104 FIELD CROPS FOR THE COTTON-BELT 



practice necessitates a second plowing but the resulting 

 benefits more than repay the cost of the extra labor. 



In the semi-arid sections of the cotton-belt it is usually 

 necessary to use some form of subsurface packer on 

 the soil immediately following fall plowing to reestablish 

 capillarity and to prevent the rapid drying out or blowing 

 of the soils during the winter. 



117. Spring plowing for cotton. There are certain 

 conditions under which deep fall plowing for cotton would 

 be objectionable. This is especially true on deep, light 

 sandy land subject to excessive leaching, or elevated sandy 

 table-lands which drift in windy weather. Where the rain- 

 fall is sufficient, these soils are much benefited by disking 

 and the planting of a cover-crop in the fall. Breaking 

 should be deferred until late winter or spring. 



There are also rich, moist river-bottom and virgin black 

 prairie soils in the Gulf states that are best plowed in the 

 spring for cotton, owing to the fact that they already con- 

 tain a surplus of available plant-food, which condition 

 tends to augment the growth of stalks at the expense of 

 fruit. 



118. Depth of plowing. The proper depth of break- 

 ing cotton soils will depend upon the character of the soil, 

 the time of plowing, and the previous treatment of the 

 soil. In general, the soil may be plowed deeper in the fall 

 than in the spring. In fact, deep plowing just previous to 

 planting is very objectionable. 



Clay soils should ultimately be plowed deeper than 

 sands. The deepening of clay soils should be accomplished 

 gradually in order that an excess of inert subsoil may not 

 be plowed up at any one operation. The ideal practice 

 is to plow from one to one-and-a-half inches deeper each 

 year than the preceding year until the desired depth is 



