146 The Principles of Fruit-growing. 



tions of the country, especially in the southern 

 states, the great bane to agriculture is the surface 

 washing of the soil. Owing to shallow plowing 

 and shallow . cultivation, the water is unable to set- 

 tle into the hard soil with sufficient rapidity, and 

 is carried along the surface, producing those gullies 

 which are there so destructive to farm lands. * 



The improvements in the plow have done much 

 towards remedying these defects, but there is still 

 much ignorance as to the proper use of this imple- 

 ment. As an implement to be used in the prepa- 

 ration of the soil for the reception of moisture, it 

 stands pre-eminent. Good plowing does not con- 

 sist as ordinarily supposed in merely inverting a 

 portion of the earth, but in pulverizing and fining 

 it and burying the sod or refuse which may be 

 on the surface. The amount of water which a 

 soil is capable of holding depends directly upon 

 the fineness of its particles. Then that plow which 

 will break and pulverize the soil most thoroughly 

 is the one best adapted to fit the soil for holding 

 moisture. This point is well illustrated by King in 



NOTE. Pigs. 13 and 14 (pages 147 and 148) are designed to illustrate some 

 of the leading types of tools which are used for tilling fruit-lands. It is not 

 the purpose to recommend these particular tools over any others, or, in fact, to 

 recommend them at all ; but simply to show the reader the range of forms 

 which are in common use. 



Fig. 13. No. 1, An ideal plow (from Roberts' "The Fertility of the Land"): 

 2, Syracuse vineyard and garden plow; 3, Syracuse swivel plow; 4, Mapes sub- 

 soil plow ; 5, Deere subsoil plow ; 6, 8, Spike-tooth cultivators ; 7, Gang-plow: 

 9, Spring-tooth cultivator, with side guards ; 10, Pearce's orchard gang- 

 plow ; 11, Sherwood harness. 



Fig. 14. No. 1, Disc harrow ; 2, Spike-tooth harrow ; 3, Acme harrow ; 4, 

 Spring-tooth harrow, with side frames ; 5, Sulky cultivator ; 6, Spring-tooth 

 harrow; 7, Springfield grape-hoe-, 8, Morgan grape-hoe (handle a is a rudder). 



