BABLEY 173 



METHODS OF CULTUEE 



160. Preparing the soil. — The methods employed in 

 preparing the soil for barley will, of course, depend upon 

 whether it is to be seeded in the fall or spring, and upon 

 the preceding crop. Barley may replace either oats or 

 wheat in the rotation, usually following corn, potatoes, 

 or some other cultivated crop. It is commonly used 

 as a nurse crop for grasses and clover, and because of its 

 short straws and early maturity, is often preferred for 

 this purpose to either oats or wheat. Fall seeding re- 

 quires a well-prepared seed bed, and if the preceding 

 crop can be removed in time to permit of plowing, better 

 results will be obtained than if the seed bed is prepared 

 without plowing. When winter barley follows cowpeas, 

 soy beans, or potatoes, a good seed bed may usually be 

 prepared by disking and harrowing without plowing. 

 When winter barley follows corn, usually no preparation 

 can be given the seed bed, but much can be done to favor 

 the crop if the corn is well cultivated during its growing 

 season, to conserve moisture and free the field from 

 weeds. In the seeding of spring barley the seed bed may 

 best be prepared if the land is plowed in the fall. If it 

 is necessary to delay the plowing until spring, it should 

 be done early in the season and worked down so as to 

 ■present a fine, mellow surface and a rather firm sub-soil. 

 Barley requires a somewhat finer and more mellow seed 

 bed than oats, and usually more care must be taken in 

 preparing the soil, if a good crop is to be expected. 

 In parts of the country where there is little rainfall 

 during the growing season the soil should be handled 

 in such a way as to conserve as much moisture as 

 possible. 



