| Show STORAGE OF SOIL MOISTURE several factors are cited in bulletin issued by the nebraska expert experiment station the nebraska experiment station has just recently issued a bulletin on the storage and use of soil mois mols i lure this bulletin la is a brief discussion ot of work done at the north platte plathe substation relative to the storage an and use of soil moisture it treats of 0 the possibilities of storing water in the toll during certain periods to be used later in conjunction with the rainfall several of the factors influencing the storage of water in the soil are discussed summer tillage has been the most effective method of storing water but even by this method only from 10 to 33 per cent of the seasonal rainfall rain rainfall fali has been stored in the soil A discus slon elon of the amount of water rethink retained by summer tillage during each of the past several years shows that the tha amount of water stored varies with the amount and distribution of the rainfall during the period covered by the summer tillage it has been found that water stored in the tha soil before seeding ceding is a safeguard against drought but it has not been found possible to acore enough water in the soil before seeding to mature a crop without sub sequent rains disking small grain stubble has proved beneficial by preventing weed crowth whenever there has hag been sut suf lelent moisture in the soil at harvest time to produce a crop of weeda or where rains have come early enough 0 o start weed growth plowing Plo has been better than disk ng in that it more moie thoroughly kills ul 01 weed growth and in the case of beavy rains plowed land will abrora nore core water than disked land because t Is more thoroughly stirred artificial mulches or of straw or hay bay lave jave proved more effective than soil mulches in absorbing and retaining re water from rains spring wheat oats barley and corn teed feed to an average depth of tour four feet in this soil winter wheat feeds to a depth of 0 six or seven feet alfalfa and grasses use water from greater depths weeds are the greatest agency tor for the loss of water from the soil preventing weed growth has been more important from the standpoint of storing water in the soil than cultivating the soil to produce any kind of 0 a mulch |
