— 4— 



starve because the food is not in a form which thev can 

 use. For some reason many fruit growers do not think 

 of this fact, and so thousands of Touno- trees die each 

 year because thev have been made sickly by their effort 

 to find a congenial feeding place in the sod or hard, un- 

 broken soil where they were planted. The life of any 

 orchard tree and its ability to grow paying* crops in later 

 years is in proportion quite largely to the care with 

 which the soil was prepared before it was set out. It 

 may help us to better understand this matter if we recall 

 the fact that no plants on the farm require more food and 

 moisture than do the orchard trees. Just what tillage does 

 for the plant has been better stated in "The Principles of 

 Fruit-growing", by L. H. Bailey, than anywhere else and 

 it is quoted here to show you that plowing is not the mean 

 thing that some boys believe it to be. but a wonderful 

 service which may be done for plant life. 



"1. Tillage improves the physical condition of the land, — 



(a) By fining the soil, and thereby presenting- great- 

 er feeding surface to the roots; 



(b) By increasing- the depth of the soil, and thereby 

 giving a greater foraging and roothold area to 

 the plant; 



(c) By warming and drying the soil in spring; 



(d) By reducing the extremes of temperature and 

 moisture. 



*'2. Tillage may save moisture. — 



it) By increasing the water holding capacity of the 

 soil: 



it) By checking evaporation. 

 '*3. Tillage may augment chemical activities, — 

 (£-} By aiding in setting free plant food; 

 (// ) By promoting nitrification; 



(?) By hastening the decomposition of organic mat- 

 ter; 



Ij) By extending these agencies ( g, h. i) to greater 

 depths of the soil.'' 



I 



