22 DRY LAND FARMING 



than in the latter. The processes of cultivation that are 

 absolutely essential to the conservation of moisture in 

 dry areas are proportionately destructive to weed life. 

 These processes include those involved in carefully 

 summer-fallowing for certain crops, as wheat, when pre- 

 paring the seed bed ; careful attention when growing other 

 crops, as corn ; careful harrowing of cereals during the 

 early stages of growth, and careful discing of the stubble 

 land at some time previous to plowing it. In humid areas 

 these processes are chiefly necessary for the purpose of 

 cleaning the land, but in dry areas they are even more 

 necessary because of their influence on the retention of 

 moisture. Weeds that fail to mature may work but 

 little harm in a summer-fallow in humid areas. In dry 

 areas they may prove fatal to successful growth in the 

 crop that follows. 



That dry farming is in a sense high-class farming is 

 evidenced: (1) in the skill that is necessary to so manip- 

 ulate the soil that it will grow sure and paying crops ; 

 (2) in the carefulness that must be observed in these 

 manipulations; (3) in the promptness that must be 

 shown in every detail of the work. 



The dry land farmer must understand the treatment 

 that must be given to his particular class of soil, when 

 the hazard if not the certainty of failure is to be avoided. 

 He must give it such treatment, howsoever these man- 

 ipulations may conflict with the practises followed when 

 seeking simular results in humid climates. He must 

 know the methods pertaining to soil preparation, plant- 

 ing and cultivating that will best meet the needs of the 

 soil that he tills under the climatic conditions that are 

 present; he must also know the succession in crop pro- 

 duction that must be chosen or avoided to insure 

 successful crop production. The carefulness that must 

 be observed in these manipulations is shown in the 

 necessity that is ordinarily present for packing the soil 



