CROPS AND SOIL IMPROVEMENT 



rye, though organic matter increases rapidly 

 day by day if the rye is permitted to grow. As 

 a rule, it is safest to plow down before the plants 

 are eighteen inches high. They dry land out 

 rapidly, and any mass of matter in the bottom of 

 the furrow interferes with the rise of water from 

 the subsoil. When the land is wanted for oats 

 or corn, a jointer should be used on the plow to 

 insure burying all the crop. 



Buckwheat. An excellent crop for green- 

 manuring is buckwheat. It has such unusual 

 ability to grow in a poor soil that the farmer who 

 makes free use of it as a grain crop never boasts 

 of acreage planted, assuming that his land will 

 not be highly regarded if known to be devoted 

 chiefly to buckwheat. It does not withstand 

 heat well, especially from period of blossoming 

 to maturity, and therefore is restricted to cool 

 latitudes. When grown for grain, it usually is 

 not planted until July, and matures a crop in a 

 shorter period than any other grain. It is sensi- 

 tive to frost, but may be planted as soon as the 

 ground is warm, and will give a good body of matter 

 for plowing down within eight weeks. The root 

 growth is not extensive, but the crop leaves nat- 

 urally heavy soils more mellow, and it is an 



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