Arable land 63,600,000
Vineyards, 4,764,960
Woods, 15,931,850
Natural meadows, 5,464,800
Artificial meadows, 6,332,100
Lakes, marshes, wastes, 19,400,049
-----------
Total, 115,493,759
From the average of a number of statistical tables made by the Abbe
D'Expillyt and others, it appears that in 1777, the agriculture of
France was sufficient for the subsistence of its inhabitants, and
had a surplus to spare;[15] and though it be universally admitted
that her condition in this respect is not less prosperous _now_ than
it was _then_,[16] still it cannot be dissembled that her husbandry
has many defects.
[15] The products of agricultural labour, were, in these tables,
stated at 114,552,000 L. T. Those of manufacturing labour at
128,015,000.
[16] The effects of the revolution of 1789 on _agriculture_ are no
longer doubtful. The suppression of _tythes_--of the _exclusive
privilege_--of the _chase_--of every species of _corvee_ (labour
performed by tenants for landlords)--of _taxes_ or _rents_, and of
_rights_ of _commonage_--was among these effects; and if to these
we add the _division_ of the _great landed estates of the nobility
and clergy_, there can no longer be any scepticism on this point. No
truth is better established than the advantage of _small_ farms over
_great_, as far as the _public_ is concerned. The Roman latifundia
(military grants) destroyed Roman agriculture.
1. A supposed resemblance between the earth and animals, gave rise
to _fallows_; because men and horses required repose after _labour_,
it was supposed that after _cropping_, the earth also required it.
Faithful to this absurd analogy, the French landlord binds down his
tenent by lease, not to crop the soil more than _three_ years in
_four_, which in effect is to consign to barrenness or weeds, one
fourth of the whole arable land of France yearly!
2. There is not a sufficiently fixed, or steady proportion, between
_arable_ and _pasture_ land.--The production of grain is the great
object of culture--often with too little regard to the nature of the
soil, and generally without any to its improvement. "Where pasturage
is scanty, where natural meadows are bad, where artificial are rare,
and root husbandry little extended, cattle cannot be either numerous
or well conditioned; and as without these there can be no manure, so
without manure there can be no abundance."[17]
[17] Herbin's statistique Gen. de la France Vol. I. introduc.
3. The land is generally worked by _farmers, hired for that purpose,
or by renters on short leases_; which in neither case betters the
condition of the soil; the one having no interest in improvements,
and the other too small a one to justify any expense in making them.
4. A _good rotation system_, adapted to the soil and climate, is not
absolutely unknown, and may be found even in whole districts (as
in French Flanders) but much too rarely. We have seen _wheat_ and
_fallows_ alternately for years; and _wheat_, _rye_, _hemp_, and
_rye_, and many others equally ridiculous.
5. To the eye, more than one half of France is a common, without
fences of any kind, excepting garden or park walls. Can there be
order, economy and security, under such circumstances? Can the
_police_ and the _gens d'armes_ be sufficient substitutes?
[_Albany Argus._
(To be continued.)
_The Moral Plough Boy._
In that volume whose morality is as sound, as the religion, it
inculcates is celestial; and which is in fact an inexhaustible
source of human wisdom, as well as a pure and incorruptible fountain
of divine light; we are taught to "_despise not the day of small
things_."
How much better off than they are, would thousands of their
countrymen be at this moment, had this injunction never failed
of its proper effect upon their conduct! If they had constantly
cherished it in their recollection and carried it into practice in
their daily occupations. But to contemplate the past or the present
is needless, if it be not with a view to awaken the soul not only to
a proper train of reflection, but to a salutary system of practice
for the future.
If we had not "_despised the day of small things_," and sought
too eagerly after brilliant speculations and splendid fortunes,
thousands of us might now be blessed with ease and competence, and
still animated by a sober and useful spirit of industry, who are, on
the contrary, plunged into embarrasment, stripped of our property,
and paralyzed in our energies.
We began the world with fair prospects, and we thought, at the same
time with firm resolutions not to blast them by seeking too eagerly
after _fairer_ ones; but man is rarely contented with what is simply
good or bright; he must have something _better_ and _brighter_.
There is always some tree whose fruit is forbidden, or beyond his
reach, but of which he cannot rest easy till he has tasted. He
can never think of resting upon the clear declivity, whilst the
"cloud-capped" summit is above him, veiling something which he has
not seen, and which may be, as he is apt to imagine, a pleasing, a
valuable or a wonderful discovery.
Thus it is that we always reject the good within our grasp, in
the delusive hope of grasping something better beyond it; that we
lose sight of the content and happiness which are to-day within
our reach; and look to the morrow to bring forth that which will
satisfy our desires, and cause us to rejoice in our existence. But
the morrow comes, our anticipations are not realized, and we vainly
regret that we had not enjoyed the day before, as we might have
done, without trusting to a deceitful futurity.
We aim to inculcate moderation in the desire of wealth, or of
any other acquisition which is supposed to contribute to human
happiness, combined with a steady, industrious and persevering
attention to the means of obtaining what we desire. To this end, we
must not "_despise the day of small things_;" but must set out in
every undertaking with a determination to take advantage of the most
trivial, as well as the most important circumstance, calculated to
favour our designs. We must watch with the eyes of an _Argus_ for
Opportunity, never forgetting, that she is bald behind, and must
therefore be caught by the forelock, if caught at all. When once
she turns her back upon us, she is soon out of sight, and we vainly
attempt to overtake her. She mocks at our folly, and leaves us to
brood, in hopeless amazement, over our own blindness and imbecility.
But who are they that "_despise the day of small things_?" They
are too numerous for description in a brief essay; but we shall
point out a few, and leave the reader's imagination to enlarge the
catalogue.
The MECHANIC who puts off a small job, as unworthy of his attention,
because he happens to have a larger one on hand; without stopping
to reflect, that small streams are more numerous than large ones;
that the former continually supply the latter; and that by a steady
succession of small jobs, he may acquire a capital to execute large
ones upon his own account.
The MERCHANT who will sit behind his counter with a segar in his
mouth, and think it derogatory to his dignity to reply to a demand
for a shilling's worth of any thing. Such "_small things_" are too
insignificant for this man of smoke; and consequently when those who
call for them, and find themselves neglected, have occasion to make
a _large_ purchase, they go to him, who will not only lay down his
segar, but leave his dinner, if required to wait upon them in ever
so small a way.
The PHYSICIAN, who passes by the the poor man's door hardly stopping
to give a hasty prescription, although he never fails to loiter in
the sick rooms of the rich and the powerful, till his sycophancy
becomes as disgusting to the mind, as his medicine is nauseating to
the stomach of his patient.
The LAWYER who turns a deaf ear to an honest client with but _five_
dollars in his pocket; but is quick of hearing when accosted by a
party with a _fifty dollar bill_, and not over scrupulous either
about the justice of the cause.
The CLERGYMAN--and what shall we say of the Clergyman, who
"_despises the day of small things_;" who forsakes and forgets the
poor, but pious flock, which first cherished him, to gratify his
pride and ambition, and acquire those robes and riches which moths
may corrupt and thieves may steal; and who is so eager withal to
make converts, that he does not stop to be satisfied that conversion
is the offspring of conviction, forgetting how much joy there is in
Heaven over one sinner that truly repenteth; and that the hope of
the hypocrite shall perish for-ever!
The FARMER who clears more land than he can cultivate to advantage,
destroying the present and preventing the future growth of timber to
no purpose; who keeps his produce on hand, when he can get a good
and saving price, in hopes it may rise; who sells it at last for
less than he could have had at first; and who is not as grateful to
God for a scanty harvest, as he is for a plentiful one.
We might enlarge the catalogue of those, who, by "_despising the day
of small things_," never arrive at that of great ones; but we do
not wish to tire the reader with a tedious essay, when a light and
pleasant one is our aim.
There is, however, one precious delinquent, in whose soul we would
gladly awaken those moral energies which alone can save it from
eventual ruin; from the tortures of self condemnation, the contempt
of mankind, and the horrors of despair.
We mean the YOUNG STUDENT of GENIUS, who consumes the vigour of his
youth in the haunts of vice and infamy--who despises the minutia
of his profession, whatever it may be, and wantonly neglects his
daily studies for the _present_, in pursuit of pleasure, intending,
perhaps, to make great and rapid strides at a _future_ time--but
when that time arrives may find his former neglect and dissipation
have destroyed the energies of his mind, and left it like a sieve,
incapable of containing any thing but dregs! In this case the ruin
is indeed a melancholy one; for instead of being "led, through paths
of glory, to the grave," the stews and the state prison are too
often the pathways of such a youth to that closing scene; and his
_hic jacet_ may be found, if found at all, in the _Potter's field_,
that last receptacle of the dregs of humanity! Think of this, ye
giddy, ye thoughtless young men, who are squandering your precious
moments in idleness and vice, dishonouring yourselves, disgusting
your friends, disappointing the expectations of your country,
breaking the hearts of your fond parents, and bringing their "grey
hairs with sorrow to the grave!" How bitter will be your feelings,
when you are driven to reflect, as you finally must be, and perhaps
at the foot of the gallows, that by your folly and wickedness, you
have not only sealed your own ruin, but madly
"Steep'd a mother's couch in tears,
"And ting'd a father's glowing cheek with shame!"
Many of those giddy young men, to whom these remarks apply, may
perhaps sneer at the idea of being brought up at last, in their mad
career, by the arm of the public executioner. But let them turn, in
some hour of solitude, if such hours ever bless them with the sweets
of calm reflection, to the pages of the _Criminal Recorder_! They
will there find, that from GEORGE BARNWELL, down to JAMES HAMILTON,
those who have died upon the gallows have not always plunged at
once into the depths of depravity; but have gone on, step by step,
from slight deviations to serious ones, till they have lost all
sense of shame, and become rebels to God as well as man. In this
degraded state of their souls, they have not stopt at the brothel,
the cock-pit, or the gambling table; but urged by the demons of
hell, they have wantonly seized the dagger of assassination, and
bathed it in the blood of innocence! thus closing their criminal
career by a deed of desperation.
H. H. jr.
Mr. Nicholson's Prize Essay.
_On a Rotation of Crops, and the most profitable mode of
collecting, preserving, and applying Manures._
(Communicated to the Albany County Agricultural Society.)
[CONTINUED.]
In the spring of the third year, we propose to sow the ground with
barley, after two or three ploughings--seed, two and a half bushels
to the acre. At the same time also, give the ground at least 12
pounds of red clover seed to the acre, which may be carefully mixed
with the barley, and sown together. Harrow the ground before sowing,
and harrow in the seed, after it has been prepared in the manner
before directed; then, if the farmer is in possession of the roller,
let this be passed over the ground, particularly if it be somewhat
dry; for, in such case, barley, being covered with a husk, requires
a close envelopement with earth, in order that the progress of its
germination be not either partially or wholly retarded. Next spring
give the ground a top dressing of gypsum, of from one to two bushels
to the acre, as circumstances may seem to require.--Two clover
crops are to be expected this season. The next, either one or two
may be taken, according to the climate, but usually one only in
more northerly regions; and in this case let the second growth be
laid prostrate, by the roller passing over it in the same direction
in which the plough is to follow, in order that the growth may be
carefully turned under, which will form an excellent lay for winter
wheat, or for rye, if the climate is not adapted to the growth of
the former crop. In suitable climates, wheat will succeed on a good
clover lay even on light sandy lands. It is believed, however,
that the species of wheat which is considerably cultivated in
Pennsylvania, called spelt, (_triticum spelta_) may be successfully
cultivated in any part of the northern states where wheat of the
common sorts do not flourish.--When the sward has thus been turned
under, let the surface be levelled by running the harrow lightly
over it, in the same direction in which the plough runs, and then
cover the seed with the harrow, run in a similar direction. Let the
seed wheat be prepared in the manner before described, and let it
be free from any mixture of rye, or the seeds of cockle, or other
weeds. Next spring give the ground another top dressing of gypsum,
in order that a growth of white clover may rise after harvest, as
this will afford considerable fall feed, and a fresh sward to be
turned under in the latter part of the fall, the effect of which
will be explained when speaking of manures, &c.
Thus our rotation requires six seasons for its completion, and
is composed of six or more different and successive crops. In
exhibiting our plan, we intend it merely as an outline of what
we deem at least one of the best and most profitable systems
of culture that can be pursued in good arable lands, where all
obstructions to the most complete culture have been removed.--Other
courses may probably be devised which may be as good, but we feel
confident there can be none better. We consider this rotation
as comprehending a sufficient variety of crops for every purpose
of affording the land rest by changes; and although a course of
rotation might be made to include a greater variety of crops,
still the profits of them in the aggregate, would probably be less
than in the plan we propose. We insist much on the culture of root
crops for the greatest possible profits. In some instances the
growths of roots and vines we propose, as well as of the grain
crops, might be substituted for others, and sometimes, for the sake
of further variety of growths, particularly of roots, it might
be advisable; all this must, however, depend on the soil, and on
other circumstances. If the soil be rich and deep, perhaps the
mangel wurzel, should have a preference to the common turnip, and
the pumpkin, in the first years crop, and perhaps in such soil the
cabbage culture should sometimes come in for a share.
We should hardly advise that crops of carrots or of parsnips should
ever enter the list of a general rotation of crops, as they require
peculiar soils, and uncommon preparation. They are very valuable
crops for particular purposes, but their uses for feeding and
fatting cattle seem to be in a great measure superseded by the less
expensive culture of the crops before-mentioned. There are, however
some mellow fertile soils, of sandy texture, where these roots,
particularly carrots, may be cultivated with great advantage. A very
serious objection to the culture of parsnips is, that in the soils
most suitable for them they extend so deeply that their extraction
from the earth is a matter of no small difficulty.
In recommending the alternate culture of the pumpkin with the corn
crop, we have been influenced by two considerations; firstly, from
an account we have lately seen of a trial made of the culture of
the large sort of pumpkin by itself, in which at the rate of 25
tons to the acre were raised; and, secondly we are of opinion that
in cultivating the crop in the way we propose, nearly as great a
product may be obtained as if the ground were planted entirely
with this crop.--Growing in drills by itself it will not impede
the growth of the corn, nor do we conceive that this crop will be
injured by the extension of the pumpkin vines over the ground;
whereas if the two crops were planted together in the same hills, or
drills, as is commonly practised, the growth of the one must, in a
great measure, serve to rob the other of its due share of nutriment.
The large sort of pumpkin, to which we have reference, has been
raised of the weight of upwards of 150 pounds, but it is probably
less nutritious, because less sweet, than pumpkins of the common
sorts. Another large sort, which we have seen exhibited in this
county, of more than four feet in length, is probably entitled to a
preference for culture, as it appears to be as sweet as pumpkins of
the smaller kinds.
In selecting seed for the pumpkin crop, take such plants as bear the
greatest weight of pumpkins, and from the largest of these let the
seed be preserved.
We have next to speak of the rotations proper for clayey lands,
or those which have more or less alumin in their composition.
Lands of this description are various, as well in regard to their
natural fertility, as to their being more or less inclined to
a superabundance of moisture. Some are naturally too wet for
cultivating even grain crops with success, and should therefore
be kept for mowing and grazing lands. Some again may be merely
too wet for crops of winter grain, and in such case spring crops
should be substituted, while at the same time the lands should be
more applied to the business of the dairy, and of the grazier. In
the mean time, let the possessor of lands which are naturally
too wet, proceed to laying at least a part of them dry, by hollow
drains; and then by making his barn dung principally into heaps
of compost, in which lime and sand shall be considerably used as
additional ingredients, and applying such compost manure to the
drilled crops before-mentioned, and in the manner before directed,
he will find no difficulty whatever in pursuing the course of crops
we have recommended, nor of raising them of luxuriant growth. Where
clayey lands are naturally dry enough for winter crops, we advise
to a similar course of crops, with the manure prepared and used in
a similar manner. In all stiff soils, however, an important point
in husbandry, is to keep the ground, while under a course of crops,
in a mellow crumbly state; and for this purpose nothing is more
conducive than frequent deep ploughings, and raising the ground into
high narrow ridges, as well to lie in that state during winter, as
for the culture of all the drilled crops in particular. The ridges
are to be formed by four gathering furrows, and in cleaving the
ridges down new ones are formed with the middle or highest part
of each where the last furrows were of the former ridges. When,
therefore, the manure is to be used for the drilled crop, it is to
be laid in the furrows, between the ridges, and then covered over
with two gathering furrows run on each side, and thus the beds or
ridges for the crop prepared.
If, however, it should still be found that some clays, even with
this management for the purpose of ameliorating them, should still
be found unsuitable for Indian corn, and for the turnip and ruta
baga crops, we can only advise that, for the former, the Windsor
bean, and for the two latter the mangle wurzel and the cabbage crop,
be made substitutes. The Windsor bean is considerably cultivated
in the clay lands of Great Britain; and Mr. Deane, in his Farmer's
Dictionary, says its growth on such lands in this country is
luxuriant. Perhaps in place of this species of the bean, another,
which is cultivated in the southern states, and is there called the
cow pea, should be prefered.
It should be further observed, that gypsum, when applied as a top
dressing to clay lands, particularly those which are too wet,
has but very little effect; but when they are laid dry by hollow
drains, and thrown into ridges as before-mentioned, the effect of
this manure upon them is nearly the same as in other dry arable
lands.--And as we conceive it essentially necessary that all clay
lands which are to be cultivated for spring crops, as well as all
other soils which are naturally too wet, should lie in ridges during
the winter, we advise that, at the beginning of the rotation we have
mentioned, such lands have a second ploughing in the fall, for the
purpose of being laid in such ridges. When thus laid they are easily
reduced to a mellow state in the spring; but if this be neglected,
they will usually be found, more or less, in hard baked clods, a
state very unfit for good cultivation.
In Great Britain it is found essentially requisite that clay lands
should be effectually summer fallowed as often as every sixth year;
as well for the purpose of extirpating growths of weeds, as for
mellowing the soil, and rendering it more lively. A fallowing there
is performed by many repeated ploughings and harrowings during the
summer. But it should be remembered that the climate of that country
is very different from this. Their wheat harvest is in autumn, their
summers being wet and cool. Here we have time after the harvest is
over to cleanse and enliven the soil by repeated ploughings and
harrowings.
On hard gravelly lands, which are unfit for any crops of roots,
except perhaps potatoes, no very extensive rotation can be had
to advantage without plentiful manuring. Gypsum has a powerful
effect on such lands, and with the aid of this manure alone even
the poorest of gravels may be made to yield good crops of buckwheat
and of red clover; and on a lay of this latter crop turned under,
a tolerable good crop of rye may be had. St. Foin, and some other
tap rooted grasses, flourish in such soils better than might be
expected. Gravelly lands require very deep and frequent ploughings,
in order to make them sufficiently retentive of moisture. They are
usually much assisted by compost manures where clay, mud, upland
marl, &c. form a considerable share of the ingredients. But as there
are different degrees of fertility in gravelly lands, according
to the nature of the gravel, and its greater or less predominance
in the soil, we can lay down no definite course of crops that in
all cases would be found most advisable. Say, however, that with
effectual deep ploughings, and plenty of suitable manure for the
drills, the first crop shall be Indian corn, intermixed with the
potato and the pumpkin growths, as before-mentioned; next spring,
oats, or barley, if the ground will answer for this crop. As soon
as this crop comes off, turn the stubble under, and harrow in
buckwheat for a green dressing, in the manner mentioned in treating
of manures, and on this growth, turned under, sow rye, if the ground
is too gravelly for wheat. Sow the clover seed the next spring, in
the quantity before-mentioned, and then harrow the ground, which
will serve the purpose of covering the seed, and also of assisting
the growth of the crop of wheat, or rye, as the case may be. The
advantage derived from harrowing these crops in the spring has been
well ascertained by experiment. After the second year's growth of
clover has been fed or mowed off, turn over the ground in the fall
to commence the rotation anew.
When we speak of gravelly lands, we do not mean to include those
which are, properly speaking gravelly loams; for soils of this
description are generally well fitted for the rotation first
mentioned. By gravelly lands we mean those where gravel is mostly
predominant, as we call those lands sandy where silex forms the
greatest proportion of the soil, and of these something is now to be
said.
As a specimen of what may be called light sandy lands we will refer
to much of those lying between Albany and Schenectady. These, like
the gravelly lands just mentioned, are not, in their natural state,
calculated for the production of many different crops in perfection,
nor indeed for any without manure. With the aid of gypsum alone,
however, good crops of peas, and of buckwheat, may be had on most
of these lands, tolerable of red clover, and on the lay of clover
turned under, middling crops of rye may be had. Probably, with this
manure, valuable crops of pumpkins might be raised on them. Lands
of this description have, however, very essential properties, which
gravelly lands do not possess; they are much easier cultivated than
the harder soils, and, in proportion to their natural fertility,
no lands are better adapted for root crops of almost every sort,
or for the grasses whose roots extend deep into the earth, among
which are clover of different kinds, St. Foin, Lucerne, &c.--Such
lands are least adapted for crops of wheat and Indian corn; but when
sufficiently manured with clay, or upland marle, which is better,
they will yield tolerable crops of the latter, and also of the
former, when raised on a lay of red clover.
Where little else than the contents of the barn yard and gypsum
can be had for manuring sandy lands of the above description,
the common turnip and ruta baga culture would not, perhaps, be
advisable, but the rotation should be something like the following:
First year, potatoes and pumpkins in alternate drills, manured and
treated as before described; second, peas, soaked in the solution
before-mentioned, and rolled in gypsum before sowing, with a top
dressing of that manure; third, buckwheat, treated in the same
manner, and clover seed sown with the crop; third and fourth,
clover, with a top dressing of gypsum each spring; fifth, rye, on
the clover turned under, as before described, which completes the
course.
But where upland marle, or even clay, can be had, for the purpose
of forming compost manures with the barn dung and the addition of
some lime, as is described under manures, &c. we should advise to
the rotation first described, or something similar, in which the
root crops should form a prominent part; and in such case, let
the manure be plentifully applied to the drilled crops. At first,
perhaps, some of the crops would not be so abundant; but under this
management the soil would be constantly improving, and of course the
crops increasing. At first, perhaps, rye should be substituted for
the wheat crop, but each addition to the soil of the caluminous and
calcarious matter, of which the compost is principally composed,
would render the land better adapted for grain crops of every
description.
It is a matter of the first importance to the cultivator to possess
an adequate knowledge of the different substances which may be used
with advantage for fertilizing his land, of the different soils to
which such substances are best adapted, of the proper quantities
to be used, and of the most advantageous time and manner of their
application. There is but little even of the richest earths that
will not become exhausted with constant cropping without manure; and
soils are seldom so sterile, but that with a proper application of
suitable manures to them, they may be made the residence of plenty.
Manures are of different kinds: of animal, of vegetable, of fossil,
and of mixed; of each of which notice will be taken in their order.
The flesh of animals is an excellent manure for all soils, and
is used to a considerable extent on the sea coast, where fish
are caught in plenty. It is believed that flesh is used to most
advantage in composts, and the same may be observed with more
certainty in regard to the use of the blood. The shavings of the
horney substances of animals, have very desirable effects as a
manure, in dry soil, by enduing such with a greater power to retain
moisture: and the same may also be observed of the hair and wool.
The bones, when calcined, are also valuable, as they are principally
phosphate of lime. The miasma, produced by the putrefaction of
the flesh and blood of animals, is also food for plants, or at
least its presence assists their growth. The urine is a fertilizer
principally by reason of the salt it contains, and probably also by
its producing miasma.
When animals die, it is usual to let them lie above ground, to the
annoyance of the public; but, if covered with earth, this together
with the flesh, &c. of the animal, would be converted into good
manure.
Of vegetable substances, it may be generally observed, that almost
every sort of vegetable, not of woody texture, buried in the soil
while green, is more or less efficacious as a manure; and that many
sorts of these, when turned under where they grew, and while in a
green state, will add much more fertility to the soil than their
growth extracted from it; but that the same growth, when suffered
to ripen on the ground, and then turned under, after the exhaustion
of its juices, will not generally repay the soil the nutriment it
extracted from it while growing. It would seem that the ripening
of plants is the principal cause of the exhaustion of soils, and,
for this reason, green dressings, that is, ploughing of green crops
under, has been found advantageous in enriching lands. Where green
dressings are resorted to, as a manure, such growth should be
selected for the purpose as are cheap in the article of seed, and at
the same time quick and bulky in their growths. Buckwheat has been
much used for the purpose, though perhaps some other plants should
be preferred. The growth should be turned under when in blossom;
and, in order that this be done effectually, it should be laid
prostrate, by running the roller over it, in the same direction in
which the plough is to follow; after which, the ground should not be
stirred again till this manure has sufficiently rotted. Generally,
we think it would be most advisable to sow on the lay or furrow, by
which the green crop is turned under.
There may be some instances where manuring with green dressings may
be advisable, particularly where it can be done without preventing
the growth of any intervening crop: Where this is not practicable,
we should hardly advise to this method of manuring, unless in
cases where other manures were not to be obtained. One case we
will however mention, where a green dressing might be given to
advantage. Suppose, for instance, a crop of rye, oats, or barley,
harvested, and the ground cleared of the crop by the 20th of July;
in that case, let the stubble be immediately turned under, and the
ground harrowed in with buckwheat; by the 20th of September this
growth would be fit to be turned under, when a crop of wheat might
be sown on the lay. It should be understood, that rye is one of the
best crops to precede a crop of wheat, or to follow it. In the same
manner, therefore, the crop for a green dressing may be raised in
the wheat stubble turned under, and the green crop turned under for
a crop of rye.
But the contents of the barn-yard, and the excrements of cattle, are
the principal sources of manure of the vegetable kind; and of these
it is necessary to treat particularly, as well of the qualities of
the different sorts, as of their most advantageous applications to
soils. The sorts of dung or excrement to be noticed, are those of
horses, neat cattle, sheep, and swine. The dung of swine is most
valuable, where properly applied; that of sheep is the next; that of
cows ranges in the third degree, and that of horses in the fourth.
The dung of the latter, if suffered to lie in a heap till it becomes
thoroughly heated, assumes a white, or mouldy colour, and is then
of but little value. It is of a warm nature, and is best adapted
for being well buried in moist or clayey soils; cow dung on the
contrary, is most suitable for dry soils; sheep dung answers best
on the soils for which that of horses is best suited, but is very
valuable for almost any soil. Hog dung should only be applied to dry
arable lands, and is most powerful in those of a sandy or gravelly
nature. Dung, of all sorts, loses much of its valuable qualities by
exposure to frequent rains, particularly when lying at but little
depth over a considerable surface. Its good qualities are best
preserved by lying in large heaps, and if under cover so much the
better. The stercorary is the most effectual method for preserving
barn dung, and it is believed that every farmer will find his money
well expended in the erection of this receptacle for the contents
of that part of his barn-yard, which is not used in the spring.
The stercorary may serve for a sheep fold during winter, and will
thus answer a two fold purpose. It may be, for instance, 40 feet
in length, 16 in breadth, and of suitable height. The floor is to
be made of a layer of clay, with the surface smoothly paved with
small stones, and highest in the middle, so that the juices of the
dung may run off to the sides, where a gutter receives this liquid,
and carried it into a reservoir, sunk at one end, into which a pump
is to be fixed to raise the liquid and throw it back over the heap.
The floor, gutter, and reservoir, are on a plan similar to those
of a cider press. The liquid that runs from the heap is the most
valuable part, and should never be lost: this plan is therefore
calculated to preserve it; and, for the purpose of absorbing the
whole of it, any dry vegetable matter, or rich earth, may be laid
over the heap, and this liquid thrown on that, which will serve to
convert the whole into good manure. The juices and the soluble and
gaseous parts of the excrements of cattle, together with the stale,
are what principally affords nutriment for growing plants; and every
means by which these can be saved, by their being absorbed in other
substances, of rich earthy or vegetable matter, would seem to be
well worthy of attention. We will next designate what is usually
considered the methods most proper for the application of dung.
Where lands are in grasses of the fibrous rooted kinds, it is the
generally received opinion of the best cultivators, that barn dung,
as well as every other kind, should be applied as a top dressing,
that is, by spreading it on the surface; but that for tap rooted
grasses, or those whose roots extend deeply, as well as for all
grain and root crops, this manure should be buried in the soil, at
such depths as are best suited to the nature of the roots of the
plants to be cultivated. The operation of barn dung, and of all
vegetable and animal substances used in manure, seems to be this:
If laid at a certain depth beneath the surface of the soil, in the
progress of their decomposition their soluble parts pass into the
form of gas, or vapour, and of course rise to the surface, and in
their ascent are more or less absorbed by the roots of the plants;
on the contrary, if these manures be laid on the surface, these
soluble parts, in the progress of decomposition, never become
aeriform, but are washed downwards, in their liquid state, where
they are in like manner absorbed by the roots of the plants. This
is probably as correct an explanation as can be given of the effect
of these manures. It is well known, that ground long used as a
graveyard, becomes very fertile, notwithstanding the substances
which are the cause of such fertility, are laid at a very great
depth.
It has been held by some English writers that barn dung should
be well rotted previous to its application as a manure, but this
opinion is rejected by Sir Humphrey Davy, one of the most scientific
agriculturists of Great Britain, and also by Arthur Young, Esq. Mr.
Davy contends that this manure may in most instances be as well
applied fresh as in any other way, by its being laid at a proper
depth beneath the surface, and that in scarcely any instance it
is advisable that it should undergo more than the first stage of
decomposition before it is used. When well rotted it is, however,
more efficacious for a single crop, but its use is of much shorter
duration. It seems, also, to be generally agreed that using this
manure for drill crops, burying it at a good depth, and raising the
plants over the dung thus buried, is the best possible way in which
it can be used. We lately saw an account published of upwards of
100 bushels of Indian corn to the acre being raised by this mode of
culture. The success of Mr. Cobbett, and others, in raising great
crops of ruta baga by this method of using this manure, seems to
demonstrate its utility, if evidence was wanting further than what
appears in English publications on the subject.
The plan that we would therefore recommend, is, to apply the fresh
barn dung to all drill crops which are to be put in the ground in
the spring, and for these we refer to what has been said under
rotation of crops. The shortest dung should be used for these
purposes, except for potatoes, and it should, as far as practicable,
be applied to the soils best adapted for each kind of dung, as has
before been mentioned. The longer or more strawey parts of the dung
we should advise to be laid in the stercorary, if this building has
been provided, or else somewhere under cover; or if no cover can
be afforded, let it be thrown into a heap about 3 or 4 feet high;
and wherever it be laid let it be stirred up from the bottom in the
course of about five or six weeks after it has thus been heaped or
otherwise stored away, after which it will soon be found well fitted
for being used for the crop of ruta baga. It is also advisable to
cover the heap with a layer of good earth, which will serve to
absorb and retain much of the steam or gaseous matter that rises
from the heap, and when saturated with this, and mixed with the mass
of dung, will be found a valuable addition.
(To be continued.)