THE CAUSES OF LOW YIELDS 263 



control the climate it remains for us to conserve as much 

 as possible of the limited moisture that falls. Every extra 

 inch of moisture that can be stored and conserved in 

 the soil means on an average a possible increase of two 

 to four bushels of wheat per acre. (See Chapter X). 



216. Fall Frosts. — Low temperatures in early fall fre- 

 quently work serious injury to all grain and other crops 

 in the northern areas and occasionally also in other parts 

 of the West. Our growing season is short and we cannot 

 control the temperature of the atmosphere. We can 

 lessen the damage from frost only by putting into use 

 those practices that result in avoiding frost and by grow- 

 ing crops that take little or no injury from low tempera- 

 tures. Among these practices are: — (1) packing the 

 land, (2) thick seeding, (3) using early classes of grain 

 such as oats, barley or rye, (4) using early varieties of 

 grain such as Prelude, Euby or Red Bobs wheat ; Sixty- 

 day, Orloff or Daubeney oats; Early Six barley; Long 

 Stem flax; and Early White peas, (5) less frequent fal- 

 lowing, (6) shallower plowing for the fallow, (7) later 

 plowing of the fallow, (8) pasturing the fallow, (9) early 

 seeding, (10) the use of press drills, (11) growing frost 

 resistant crops such as Western rye grass, brome grass, 

 grain crops for hay and Swede turnips for succulent 

 winter feed, and (12) going into mixed or stock farming. 

 The first ten of these practices aid us in avoiding frost, 

 the last two enable one to farm so that serious injury 

 will not result from this cause. 



