HINTS ON PLOUGHING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LI, Issue 15548, 4 March 1914, Page 14

HINTS ON PLOUGHING.

As the spade is to the gardener, so is the plough to the farmer, says Mr. W. Street, in the Canterbury Agricultural College Magazine. The plough is, therefore, merely an agricultural implement used by the farmer for turning over large areas of land in a short space of time, bringing up and exposing fresh soil to the weathering action of rain, frost etc., thus improving it in fertility and texture. More depends upon the quality of the ploughing than most fanners are aware of, for as ii .Mle they think that good after-cultivation will cover up the defects of bad ploughing. But it is well know#i that uneven ploughing shows up clearly in the succeeding crop," for there is a marked difference in the crop obtained off half a paddock ploughed at 6iin compared •with that off the other half ploughed at 4£in. Straight ploughing is better than crooked, for in taking a bend the plough is pulled away from its work and cannot pack the furrows as it should, the horses pulling one way and the plough tending to go the other. This leaves a, badly packed furrow bottom which no amount of cultivation can properly remedy. It is therefore important that ploughing should be straight, i evenly packed, .and of a uniform depth. It must not be inferred from thi3 that all straight ploughing is good ploughing. Far from it. Contractors, if you do not watch them, will use a " false cut," as this is easier on the horses, -and to the inexperienced looks as if it were ploughed to the true depth. By " false cut ' if meant an upward tilt on the wing of tlw share, which allows the plough to work at a depth of say 3in at the coulter cut but only about 3in at the wing of the share. This is one of the worst forms of ploughing ae far as the farmer is concerned, aa it leaves the bottom in ridges which no amount of cultivation will break down. Contractors will also plough as wide as they can, since by this means they cover the ground more quickly.

r f;;y»lue of Ploughing Matches. Ploughing matches should be encouraged by all farmers, as they induce competition amongst their ploughmen, and this is naturally to the farmers' benefit. Many persons are prejudiced against them cm the* ground that they encourage false cut, but nowadays false cut is allowed in championship classes only. • The use of the digger plough should bo more encouraged than it is. It is neglected somewhat because the finished ploughing has not a good appearance, since the furrows do not lie in nice ridges. , In this case the furrow is turned through a complete semi-circle, while the ordinary plough turns its furrow through only onethird of a circle. The disc plough lias its use, but too many farmers are making the mistake of replacing their double furrows with disc ploughs. They do not turn the ground over properly, and the furrows are left with uneven bottoms. If the ground is clear of weeds the disc plough makes a fairly good job, but if the surface is dirty it will remain dirty, whereas in the hands of a good ploughman there is no better weed killer than the ordinary double furrow. In twitchy land, also, the disc plough is absolutely useless. The subsoil plough is a very good implement. It is far better to plough shallow, using the subsoiler, and thus loosen the subsoil than to plough excessively deep, and bring the undesirable sour soil to the surface. The subsoiler is also useful for breaking a " pan." •■ A good ploughman is also a good horseman. Useful Hints. In yoking up first throw out the reins, for many accidents occur from neglect of this. In four and six-horse teams first yoke up the leaders, then the others. See that the chains are of even length. The comfort of the horses should be kept in mind and the mane pulled from under the collar and the forelock adjusted over the brow-band. In ploughing hard land lengthen the draught chain and use longpointed shares. In soft land shorten the draught chain and use short-nosed shares. As regards the use of steel or cast shares, steel shares need a great deal of attention, and are always being taken to the blacksmith. Taking them all-round, cast shares are better in the long run. SkeithH in ordinary ground should be set with the axle just back from the point of the hhare and the depth regulated to about jin above the share. For a man who can use the fixed skeith it is better than the swivel, though for stony land and easy setting the latter is preferable, 'the plough should tuii entirely on its own wheels, for if the skeiths are set too low they act as rollers and the plough tends to run out. In setting the skeith for ordinary ground a iin cut should be shown towards the land for a lOin skeith, j but no hard and fast rule can be laid i down, as no two ploughs work the same. 'Die front skeith should be set a little more to the land than the back in order to keep the plough into its work and to keep undue strain off the back wheel. In cross ploughing or in twitchy land the skeith should be set well forward and below the bottom of the share. This cute the turf clean through and prevents clogging. In hard land, on the contrary, the skeiths should be brought back and shallowed to prevent them acting as rollers and lifting the plough out. The front and back wheels are used for levelling the plough and not for regulating the depth. If " false cut" is wanted, drop the front and back wheels or use shares with a specially tilted wing. The back wheel is the most important wheel on the plough, keeping the plough to its work, and also regulating the depth and levelling. If it is set too high, then the worst possible kind of ploughing is produced. Taking a 12in furrow, you should plough two acres per furrow per day, or four acrej per day with a double-furrow plough, provided ; .t is right going. At this rate a three-furrow plough should turn over six acres a day with light going. 'To do two acres per furrow you must travel 16$ miles a day, and to make up for feediug, etc., 18 miles a day are required.