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BIGGLE GARDEN BOOK 



tion that it immediately absorbs all the rain that falls 

 during the summer, when it is apt to be dry. Little 

 is lost by surface drainage. 



4. Moisture is conserved thereby. Where the 

 surface remains undisturbed for weeks the soil be- 

 comes packed, so that the moisture from below 

 readily passes to the surface and is evaporated, thus 

 being lost to the growing crop. If the surface is 

 kept light and loose by tillage, so that the capillarity 

 is broken, but little of the soil moisture comes to the 

 surface and evaporation is not so great. In this way 

 nearly all the moisture remains in the soil, where it 

 can be used by the roots. 



5. Thorough tillage has a tendency to cause 

 deeper rooting of the roots. The surface of the soil 

 is made drier by tillage during the early part of the 

 season than it would otherwise be ; hence the roots 

 go where the soil is moist. The advantage of deep 

 rooting during drought is obvious. 



6. Weeds and grass are kept out — and we all 

 know the importance of this. 



Mulching. — There are two kinds of miulch — the 

 ''dust mulch" caused by regular surface cultivation, 

 and the mulch which is applied in the form of straw, 

 leaves, stable manure, or similar materials. For 

 nearly all purposes I prefer and use the "dust mulch." 

 The main object of mulching during the growing 

 season is to prevent the evaporation of moisture in 

 the soil, and shallow cultivation does that effectively; 

 and does not, like other forms of mulch, furnish 

 breeding places for insects and fungi. In special in- 

 stances, however, a mulch of litter is a good thing. 

 For instance : Straw, etc., will keep strawberries 

 clean in a fruiting bed; currant bushes root so near 

 the surface that ordinary cultivation often injures 



