ROTATION OF CROPS 125 



one kind of crop year after year in nine cases out of ten is doomed 

 to disappointment and ruin. Farmers would fare much better if 

 they would attempt to raise two or three kinds of crops every year, 

 so that if one crop should be a failure the loss would be made more 

 than good by the other successful crops. A few years ago it was 

 supposed that nothing but wheat could be successfully grown in 

 northwestern Oklahoma, but to-day it is not an uncommon sight 

 to see wheat, cotton, and corn all growing side by side in this 

 same section of country. These same farmers have also learned 

 that it pays them to raise their vegetables and to raise their own 

 hogs instead of buying these from time to time. This mingling 

 of crops on the farm is called diversified farming, and too much 

 cannot be said in its praise. The hope of the future lies in diver- 

 sified farming. 



Rules of Rotation. No special rules can belaid down for the 

 rotation of crops, but in general we should select such crops as 

 will be the most profitable to the farmer and most beneficial to 

 the soil. 



So far as the farmer's profit is concerned, crops should follow 

 each other in such a way that he will have a paying crop every 

 year. If two or three kinds of crops are raised each year that 

 mature at different seasons, the demands on the farmer's time and 

 work will be distributed, and his income will be distributed through 

 the year in such a way that he will have money on hand at all 

 times to meet his expenses as fast as they are incurred. 



A second point that we should consider in our selection of crops 

 is the enrichment of the soil with nitrogen. If possible, grow crops 

 that secure most of their nitrogen from the air. This, we have 

 already learned, may be done by growing legumes such as alfalfa, 

 cowpeas, and clover. 



Again, crops should rotate in such a way that plants having 

 shallow roots will be followed by plants with deep and heavy 

 roots, so that the unused nourishment in the lower layers of 

 soil may be absorbed by the roots and made available. Thus 

 crops of wheat and oats may be followed by clover to good 

 advantage. 



Another point to be considered is what crop will make the best 

 use of that portion of the preceding crop that is left on the ground. 



