SOILS AND FERTILIZERS 



8l 



Depth of Plowing. How deep one should plow de- 

 pends on so many conditions that it is impossible to 

 answer the question directly. The locality, the charac- 

 ter of the soil, the amount of moisture in the soil and the 

 amount that maybe expected during the growing season, 

 and the crop to be raised are all factors that should be 

 carefully considered in answering the question. The 

 tendency at present is toward deeper plowing, but deep 

 tillage is not the best for all conditions. 



In general it may be said that that depth of plowing 

 is best which furnishes the plant during its growth with 

 the greatest amount of air and moisture. The subsoil 

 is usually moist, and it conveys the ground water to the 

 topsoil. If the topsoil is plowed to such a depth that 

 the roots of the plant can spread out on the moist soil 



FIG. 22. -Furrow as the Plow leaves it. 



immediately under the plowed surface, then the roots 

 will get both the moisture and the air in the loosened 

 and crumbled plowed soil. 



The cereals and grasses are shallow feeding plants. 



M. & H. AG. 6 



