It is undoubtedly true that the thorough tillage involved in
dry-farming exposes to the action of the elements the organic matter
of the soil and thereby favors rapid oxidation. For that reason the
different ways in which organic matter may be supplied regularly to
dry-farms are pointed out in Chapter XIV. It may also be observed
that the header harvesting system employed over a large part of the
dry-farm territory leaves the large header stubble to be plowed
under, and it is probable that under such methods more organic
matter is added to the soil during the year of cropping than is lost
during the year of fallowing. It may, moreover, be observed that
thorough tillage of a crop like corn or potatoes tends to cause a
loss of the organic matter of the soil to a degree nearly as large
as is the case when a fallow field is well cultivated. The thorough
stirring of the soil under an arid or semiarid climate, which is an
essential feature of dry-farming, will always result in a decrease
in organic matter. It matters little whether the soil is fallow or
in crop during the process of cultivation, so far as the result is
concerned.
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