The Soil 



69 



In beginning the spring work it is customary to 

 put on the manure and plow but once. But the labor 

 of double plowing will be well repaid, especially on a 

 soil likely to suffer from drouth, if the ground be 

 plowed once, deeply, before the manure is spread on, 

 and then cross-plowed just sufficiently to turn the 

 manure well under — say five or six inches. On stiff 

 lands, and especially for root crops, it will pay if 

 possible to have the sub-soil plow follow the regular 

 plow. This is, of course, for thoroughly rotted and 

 fined manure; if coarse, it had better be put under 

 at one plowing, making the best of a handicap. If 

 you have arranged to have your garden plowed "by 

 the job," be on hand to see that no shirking is done, 

 by taking furrows wider than the plow can turn com- 

 pletely; it is possible to "cut and cover" so that the 

 surface of a piece will look well enough, when in 

 reality it is little better than half plowed. 



HARROWING 



That is the first step toward the preparation of a 

 successful garden out of the way. Next comes the 

 harrowing ; if the soil after plowing is at all stiff and 

 lumpy, get a disc-harrow if you can ; on clayey soils 

 a "cut-a-way" (see Implements). On the average 

 garden soil, however, the Acme will do the work of 

 pulverizing in fine shape. 



If, even after harrowing, the soil remains lumpy. 



