IN WESTERN STATES 



condition of the soil. There is, also, considerable evidence 

 as to the necessity of deep plowing when we consult the 

 results of continued experiments of the experiment stations 

 of the Great Plains. 



Providing the dust mulch. Dry-farming requires, 

 on the whole, more thorough and frequent cultivation than 

 humid farming. Land that is soon to be planted to crops 

 should be disked and harrowed immediately after the plow. 

 This tends to produce a loose soil mulch and will do much 

 to prevent evaporation. Fall plowed land that is to lie fal- 

 low through the winter should be left in a rough condition 

 and without cultivation, as this will favor the taking in of 

 winter rains or snow. If the winters are dry the ground 

 should be well pulverized after the plowing. Disking 

 should be started as early in the spring as possible and fol- 

 lowed by harrowing. 



Crop cultivation. As soon as the crops are planted 

 harrowing should be started, and continued as long as pos- 

 sible without injuring the crop. Every rain that falls is 

 so much treasure added to the soil. After each rain there- 

 fore, the ground should be cultivated as soon as possible 

 in order to break the crust, establish a new mulch and so 

 prevent evaporation. All crops should be cultivated as far 

 into the season as possible. Weeds must be kept down at 

 any cost, for they both hinder the growth of the crop and 

 rob the soil of water which belongs to the cultivated plants. 



As soon as the crop is removed the ground should be 

 plowed, disked and harrowed. The farmer who is not 

 willing to follow out the intensive tillage and careful man- 

 agement required for dry-farming conditions ought not to 

 engage in this type of agriculture. 



Summer fallowing. In a large part of the semi-arid 

 region it is found necessary to store up the moisture of two 

 seasons in order to produce a single crop successfully. This 



