EXERCISES WITH SOILS 



119 



ing. Garden soil should be cultivated or raked frequently 

 during dry weather to prevent the loss of moisture through 

 fissures and crusty layers. 



12. Packing of Sand and Clay. — Old newspapers may be used 

 on which to mold samples of several kinds of soil. Heavy clay loam 

 may be wet and molded into the form of large marbles, about one 

 inch in diameter. In like manner, mold samples of light sandy loam. 

 Place these in a cigar box and lay asidte for several days to dry. 

 Then compare them .in hardness and ease of breaking. 



Sandy soils crumble readily after being plowed and dried 

 in the wind. Clay soils are likely to become cloddy if the 

 lumps are not crumbled before they dry. 



Fig. 



Fig. 67. 



Fig. 66. — Liquid will rise rapidly in a lump of sugar, as it does in packed soil. (Dun- 

 ham Co., Berea, Ohio.) 

 Fig. 67. — Liquid does not escape through the loose mulch on top. (Dunham Co., 



Berea, Ohio.) 



All soils should be harrowed immediately after plowing, 

 unless they are to remain exposed to the effects of freezing 

 weather through the winter. If ground is plowed in the fall, 

 it should be harrowed as early in the spring as possible. Soils 

 left to dry after plowing will lose moisture rapidly unless 

 harrowed promptly. If they be clay loams, the clods formed 

 may remain unbroken for a number of years. This is very bad 

 for any garden or field. 



