102 DRY LAND FARMING 



Experiments conducted in Utah have tended to empha- 

 size the great importance of stirring the soil at the ear- 

 liest moment practicable in order to conserve soil mois- 

 ture after rainfall. Nearly one-half the entire loss from 

 the unstirred surface soil of fallow land was lost during 

 the first three days subsequent to the rainfall. The 

 depth to which the soil should be cultivated in order to 

 conserve the moisture is still an unsettled question. Of 

 course it is influenced by soils. For the retention of 

 soil moisture only, it will probably be found that deep 

 cultivation is to be preferred to shallow, but when a cul- 

 tivated crop is being grown, cultivation should not be 

 practised deep enough to seriously interfere with the 

 growth of the plants. The objections to the summer 

 fallow are: (1) the loss of a crop for a single season; 

 (2) the depletion of organic matter in the soil, and (3) 

 the blowing of the soil in certain areas. The first ob- 

 jection may be obviated by growing a cultivated crop, 

 which, in addition to furnishing the crop, will serve al- 

 most the same purposes as the summer-fallow. In both 

 instances, however, the depletion of the organic matter 

 is about the same, but in the case of the cultivated crop 

 some benefit- has resulted to the crop grown. It has 

 been stated that the blowing of soil may be prevented 

 entirely by stirring it at the opportune time after rain, 

 so that it may form granules rather than soil particles. 

 This is only partially true. 



