THE OLD, WORN-OUT SOILS 289 



been restored to high productive powers in just the way 

 herein described. 



Let green manures help. Some soils are so completely 

 devoid of humus it often is best to center the first effort 

 in humus supply to them. This may be clone by the use 

 of green manures. You may have to pick your crop. For 

 the reason the soil is so poor it may refuse to do much. 

 You had better use the cow pea for this purpose. It seldom 

 will fail. Use a bushel of seed per acre, applying them 

 broadcast. \Yhen mature, plow under, turning the soil 

 an inch or two deeper than the previous preparation. The 

 following season either disk the land or replow and sow 

 the second crop of cow peas, using the same quantity per 

 acre and seeding broadcast. 



This second crop will tempt you greatly ; you will be 

 inclined to harvest it as hay. But it will pay you to re- 

 main firm to your original resolution ; let it mature and 

 be plowed into the soil, where it is needed for the nitrogen 

 it holds and for the humus locked in its rich tissues. 



The old soils deficient in fertility it will pay you to 

 assist. Help the soil and crop through an application of 

 fertilizers. Something like this will do: Mix acid phos- 

 phate and kainit together 1.500 pounds of the former and 

 500 pounds of the latter. Of this mixture use from 200 

 to 400 pounds per acre, depending upon the productive 

 power of the soil. \\ ith this treatment given, your old 

 soils will soon be on the way of recovery ; they soon will 

 be available for all sorts of crops. 



Rotate crops on these lands. Xow, do not neglect crop 

 rotation. Remember that this neglect in the past was one 

 of the reasons why your soils became worn out and ex- 

 hausted one reason why they became "run down." 

 Surely you do not want this to happen a second time. 

 Crop rotation will largely help in preventing such a con- 



