162 DRY LAND FARMING 



effectively with disc or harrow, or with the seed drill, 

 when flax is to be sown. It turns clods into dust much 

 more effectively than the roller. The planker will very 

 effectively crush clods in such land by following it with 

 the spring tooth harrow to bring up clods from below, 

 and again using the planker. When levelling land that 

 is uneven, the planker should be drawn with the shoul- 

 ders underneath projecting forward so that loose earth 

 will be drawn in front of these to fall into the low places. 

 Should it be necessary to plank the ground a second 

 time when levelling it, the disc should precede the sec- 

 ond planking given. In all other instances, the shoul- 



HOME MADE PLANKER. 



ders should point backward. When smoothing land that 

 is to be drilled it leaves it in a condition that makes drill 

 or row marks easily traceable. When used on a flax 

 crop newly sown on sod or even on other land, quick 

 germination is promoted and the land is left in a nice, 

 smooth condition for reaping. 



The planker should npt be used: (1) On land that 

 is sufficiently friable and otherwise in good condition. 

 To use it under such conditions would be a waste of 

 time and energy. (2) To serve the ends sought from 

 using the subsurface packer, as it firms the soil above 

 but not below. (3) On soils that are liable to blow, un- 



