CHAPTER XXI 

 TILLAGE 



Desirable Physical Condition of the Soil. 

 Successful cropping of land is dependent upon 

 favoring soil conditions. The plants to be grown 

 must have ease in root extension, so that their 

 food may be found. There must be moisture to 

 hold the food in solution. There must be air. 

 There must be destruction of plants that would be 

 competitors of the ones desired. A soil rarely is 

 in prime condition for the planting and growth of 

 any crop without some change in its structure by 

 means of tillage, and it does not remain in the 

 best condition for any long period of time. If the 

 number of plants required per acre for a crop is 

 relatively small, tillage of the soil is continued 

 after planting. If the necessary number makes 

 tillage impossible, there is some loss in conditions 

 most favorable to the plant. The particles of 

 soil settle together, and there is loss of water at 

 the surface. Most plants want a mellow soil, and 

 tillage is in large part an effort to make and to 



[220] 



