140 SOILS 



in diameter and set at an angle to the surface of 

 the soil, so as to invert and pulverise it. The disk 

 is kept from clogging by an adjustable scraper. 

 It is mounted on wheels and provided with levers, 

 as in a sulky plow. The disk plow is commonly 

 used with steam power. It is especially valuable 

 for hard, sticky soils, and has been found most 

 practicable in "dry farming" in the West. It 

 does not appear that it will supplant the mouldboard 

 plow in the East, but it can be used to advantage 

 in humid regions for breaking up the "plow bed" 

 or "plow sole" formed by plowing heavy land 

 with a mouldboard plow at the same depth for 

 several years. 



ADJUSTING THE PLOW IN THE FIELD 



A good plow, handled or adjusted improperly, 

 is no better than a poor tool. The same implement 

 can do first-class plowing and very poor plowing, 

 according to the skill of the man who holds it. 

 When a plow is taken to the field the first thing to 

 do is to adjust it properly the adjustment varies 

 with the team, the type of soil and the object sought. 

 It pays to spend some little time in getting a plow 

 adjusted rignt. 



Professor W. P. Brooks gives the novice at 

 plowing some excellent suggestions on this sub- 

 ject; they are here condensed, and slightly modi- 

 fied: Hitch the team as close to the plow as pos- 

 sible and hitch to the lowest hole in the clevis. 

 Start the plow and note whether the furrow is 

 sufficiently deep; if not, hitch higher one hole at 

 a time until the plow cuts at the right depth. If 

 the furrow-slice is turned over flat, and a lap or 

 rolling furrow is desired, it may be because the 



