108 ' The Sugar-Beet in America 
leading sugar-beet areas find that spring plowing can well 
be dispensed with, particularly on heavy soils. 
In many regions it has been found that heavy land 
planted to beets or potatoes the previous year may be 
put in good shape without plowing, by giving the surface 
a thorough treatment in the spring. This is done by 
“taking ! a fine tooth harrow, riding it and running it as 
deeply as possible, following with a float which will form 
a fine mulch on top and prevent crusting. Then take a 
spring-tooth harrow and run it as deeply as possible the 
same way the rows of beets are to run at least three or 
four inches deep. Next follow immediately with a fine 
tooth harrow in order to keep the land worked down and 
retain the moisture and not allow clods to form. The 
same process should be repeated crosswise, running the 
spring tooth an inch or two deeper if possible. Go over 
it again with a roller or leveler to get the surface firm 
enough for planting.” While this method seems to 
eliminate plowing, it does not in reality do so, since the 
digging of the potatoes or beets is practically equivalent 
to a fall plowing and the treatment is not recommended 
except for heavy land that has raised these crops. 
DEPTH OF PLOWING 
The proper depth of plowing has always been a topic 
of discussion among farmers. One will say that the 
deeper the plowing the better; another will affirm that 
shallow plowing is best. It may be that neither has 
1 Austin, Mark, Utah Farmer, Vol. 12, No. 31, Mar. 3, 1917. 
