| If
the garden can be plowed
in the fall, by all means have it done. If it is in sod, it must be
done
at that time if you want good results to be secured for the following
season.
In this latter case, plow a shallow furrow four to six inches deep and
turning flat, as early as possible in the fall, turning under a coating
of manure, or dressing of lime, and then going over it with a
smoothing-harrow
or the short blades, to fill in all crevices. The object of the plowing
is to get the sods rotted thoroughly before the following spring; then
apply manure and plow deeply, six to twelve inches, according to the
soil.
Where
the old garden is to
be plowed up, if there has not been time to get in one of the cover
crops
suggested, plow as late as possible, and in ridges.
If
the soil is light and
sandy, fall plowing will not be advisable. Instead, in the beginning of
the spring work put on the manure and plow at once.
If
a soil suffer from shortage
of rainfall, the labor of double plowing will be well repaid. If that
is
the case, the ground should be plowed once, deeply, before the manure
is
spread on, and then cross-plowed just sufficiently to turn the manure
well
under--say five or six inches.
On
stiff lands, and especially
for root crops, it will pay if possible to have the sub-soil plow
follow
the regular plow. This is, of course, for thoroughly rotted and fined
manure;
if coarse, it had better be put under at one plowing, making the best
of
a handicap.
NOTE:
If you have arranged
to have your garden plowed by someone else, be on hand to see that no
shirking
is done, by taking furrows wider than the plow can turn completely; it
is possible to "cut and cover" so that the surface of a piece will look
well enough, when in reality it is little better than half plowed.
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