SOWING AND HARVESTING 225 



Method of sowing 



There should really be no need of discussing the 

 method of sowing wez'e it not that even at this day 

 there are farmers in the dry-farm district who sow 

 by broadcasting and insist upon the superiority of 

 this method. The broadcasting of seed has no place 

 in any system of scientific agriculture, least of all in 

 dry-farming, where success depends upon the degree 

 with which all conditions are controlled. In all good 

 dry-farm fjractice seed should be j^laced in rows, 

 preferably by means of one of the numerous forms of 

 drill seeders found upon the market. The advan- 

 tages of the drill are almost self-evident. It permits 

 uniform chstribution of the seed, which is indispens- 

 able for success on soils that receive a limited rainfall. 

 The seed may be placed at an even dej)th, which is 

 very necessary, especiall}' in fall sowing, where the 

 seed depends for proper germination upon the mois- 

 ture already stored in the soil. The deep seecUng 

 often necessary under dry-farm conditions makes 

 the drill indisj^ensal^le. Moreover, Hunt has ex- 

 plained that the drill furrows themselves have defi- 

 nite advantages. During the winter the furrows 

 catch the snow, and because of the protection thus 

 rendered, the seed is less likely to be heaved out by 

 repeated freezing and thawing. The drill furrow also 

 protects to a certain extent against the drying action 

 of winds and in that way, though the furrows are 



