Water storage, the prevention of evaporation, and
the maintenance of soil fertility go hand in hand in the development
of a successful system of farming without irrigation.
CHAPTER X
PLOWING AND FALLOWING
The soil treatment prescribed in the preceding chapters rests upon
(1) deep and thorough plowing, done preferably in the fall; (2)
thorough cultivation to form a mulch over the surface of the land,
and (3) clean summer fallowing every other year under low rainfall
or every third or fourth year under abundant rainfall.
Students of dry-farming all agree that thorough cultivation of the
topsoil prevents the evaporation of soil-moisture, but some have
questioned the value of deep and fall plowing and the occasional
clean summer fallow. It is the purpose of this chapter to state the
findings of practical men with reference to the value of plowing and
fallowing in producing large crop yields under dry-farm conditions.
It will be shown in Chapter XVIII that the first attempts to produce
crops without irrigation under a limited rainfall were made
independently in many diverse places.
Pages:
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192