TILLING THE SOIL 39 



at a time. The hand hoe is now little used except 

 in gardening, or to thin the plants where they are too 

 thick in the row, or to kill the few weeds that may be 

 left by the cultivator. 



Cultivation is so valuable to all plants that we are 

 beginning to cultivate crops like hay and small grains. 

 This is done with harrows or with machines called 

 horse weeders that scratch the ground without in- 

 juring the plants. 



Tillage or cultivation of the soil makes the food 

 materials in the soil more available to the plants, 

 saves moisture, destroys weeds, and trains the plant 

 roots to go deep into the soil. 



QUESTIONS 



1. What is tillage? 



2. What results are obtained by tillage ? 



3. What are the advantages of having the soil loose and in 

 fine texture ? 



4. What is a soil mulch ? How is it obtained ? 



5. Under what climatic conditions is a soil mulch of especial 

 value to crops? 



PRACTICAL EXERCISES 



1. If the pupils live in town, a visit to an implement store 

 should be made in order to study plows and cultivators. 



2. Fill two large metal cans or pails with moist soil. Compact 

 the soil by jarring the sides of the vessels. Weigh each, and 

 place them in a dry place for a week. Do not disturb the soil 

 of one, but make a soil mulch on the other by stirring each day 

 the soil to a depth of two inches. Weigh each at the end of a 

 week. Which has lost the greater amount of moisture ? 



