198 



SOILS 



business to use interculture tools to prepare the soil for 

 root development that injures the crop ; and such work 

 should be done before seeding time. 



Interculture tools: the weeder and many-shovel culti- 

 vators. The weeder ranks first in popularity as a tool for 

 beginning" the work of cultivation. It runs shallow; its 

 many teeth destroy the tiny weeds just peeping through 



CULTIVATING THE ORCHARD 

 Orchards respond often to cultivation as generously as corn fields 



the ground ; its complete soil-stirring makes a fairly ef- 

 fective mulch. The weeder can be used two or three 

 times in cultivating most crops, especially if soil is loose 

 and if it is to be followed by some other kind of cultivator. 

 If you do not have the weeder, you can use the 

 smoothing harrow to almost equal advantage when the 

 plants are short and small. After the crop is somewhat 



