246 FIELD CROPS FOR THE COTTON-BELT 



begin soon after planting. Horse weeders or the common 

 smoothing harrow should be used as often as needed to 

 break a surface crust or to kill weeds during their early 

 growth. Weeds are most easily and economically de- 

 stroyed when they are only a few days old. For trashy 

 land the weeder is preferable to the smoothing harrow. 

 The use of the weeder or harrow should be continued 

 until the corn is six or eight inches high. These imple- 

 ments are light and do not penetrate the soil deeply. 

 Consequently wide ones can be used and a large area of 

 land passed over in a day. These are the most economical 

 cultivations that the crop receives. 



299. Cultivation by separate rows. When the corn 

 reaches a height that will not permit the use of weeders 

 or harrows, tillage by separate rows should begin. On 

 level land two-horse cultivators should be used until the 

 corn gets so tall that the rows cannot be straddled without 

 injury to the plants. High-priced labor makes the use of 

 these improved implements imperative. Late cultivations 

 may be given with one-horse implements. When it is 

 necessary to use cultivators while the plants are quite 

 small, fenders should be attached to prevent injuring the 

 plants or covering them with clods. 



300. Depth and frequency of cultivation. Under 

 certain conditions the first cultivation by separate rows 

 may be deep and thorough, as when heavy rains before 

 or after planting have rendered the soil so compact as. to 

 form a poorly aerated seed-bed. All other cultivations 

 should be shallow. The object should be to maintain at 

 all times a uniform soil mulch covering the entire space 

 between the rows. The most desirable depth of mulch 

 will depend on conditions. Where rainfall is abundant 

 the mulch should not be deeper than 2J^ inches. Where 



