BREAKING THE VIRGIN PRAIRIE 133 



early part of the breaking season and deeper at the lat- 

 ter end. The early breaking can then be backset after 

 the breaking season is over. "Shallow" and "deep" are 

 used here as relative terms. A depth of two to four 

 inches is generally considered shallow breaking and four 

 to six inches deep breaking. "Backsetting" should 

 usually be about two inches deeper than "breaking". 



105. Harrow and Pack Backsetting. The moisture 

 stored in the subsoil of plowed land must be kept avail- 

 able to the seed and plant roots. In order that this 

 condition may obtain, firming the loose soil after back- 

 setting is advisable. The general practice in the early 

 days was to harrow such land thoroughly. It is now 



Fig. 51. Breaking Scrub Land in Manitoba. 



generally considered advisable to pack it after smoothing 

 down with the harrow. If this is done in the fall, the 

 last tillage operation in the fall should be harrowing or 

 cultivating. 



