keep one now without any 

 hoeing, except at the ends where we turn around. Of course these 

 must be fixed up a little by hand. Tools used in time do the 

 work far cheaper, save me many dollars in the cost of production, 

 and save the plant food that weeds would eat up . Did you ever 

 think of this ? There is only so much available plant food in your 

 field this year; just so many pounds and no more. If you let the 

 weeds get any, there will be just that much less for the crop. With 

 old ways of letting weeds start and grow considerably, and then 

 cultivating and hoeing them off, we lost plant food every year. It 

 would go back to the soil, but not into our pockets that year. 



But I have said nothing about the depth of any of this 

 culture, except the first cultivation, and there is no more impor- 

 tant point to consider. The soil was made for roots to grow in, 



