610 Transactions of the American Institute. 



such as phosphates, alkalies, &c., essential to a fertile soil. Tliese 

 manures will have to be supplied, or else a sterile soil will he the 

 result. It is well known to men of science that they can be measu- 

 rably supplied from the soil itself by deeper tillage with the svhffoil 

 plow, I was induced to make trial of it, and I would no more think 

 of dispensing with its use than I would with the surface plow. {Ag. 

 Jiep, 1851, j9, 141.) 



2. Vermont. — H. "W. Lester, of Butland county, says : Many now 

 plow deep and give thorough culture, and begin to understand tliat 

 the greatest support on which they can depend is their manure. Men 

 who make and apply much manure to their soils plow deeper and 

 deeper, and give thorough culture, are generally rewarded by their 

 crops, by the increase of the value of their lands, and by the addi- 

 tional means to make the soil still richer, while those who adopt the 

 shallow plowing, half cultivating and half or less manuring, slovenly 

 skimming operation are growing poorer, their crops and the value of 

 tlieir lands decreasing, and they are ready to say it is hard times, a 

 hard life, and poor business to farm it, when at least they are merely 

 apologies for husbandmen. [Ag. Rej). 1852,^. 134.) 



3. Massachusetts. — Morrill Allen, of Plymouth county, says : The 

 improvements consist chiefly in the more judicious application of 

 manure and more efi^'ective tillage. The surface soil only is now 

 moved among the Indian corn plants, deep plowing avoided as 

 injurious. {Ag. Hej). 1848, p. 359.) Leonard Stone, of Middlesex 

 county, says : In cultivating my land my practice is to plow as deep 

 as the ground will admit, gradually increasing the depth until my 

 largest grass plow will seldom reach the subsoil. Except when rocks 

 prevent it I consider deep plo%ving of the utmost importance, and 

 almost any lands that are under cultivation, except rocky and clay, 

 may be deepened by gradually turning small portions of the subsoil 

 to the surface to be converted by the sun, air, and frost to productive 

 loam. {Ag. Rep. 1848, ])■ 363-4.) William Bacon, of Berkshire 

 county, says : Deeper plowing, bringing up soil to the influence of 

 the sun and air, which has long been excluded from them, is gaining 

 ground, and better harvests tell the story of its virtue. {Ag. Rep. 

 1849,^.90.) In a later report he says : The importance of deep 

 plowing is now better understood than formerly, and farmers are 

 practicing accordingly. {Ag. Rep, 1850, j?. 307.) And still later he 

 says : Deep and thorough tillage are among the best preventives of 

 loss from lack of rain. "The deeper the soil and the finer it is pul- 



