SOIL WATER: HOW IT is LOST 165 



plant. This moisture, or water, conveys the soil nutri- 

 ment with it to the plants. It then passes on up through 

 the stems and leaves, to be exhaled, finally, through the 

 leaves. The loss of water to the soil, by this means, is 

 very large. For ordinary crops, from 300 to 500 pounds 

 of water are required to produce one pound of dry matter. 



EFFECT OF CULTIVATION OF CORN CROP 



Plot at right received ordinary good cultivation, and yielded 64 bushels of corn 

 per acre. Plot at left received no cultivation, and yielded 4 bushels of corn 

 per acre 



It has been estimated that for average production of some 

 common crops, the amount of water required for pro- 

 ducing a single acre is as follows : Clover, 400 tons ; corn, 

 350 tons ; grapes, 375 tons ; oats, 375 tons ; potatoes, 450 

 tons ; wheat, 350 tons ; and peas, 375 tons. 



As the rainfall during the growing season is not suffi- 

 cient as a means of supplying water to the crop, the water 

 stored in the soil must be drawn upon considerably. This 

 fact lays stress upon the importance of large water sup- 

 plies in the soil, not as stagnant water, but as capillary 



