DRY-FARMING 



the soil can readily be determined by 

 simply digging a pit or examining a 

 railroad cutting. Having satisfied him- 

 self on this score the intelligent and 

 energetic dry-farmer can go in and pos- 

 sess the land and be reasonably sure of 

 success. 



All soils are not suitable for dry-farm- 

 ing. They may be too shallow or too 

 loose, or too compact. The soil must be 

 looked upon as a sort of reservoir for the 

 storage of water over periods ranging 

 from a few weeks to many months. With 

 that in mind, the- question is, "what soils 

 will best retain the rainfall?" And the 

 answer is, "sandy loams having a good 

 supply of well decomposed vegetable 

 mold." Besides, such soils are warm, 

 mellow, and easy to plow. In dry- 

 farming as a general rule, soils ought not 

 to be too heavy. For example, clay soils 

 are unsuitable as the moisture does not 

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