When To Plow Down
Categories:
OTHER LEGUMES AND CEREAL CATCH CROPS
If rye has made a good growth before spring, the
roots run deeper than the plow goes, and holds the soil much like a
grass sod. In such a case the plowing may be made early in the spring
without regard to the rye, though organic matter increases rapidly day
by day if the rye is permitted to grow. As a rule, it is safest to plow
down before the plants are eighteen inches high. They dry land out
rapidly, and any mass of matter in the bottom of the furrow interferes
with the rise of water from the subsoil. When the land is wanted for
oats or corn, a jointer should be used on the plow to insure burying
all the crop.