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Desirable Physical Condition Of The Soil

Categories: TILLAGE

Successful cropping of land

is dependent upon favoring soil conditions. The plants to be grown must

have ease in root extension, so that their food may be found. There

must be moisture to hold the food in solution. There must be air. There

must be destruction of plants that would be competitors of the ones

desired. A soil rarely is in prime condition for the planting and

growth of any crop without some change in its st
ucture by means of

tillage, and it does not remain in the best condition for any long

period of time. If the number of plants required per acre for a crop is

relatively small, tillage of the soil is continued after planting. If

the necessary number makes tillage impossible, there is some loss in

conditions most favorable to the plant. The particles of soil settle

together, and there is loss of water at the surface. Most plants want a

mellow soil, and tillage is in large part an effort to make and to keep

the condition of the soil friendly to plant life in this respect. The

wide variation in methods of tillage are due to the great differences

in the texture and structure of soils, and to the habits of plants, and

skill in selection of methods is a measure of the intelligence used in

farming.



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