COVER- CROPS 15 



should be substituted. Where crimson clover thrives it 

 makes an excellent plant for this purpose, forming a 

 dense close mat to aid in winter protection of the roots 

 and in the prevention of heaving. Its chief objection 

 lies in the fact that it involves extra labor to destroy the 

 plants in spring. 



TILLAGE TOOLS 



Few special tools are needed in the bush-fruit planta- 

 tion. A cultivator is the first and most important 

 implement. Any kind which will thoroughly loosen 

 the soil and leave it level will serve the purpose. It 

 should be one which will do good work when widely 

 spread, for with full-grown bushes it is impossible to 

 work close to the plants except with a wide tool, the 

 wings of which can run beneath the branches. For 

 suckering varieties it is decidedly advantageous to have 

 teeth which are square on the end instead of pointed, as 

 most cultivator teeth are. Square teeth will cut off the 

 suckers beneath the surface of the ground, while 

 ordinary kinds permit most of them to escape. Such 

 teeth are also useful in cutting off Canada thistles and 

 other deep-rooted weeds which often escape. 



In soil which is free from stones, knives or cutting 

 blades of steel can be made by a blacksmith and at- 

 tached to an ordinary cultivator, so that they will fol- 

 low and either cut or uproot everything which escapes 

 the teeth. Such a device is used by E. T. Hartley, of 

 Lincoln, Neb., for cutting off plum -sprouts. 



In mellow soil a scuffle -hoe is useful for working 

 among plants which have become large and spreading. 



