70 AMERICAN HUSBANDI.f. 



the roots find in penetrating the earth to a depth 

 sufficient to reach any moisture. 



It is evident, then, "that if, in such soils, the earth 

 could be moved and broken up to the depth of eigh- 

 teen inches or two feet, without having the unpro- 

 ductive earth brought to the surface, that an oppor- 

 tunity would be furnished for superfluous moisture 

 to drain from the surface, and also for the roots to 

 penetrate to a depth that would ensure their not per- 

 ishing from drought. Manure or sandy marls, which, 

 when spread on the surface of such soils, can only 

 be productive of temporary benefit, would, where 

 the hard substratum was broken up, penetrate deep- 

 er, their eff"ects be longer felt, and, in fact, a new 

 and fertile soil, suitable for the production of any 

 plants, would be gradually formed. 



Deep-ploughing or trench-ploughing was at first 

 attempted to effect these desirable results. In this 

 process one plough turned over the surface, the fur- 

 row-slice being of the depth of six or eight inches, 

 and of the necessary width. Following immediate- 

 ly after, and in the same furrow, was another plough 

 with a strong team, that broke up in the hard, com- 

 pact ground another and still deeper furrow, throw- 

 ing the earth upon the surface, and thus, in effect, 

 reversing the soil to the depth of twelve or fourteen 

 inches. This mode of ploughing was found to rem- 

 edy, in a great measure, the evils of stagnant water 

 on the surface, and the suffering from drought ; but 

 it produced another serious one, viz., that for a year 

 or two, and until corrected by heavy manuring, the 

 compact soil so turned up was steril and barren, 

 hardly paying the expense of cropping. Unless, 

 therefore, manure could be had in any assignable 

 quantity, trencli or such deep ploughing was found 

 to be inexpedient in soils of this class. 



It was at last conceived, that a plough which 

 should loosen and pulverize the soil to the depth of 

 eighteen or twenty inches, without bringing the dead 



