MAINTAINING SOIL FERTILITY 293 



with great rapidity by means of its underground 

 stems. In two years it has filled the furrow and 

 the field is then plowed diagonally across the fur- 

 rows. This distributes the grass and it soon takes 

 complete possession of the land, effectually pre- 

 venting further washing. Bermuda grass makes 

 excellent hay and pasturage. 



Other grasses besides Bermuda have distinct 

 merit as soil binders. In the North the Hungarian 

 brome grass is especially valuable for this purpose. 

 The little Lespedeza, or Japanese clover, that 

 comes naturally into cleared ground and pastures 

 in many parts of the South, is a useful soil-binder, 

 and valuable for pasturage. It is moreover, a 

 leguminous plant and enriches the soil. The in- 

 creasing use of cover crops shows the growing 

 appreciation of the loss by erosion on bare lands 

 during the winter and early spring. Ry'e or crim- 

 son clover, sown at the last cultivation of corn, 

 covers the field with a mat of herbage during the 

 winter, effectively preventing serious washing of 

 the soil. Other benefits of cover crops are 

 considered in the following chapter. 



Breaks. Any material used to check small 

 gullies is called a "break," in the South. Corn 

 stalks, cotton stems, brush and inferior hay are 

 commonly used for this purpose. The material is 

 usually laid lengthwise or the gully, making a dam, 

 which should be wide enough and high enough to 

 back up the water and deposit the soil it contains. 

 If the gully is large it may be necessary to hold 

 down the brush with logs or poles, the ends of which 

 are firmly fastened into the sides of the gully and 

 braced with stones; if small, a few forkfuls 

 of stalks or brush may answer. Willow, 

 poplar, or alder are preferred for making a 



