40 BULLETIN 159, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



differ very materially from the equipment to be used upon the more 

 sandy Coastal Plain soils. The Sassafras silt loam should be plowed 

 to a depth of 8 or 9 inches, and if the natural soil is not so deep as 

 this the depth of plowing should be gradually increased from year 

 to year until the desired maximum is reached. 



Economy in the conduct of tillage operations demands that at 

 least two-horse teams where each animal will weigh from 1,300 to 

 1,500 pounds should be used, and the most economical working of 

 land of this class would justify the four-horse hitch, which is used 

 to special advantage upon the heavy general farming soils, such as 

 the limestone soils of Maryland and Pennsylvania and the prairie 

 soils of the Central States. 



For the same reasons the lightweight turning plow used upon the 

 more sandy soils of the Coastal Plain is totally inadequate for the 

 proper tillage of the Sassafras silt loam. In its place there should 

 be used either the one or two gang sulky plow or the two or three 

 blade disk plow. These implements, drawn by adequate horsepower, 

 are capable of turning and thoroughly pulverizing the surface soil 

 to the required depth of 8 or 9 inches. Less powerful equipment, 

 either of team or tools, is not competent to bring out the best quali- 

 ties and the full efficiency of the soil. The use of adequate tillage 

 implements is shown in Plate V, figure 2. 



Both the soil and subsoil require frequent stirring, and it is desired 

 to use such implements as the disk harrow, the spring-tooth harrow, 

 or the spike-tooth harrow to secure this preparation of the land. 

 Wherever possible, horsepower machinery should also be used for 

 the planting and intertill age of crops. 



In the same way that heavier teams and tools are required for the 

 proper tillage of the Sassafras silt ioam, so also are more expensive 

 and commodious farm buildings requisite. These exist in New 

 Jersey and on the Maryland-Delaware Peninsula, where the soil 

 type is most profitably tilled. The storage of grain, hay, and straw 

 and the proper housing of tools and work stock, even in the absence 

 of the dairy industry or of cattle breeding, require the more elabo- 

 rate equipment of buildings and barns. Typical farm buildings are 

 shown in Plate VI, figure 1. 



Thus the nature of the soil and its characteristic properties de- 

 termine the character of the best farm equipment in the form of 

 work stock, machinery, and buildings. 



The Sassafras silt loam is probably the best general farming soil 

 to be found in the northern part of the Coastal Plain regions. Its 

 level surface, its soft, friable surface soil when properly handled, 

 the considerable depth of both surface soil and subsoil, and the ade- 

 quate drainage features of the type all tend to render it suitable for 



