GARDEN YARD a 
you hard, so that it seems necessary to bring 
water, the soil will suck it and hold it, instead of 
letting it pass off quickly through the action 
of sun and air. Frequent stirring of the surface 
soil, to the depth of one inch, will make a little 
dry layer or top-coat through which the moist- 
ure does not readily escape. This is what is 
called a “mulch.” A mulch may also be an 
added coat of leaf-mould or stable-litter or 
any little dry covering which will prevent the 
moisture from escaping. 
For early crops a light, sandy loam is best. 
A sandy loam is a loose, sandy soil made pro- 
ductive by good tillage, by mixing in humus 
and plant food or fertilizer. But when you 
haven’t the best, it is for you to counterfeit it 
as nearly as possible. The advantages of sandy 
loam are that it is early, easy to work, responds 
quickly to fertilizers and is readily kept in good 
tilth. 
“Tilth”’ is really the planting condition of 
the soil, and good tilth means the best possible 
conditions for planting seeds; where the plow 
and the harrow have done their work; where 
the sun has warmed and the rain moistened; 
where the fertilizer has sweetened and quick- 
ened; where stones and weeds are unknown, 
so that the new life finds the best conditions for 
