THE OLD, WORN-OUT SOILS 287 



spring are on with their wetness and cold. Cattle tramp 

 the land. They crush the soil particles together, drive 

 the air away, induce the formation of clods and holes ; 

 they deaden the soil ; they drive life away. Why allow 

 such treatment anyway? Is it necessary? Must cattle 

 be given dominion over the entire farm? Certainly not. 

 Cattle have no place in fields, cultivated or grass lands 

 during the winter months. Their place is in stables, or in 

 barnyards, or in feeding lots, but not in the fields. 



Never neglect a manure of any sort. You should never 

 neglect a manure of any kind. Surely not the home-made 

 sort. Make a lot of manure on your farm. Get cattle ; 

 get all kinds of live stock. Sell your crops through them. 

 Never go to a single line in crop production. It means 

 inefficiency ; it means soil depletion ; it means a worn-out 

 farm. 



Study these problems of soil building. Ascertain if 

 your land is lacking any special element. If you are con- 

 vinced that such is the case, then purchase the needed 

 element and add it to your land. With a small effort in 

 the line of experimentation given you may learn some 

 valuable lessons that may produce wonderful results. 



Grow legumes constantly. Nothing helps old, worn- 

 out soils more than the legumes. They give nitrogen and 

 humus, and they open the subsoil to air and water. 

 Clover and cow peas come first. Either one or the other 

 will grow in your climate and fit into your work. Take 

 the cow pea, for instance. It is an admirable plant for 

 a depleted soil. Though poor tillage be provided, though 

 the soil be hard and dead, the cow pea will respond with 

 a luxurious crop. Look into the soil and you will find 

 the evidences of the little fairies that did the work the 

 bacteria and their tubercle homes gathering nitrogen for 

 the plant and leaving what was unused in the soil for the 



