smaller and fit closer together.

It is for this reason that strong loams and clay soils absorb and hold
three times as much water as sandy soils do, while peaty or humus
soils absorb a still larger proportion.

The reason why crops burn up so quickly on sandy soils during dry
seasons is because of their weak power to hold water.

The clay and humus soils carry crops through dry weather better
because of their power to hold moisture and to absorb or soak up
moisture from below. It is for this reason also that clay and peaty
soils more often need draining than sandy soils.

When rain falls on a sandy soil it enters readily, but it is apt to
pass rapidly down and be, to a great extent, lost in the subsoil, for
the sand has not sufficient power to hold much of it.

When rain falls on a clay soil it enters less readily because of the
closeness of the particles, and during long rains or heavy showers
some of the water may run off the surface. If the surface has been
recently broken and softened with the plow or cultivator the rain
enters more readily. What does enter is held and is not allowed to run
through as in the case of the sand.

Humus soil absorbs the rain as readily as the sand and holds it with a
firmer grip than clay.

This fact gives us a hint as to how we may improve the sand and clay.

Organic matter mixed with these soils by applying manures or plowing
under green crops will cause the sand to hold the rain better and the
clay to absorb it more readily.

CHAPTER V

FORMS OF SOIL WATER

Water which comes to the soil and is absorbed exists in the soil
principally in two forms: Free water and capillary water.

FREE WATER

Free water is that form of water which fills our wells, is found in
the bottoms of holes dug in the ground during wet seasons and is often
found standing on the surface of the soil after heavy or long
continued rains. It is sometimes called ground water or standing water
and flows under the influence of gravity.

Is free water good for the roots of farm plants? If we remember how
the root takes its food and moisture, namely through the delicate root
hairs; and also remember the experiment which showed us that roots
need air, we can readily see that free water would give the root hairs
enough moisture, but it would at the same time drown them by cutting
off the air. Therefore free water is not directly useful to the roots
of house plants or farm plants, excepting such