A FURTHER STUDY OF THE FARM. 87 



may be sown without replowiiig the land, and it may be 

 drilled in or sown broadcast and harrowed in. 



The texture, or physical condition, of the soil has much to 

 do with fertility. Not all fields of the farm, nor all parts of 

 the same field, can be treated alike to secure the best results. 

 A field of grain is unsightly as well as unprofitable where on 

 large portions of the field there was failure in securing a 

 stand, or where the crop is a partial or complete failure. 

 Earnest endeavors should be made to discover and remove 

 the causes which produce these conditions. 



A study has been made of the means by which the moisture- 

 holding capacity of soils may be increased, but an equally 

 important subject for study is how the surplus water of the 

 soil may be removed by some other means than by surface 

 drainage or evaporation. If the subsoil is porous and open, 

 then it is probable that no artificial drains wulL be required. 

 But when there is an impervious subsoil, or where owing to 

 seepage a soil is kept in a water-logged condition for a con- 

 siderable length of time, then the matter of drainage should 

 receive careful study. In planning for the removal of the sur- 

 [)lus water it is probable that a complete system of drainage 

 would not be put in at first, but a complete system should be 

 planned and a partial system provided for those places which 

 seem most to need drainage. 



The farm is not only a storehouse for plant food, but it is a 

 factory where, through action of sunlight, moisture, and 

 warmth, the raw material, plant food, is changed into a more 

 or less finished product according to the system of farming 

 l)ursued. In deciding what class of products shall be manu- 

 factured it is absolutely necessary for success that the farmer 

 make a study of himself. If he loves the form and lines of 

 the Jersey cow and takes delight in her beauty, then it would 

 be manifestly improper for that man to breed Holsteins. He 

 should breed that class of animals which he loves and will 

 take pride in and care for. If a farmer takes delight in grow- 

 ing potatoes and it gives him ])leasure to see their luxuriant 

 foliage, and to care for them and keep them free from blight 

 and insects, then he should make a specialty of potatoes, pro- 



