1912. 
THE RURAb NEW-YORKER 
117 
GOOD RESULTS FROM SUBSOILING. 
On page 3 under the heading- ‘'How I 
Raise Alfalfa,” H. C. Slocum, of Cayuga 
County, New York, makes some state¬ 
ments concerning subsoiling which are 
misleading. It is evident, to one who 
has experienced the benefits of subsoil¬ 
ing, that Mr. Slocum “stung” himself by 
attempting to do something about which 
he was not sufficiently informed. He 
says, “It was no more subsoiling for 
me, but to keep the fertility near the 
surface.” Subsoiling is deep plowing, 
but deep plowing is not necessarily sub¬ 
soiling. To subsoil properly it is neces¬ 
sary to have a plow made for the pur¬ 
pose. The subsoil plow has a share and 
a long standard, and no mold-board. 
The subsoil plow follows in the furrow 
made by the plow which turns the sur¬ 
face soil. The share of the subsoil 
plow breaks the subsoil and leaves it in 
the bottom of the furrow, where it is 
covered by the next furrow of the sur¬ 
face-soil plow. Subsoiling may not pay 
on all soils, but there can be do doubt 
about its benefit to heavy clay soils when 
properly performed. Subsoiling in¬ 
creases the depth of the soil and mois¬ 
ture content, thereby allowing the roots 
of vegetation to go deeper and feed 
upon the plant food which otherwise 
would be unavailable because locked up 
in the impenetrable subsoil, and by con¬ 
serving the moisture causes the grow¬ 
ing crop t® overcome the effects of a 
drought. I know of no other means 
so effective in preventing clay soils from 
washing as subsoiling. 
Break the surface soil six or eight 
inches deep: and follow with the subsoil 
plow, breaking an equal number of 
inches; you will then have 12 to 16 
inches of broken soil which will absorb 
all the rain or snow that falls on it, 
and leave no surplus water to run off 
and start ditches. Perhaps I should add 
that there is a right and wrong time 
as well as a right and wrong way 
to subsoil. Subsoiling should be done 
when the subsoil is dry, because it 
would harm instead of help the land 
to plow the clay while wet. Late in the 
Summer or the early Autumn is usually 
the best time. This gives the soil a 
chance to store the water of the Winter 
rains and restore the broken capillarity 
of the soil before the following Sum¬ 
mer. Besides mistaking deep plowing 
for subsoiling, I think Mr. Slocum may 
have increased the difficulties for his 
wheat crop by plowing late, so the soil 
would not have time to restore the 
broken capillarity by natural means or 
neglected to do so by harrowing and 
rolling the land, either of which might 
prove disastrous to the crop. Of course 
the mismanagement of his wheat crop 
is only conjecture, since he did not say 
how he prepared the soil, other than the 
plowing. Deep plowing is not best for 
wheat, unless done several weeks be¬ 
fore sowing, and the soil thoroughly 
packed and capillarity restored. 
JOHN s. PIERCE. 
Kentucky. 
FRAMES AS A FACTOR IN TRUCK 
GROWING. 
• ' Part I. 
This is the, title of Farmers’ Bulletin No. 
460, by VV. It. Beattie, issued by the U. S. 
Department of Agriculture. There are few 
localities in the North where frames are 
not a profitable part of the trucker’s equip¬ 
ment, but their greatest use is in localities 
where the Winter climate is mild, and 
where very slight protection insures Winter 
crops. North Carolina is said to have a 
larger acreage devoted to frames than any 
oth.er State, but there is a large and grow¬ 
ing area around Norfolk, Va., devoted to 
this work. The construction of the frame 
is variable, but is always as inexpensive 
as climatic conditions permit. In North 
Carolina and South Carolina the type of 
frame generally used is one having for the 
sides two lines of 12-inch boards set on 
edge and held in place by means of stakes 
driven into the ground. The covering of 
cheap unbleached muslin is supported on 
strips of wood one inch thick and 2% or 
three inches wide, which are raised in the 
center by being carried over the top of a 
stake; the ends are held down by nailing 
to the sides of the bed. The lumber for 
the sides is usually 1x12 inches by 16 feet 
of the cheaper grades of cypress or a good 
grade of common shortleaf pine. The stakes 
for holding the boards in place are 1x3 or 
2x3 inches in size and are driven about 
one foot into the ground. These cloth-cov¬ 
ered beds arc usually 14 feet in width, but 
some growers prefer them 10, 12, or 20 
feet wide. The length of the frames varies 
greatly, but the longer ones generally run 
from 90 to 100 yards. The frames usually 
run east and west, with the cloth fastened 
to the north edge of the frame. Most of 
these frames are temporary and are taken 
apart and stored during the Summer months. 
Before placing the frames in position in 
the Autumn the soil is plowed, thoroughly 
fitted, and given a liberal dressing of well- 
rotted stable manure and commercial fer¬ 
tilizers. The placing of the boards will 
cause some trampling of the bed. and be¬ 
fore putting in the ends and nailing on the 
rafters or strips to support the cloth it is 
desirable to loosen the soil again by means 
of a harrow or cultivator. The stakes for 
supporting the cross strips or rafters are 
then driven through the center, and the 
strips nailed in place at intervals of four 
feet. The ends are inclosed by means of 12- 
incli boards, and the bed is then ready for 
the cloth cover. The cloth is stitched, with 
the strips running lengthwise of the bed, 
into one great sheet lax-ge enough to cover 
the entii'e bed. This sheet is fastened on 
the north side of the frame by nailing over 
it plastering laths or similar strips of wood. 
The cloth should not be fastened to the top 
edge of the board but on the side, one ox- 
two inches below the top. For fastening 
the sheet on the south side of the frame 
short loops of string or cloth are attached 
to its edge and these are looped over nails 
driven into the side of the bed. In some 
cases brass eyelets, such as are used in 
tent flaps, are inserted in the edge of the 
cloth and hitched over nails or pins. An¬ 
other method is to hem the cloth on one 
edge and run a three-eighth-inch rope 
through the hem. The addition of the rope 
makes it comparatively easy to fasten the 
cloth to the side of the bed and also pre¬ 
vents tearing the sheet in handling. The 
cost of these frames, including lumber and 
muslin, together with the necessary facilities 
for supporting and fastening the cloth, will 
be from 35 to 50 cents a running foot for a 
bed 14 feet wide. If it is necessary to re¬ 
fit the land while the frames are in place, 
the cloth is turned back into the alleys be¬ 
tween the frames, the strips that support 
the cloth are removed, and a one-horse plow 
is taken into the inclosure. After the land 
is plowed and thoroughly fitted, the sti-ips 
are again put in place. As the work of cul¬ 
tivating the crops must all be done by hand 
it is essential that the soil be well pre¬ 
pared befoi-e planting. 
In the tidewater region of Virginia the 
frames are covered with hotbed sash. The 
climate of Norfolk is a little too severe 
for the use of cloth except for early Autumn 
and Spring crops. A number of gx-owers 
in the vicinity of Norfolk handle sasli-cov- 
ered frames occupying as much as three, 
four or five acres each season. For the 
sides and ends of these frames the same 
class of cheap lumber as for the cloth-cov¬ 
ered frames is used. The back or north side 
of the frame is usually 12 or 14 inches high, 
while the front or south side is about 
four inches lower to give the sash sufficient 
slope. The standard hotbed sash univei-sally 
used for covering these frames is three feet 
in width and six feet in length. The usual 
width of the sash-covered frame is six feet, 
but a double row of sash with a ridge 
through the center is sometimes employed, 
making the bed about 12 feet wide. This 
arrangement, however, is not as satisfac¬ 
tory as the ordinary six-foot frame. The 
usual length of the sash-covered fi-ames is 
180 feet, but sometimes they are 300 to 500 
feet long. No strips are used to support 
the sash, as they fit close togethei-, resting 
on the sides of the bed. 
Farther north, near several of the large 
cities, including Baltimore, Philadelphia, 
Cincinnati, New York and Boston, sash-cov¬ 
ered frames are extensively used for grow¬ 
ing early vegetables. This work is prac¬ 
tically the same as that found at Norfolk, 
except that the frames are constructed over 
an excavation which is filled with ferment¬ 
ing manure to provide heat. Where 
manure-heated beds are extensively used 
for growing early vegetables a long, shal¬ 
low pit is opened, the manure is trodden in, 
and 12-inch boards are fastened to stakes 
to form the sides. The board on the north 
side is raised a little higher than the one 
on the south side in order to form a slope 
for the glass. A few strips are nailed 
across the bed to prevent the sides from 
coming in by the pressure of the manure 
or soil that is banked on the outside, and 
the sash simply rest on the sides without 
any guide or supporting strips between 
them. Straw mats and board shutters are 
employed as a protection for the sash dur¬ 
ing cold weather. A few of the growers 
around Newbern and Wilmington, N. C„ 
provide steam boilers and install heating 
pipes in the frames, the heat being applied 
only during cold weather, when the cloth 
alone would not prevent injury from frost. 
Many of the growers have steam outfits 
for pumping water and simply connect the 
pumping boiler to lines of pipes which are 
fastened on the sides of the frames just 
Below the covering. As a rule, the supply 
pipe is run on thd north side of the frame, 
while the return is placed on the south 
side, or both flow and return may be on the 
north or cold side of the bed. Axiqther 
method of heating consists of layingMines 
of three-inch drain tiles six or eight inches 
below the sui’face of the soil so as to dis¬ 
charge live steam into the tiles during 
cold weather. These systems have proved 
quite satisfactory in a few* places, but have 
not been generally adopted. 
Light or sandy loam, well drained, gives 
the best location for frames. If not na¬ 
turally well drained the ground should be 
tiled, or provided with open ditches to 
carry off the water. The soil should con¬ 
tain plenty of organic matter which may 
be supplied by stable manure or leguminous 
crops. When heavy crops of green manux'o 
are turned under lime will be needed. 1.000 
pounds to the acre being recommended. 
Large quantities of stable manui’e are used 
in growing ci’ops in frames, sometimes as 
much as 30 to GO cartloads to the acre. The 
manure fs generally spread in a broad, flat 
pile to compost before it is applied to the 
soil on which frames are to be located. 
Where manure is employed for heating the 
beds it may afterwards be mixed with the 
soil for the growing of subsequent crops. 
In tbo work with frames around Norfolk, 
Va., the manure is placed in xong, narrow 
piles and turned two or three times before 
it is used in the beds. Care should be ex¬ 
ercised to avoid the use of manure in which 
there are shavings or sawdust, as these have 
an injurious effect upon the growth of 
plants. Poultry and sheep manure are ex¬ 
cellent fertilizers for frame work, but the 
quantity obtainable is very small. In the 
application of natural manures of all kinds 
it is essential that the manure should he 
fine: that it be what is termed “short” 
manure. If commercial fertilizers are used 
they should be high-grade, 7-8-6 or 7-8-8 
being the best proportion; in addition to 
manure the grower may use 1.000 to 1 500 
pounds of commercial fertilizer to the acre 
each season. Nitrate of soda may be ap¬ 
plied as a top-dressing to force rapid 
growth, or as a liquid, one pound of nitrate 
to 10 gallons of water, using this every 
week or 10 days during the height of the 
growing season. 
Heating comfort at last! 
If someone had sentenced 
you to endure the discom¬ 
forts, drudgery and ex¬ 
pense of old - fashioned, 
half-way heating methods 
until you felt that you just 
couldn’tstand another day 
of half-warmed, cheerless 
rooms, and dust and gas la¬ 
den atmosphere, wouldn’t 
you ’welcome with light 
heart—almost with shouts 
of joy—that load of 
teRICANrlDEAL 
tl Radiators ^IBoilers 
You certainly would, if you knew 
what it means to you—relief from 
drudgery, house-cleaning cut in half, 
no injurious ash-dust nor dangerous 
coal-gases in the living rooms; just 
clean, uniform refreshing warmth in every nook and corner of your 
home, and leisure hours that you never before possessed, in which to 
enjoy these new comforts. 
IDEAL Boilers and AMERICAN Radiators are sure aids to domestic happiness, 
health and economy. Whatever fuel is used, coal, coke, wood, gas or oil, they turn 
its full heating value into uniform warmth througliout your home. The outfits pay 
for themselves in savings in coal, labor, doctor bills 
and repairs. 
With our factories and sales offices in America and Europe, 
and our thousands of active sales connections throughout 
the world, we are constantly in touch with the best and 
ripest ideas of the entire heating industry. 
IDEAL Boilers and AMERICAN Radiators represent the 
tried and proven results of this far-reaching experience, in 
every corner of the globe. 
IDEAL Boilers and AMERICAN Radiators can as easily 
be put in old as in new houses — farm or town. The same 
water is used over and over again—for years. Fire need 
not be rekindled in a whole winter season. 
Ask for free booklet, “ideal Heating Investments.” Puts you 
under no obligation, and contains much that will interest 
you. 
A No. 1-22-W I DEAL Boiler and 422 ft. of 
36-in. AMERICAN Radiators, costing 
the owner $180, were used to heat this 
cottage. At this price the goods can 
be bought of any reputable, competent 
Fitter. This did not Include cost of 
labor, pipe, valves, freight, etc., which 
Installation is extra and varies accord¬ 
ing to climatic and other conditions. 
Showrooms 
in all large 
cities 
American R adiator C ompany 
Write to 
Dept. 9 
Chicago 
By All Means 
Build the Garage of Concrete 
It is the one logical material . Absolutely fireproof—better than in¬ 
surance because it protects. Cleanly—does not get oil soaked. Ease 
of handling permits it to be worked into many desirable forms 
which are impracticable with any other material. 
I rUTAITPORTUAND 
LLHIWIcement 
is the unquestioned choice of those builders who are most thor¬ 
oughly informed on the cement question. 
Its-superior uniformity, strength and binding 
qualities have been proven by thousands of 
comparative tests. 
“The Modern Farmer”—a very valuable and 
complete book, thoroughly explaining and illus¬ 
trating the various uses of concrete on the farm 
—sent free. Address: 
LEHIGH PORTLAND CEMENT CO. 
Dept. A, Allentown, Pa. 
Don’t Hold That Plow- 
Use a WINNER PLOW TRUCK 
With or without seat. Avoid the wrenching and twisting that 
makes you lame, sore and tired. Easier on the horses, too. 
Pays for itself by doing better work and more of it. Gauges 
width and depth of furrow. Fits any plow beam. 
A Boy or Girl Can Plow as Well as a Man 
Best device made for holding a plow. With seat it makes a sulky plow of your walking plow. A suc- 
ca *wrn stony farms as well as on the western prairie. Ship back If not satisfied. There’s not a single chance to 
take. Thousands of pleased customers all over the U. S. A trial will please you, too. Don’t ask your dealer for the Winner Truck. 
He will tell you it s “no good” because there's more for him in selling you something costing four or live times as much, see ? 
Send to-day for my free book with money-saving Introductory offer. 
_ L. R. LEWIS, Box 12, Cortland, IV. V. 
16 Days 
Free 
Trial 
