The Farm

Farmers are generally united in ;he opinión that, tor niany obvious reasons, breaking up sward ground should be performed in the Fall. The treather is cool, the team is at leisure, the work of Spring is forwarded. and the soil becomes disintegrated during the Winter months. Other plowing is done at the convenience of the farmer and in conformity with the pesuliaritiea of the season, Spring plowing extending over the months o" April and May, with generally the laster part of March and the earlier part of June, according to the latitude. I5ut this nüe may be invariably set down as correct - never plow for any erop, on any land or for any pretence, wlienthe soil is not sufficiently dry to crumble over loosely as it falls from the board. ïhe importance of having asurncient team for plowing, i .prclitlly in ï.rcMkind. is i matter that should receive more attention than it generally gets. Team enoughto draw the plow through strongly and ttrra a good f urrow, is one of the essentials in doing good work ; and an extra yoke of oxen, more especially in a breakingup team, has increased the work accomplisbed from an acre and a half to two acres a day - a gain of fully thirly-three and a third per cent. with an lacrease in expense of, possibly, not inore than fifteen per cent. The depth of plowing- and here our emarks are to be understood as havng reference to breaking-up as weü as o spring plowing for erain or hoed .rOpg_is a matter which rests entirely vith the farmer, and one which should )e governedby circumstancesand vary vith the character of the soil and the :rop to be grown upon the land. A ;ough witch-grass sod, taken up to be nanured and after a few years laid lown again, should be plowed suftiiiently deep to thoroughly cover the fertilizers applied to the land, without ïigturMng the inverted sod. Where plowing is done in the spring to cover a, light coat of manure spread on the iurface, and the only object being to cover the manure, it should be plowed as shallow as may be consistent with good work ; say not over four inches. Lu üidinary field practice, on average soils, seven inches may be regarded as about a fair depth; but in old fields, the top of whose subsoils has been rendered lirm and solid by the plowings and trampings of flfty or a Ired years. into a crust as hard as a itone, the plow should be put down to mch a depth as will allow it to crush ;his and destroy the impervious barriera, thus separating the lower from ;he upper soil. But this cold subsoil must not be turned vip in too great a juantity to be mingled with the upper soil, at one plowing. It must be done grsdually, being loosened befoie it is fully incorporated with the surface soil. or injurious results will follow. The oíd idea of deep plowing for all oVops and conditions of soil, and all seasons of the year, has long ago been disearded, as it' justly deserved to be. Deep plowing under proper conditions is sod practice, but done without judgment is a decided injury. Some years ago it was asserted on good authority that the average depth of plowinjts in the State of Xew York was only f our and a half inches ! It surely is not much more now,' and we doubt if it is any more than that tlnoughout New England generally. And vet what a loss in plowing only four and a hülf inches deep! Untold treasures of fertilitv lie in all soils below this depth, and it is only necessary to make them avdilable to the action of the elements by deeper plowing and loosening of the soil, to add to the present amount of plant food in very large amount.