AERATION OF SOIL.
The interval between ploughing and sowing permits aeration. When the land is not thoroughly aerated the crop in often \ a; failuro, or comparitively so. This is j sometimes attributed to the season or the i unsuitability of the crop, whereas it is ! due to the cultivation. It is more pronounced on heavy land that is inclined to be wet or sour. If the air cannot pene- ; trate freely into the soil, says the Queens- , land Grazier and Farmer, it makes the j soil more or less unable to grow good crops. This may not arise from the want of plant food necessary for crops, "but because the plants require air to breathe as well as food to make them grow, bo also do nitrifying bacteria want air to be freely admitted into the soils before they multiplv in sufficient numbers and to do their share of work effectively. Land that is left with a hard crust on the surface until just previously to putting in a crop is placed at a decided disadvantage in the production of a crop compared with the same class of land that has been worked some time previous to sowing.
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Bibliographic details
New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18411, 29 May 1923, Page 10
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198AERATION OF SOIL. New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18411, 29 May 1923, Page 10
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