Of the actual state of Agriculture in Europe.
8. _Holland_, though essentially commercial has, from causes rarely
occurring, become also highly agricultural. To the descendants of
Dutchmen, the following description of her industry, in this respect,
cannot but be acceptable. It is from the pen of an excellent judge and
faithful narrator.[1]
[1] M. Yoarst, professor of agriculture at Elfort. See his introductory
address to his class, in 1806.
"Their rotation of crops, always begins with the culture either of some
leguminous plant or profitable root, and generally with the potato, as
the best preparative of the ground. Whatever may be the grain which
follows, whether wheat, rye, &c. &c. it is generally sown with _red
clover_; and where it is not, the stubble is ploughed in immediately
after harvest, and a crop of turnips taken and either consumed on
the ground or housed for the winter. A single department (that of
Zealand) obtains by the culture of madder alone, an annual profit
of six millions of florins; while that of Brabant boasts its twenty
thousand bee-hives; in a word, this commendable nation, upon an extent
of surface not exceeding seventeen hundred square leagues, (the greater
part of which has been redeemed from the ocean) counts two hundred and
forty-three thousand horses, seven hundred and sixty thousand horn
cattle, about a million of sheep, from ten to twelve thousand goats,
four hundred and eighty-nine thousand hogs, and about three millions of
poultry, of every species. Their stock of manure is necessarily great,
and is both well understood and well managed."
9. The same causes, physical and moral, operate against the existence
of a productive agriculture in _Denmark_ and _Sweden_--severity of
climate, poverty of soil, and vassalage of tenants.[2]--Their resources
are also alike, and exist principally in manufactures and commerce, and
in mines, forests and fisheries. The former boasts fine pasturage and
cattle, in Holstein.
[2] To give to despotism the air of freedom, the _serfs of the crown_
were liberated at the revolution--but the example was neither approved
nor followed.
10. Under the common name of Germany, we include Prussia, Saxony,
Austria, Wurtemburg, and Bavaria, and shall say a few words of each,
calculated to give a general idea of their husbandry. It was not to be
expected that the great Frederick of _Prussia_ (so devoted to national
glory and strength) would disregard the interest of agriculture;
and the less so, as in theory he considered it "_Les mamelles de
l'elat_." We accordingly find him employed in draining marshes of
great extent,[3] in filling them with industrious colonists, and in
converting barren sands into fertile fields, by placing his capital in
the midst of them. But amongst these good works, he forgot that the
_hands of the labourer, to be efficient, must be free_; he found the
peasants slaves, and left them such.
[3] In the _Dollart_ what was lost by the sea was regained, and the
marshes on the _Netz_ and the _Warth_ at _Friedburg_ and in _Pomerania_
were drained, and the country rendered habitable.
The _Saxon_ peasant, on the other hand is _free_ and protected by the
law; he holds his farm on lease, which he sells or transmits to his
children at will: and _this_ is the principal cause of the flourishing
state of Saxon agriculture. In Lusatia, a different legislation
produces different effects; but for some years past, the government and
great proprietors have concurred in changing the _vassalage_ of the
peasants into a _mild_ and _salutary dependence_. Saxony is remarkable
for its grain products, and Lusatia for its stock--the latter counts
four hundred thousand head of sheep of the merino race.
Geographers give to _Austria_ and her dependencies 1965 leagues in
circumference. In a surface like this, there is necessarily a great
variety, as well of climate as of soil; but in general, both are
favourable to agriculture. "In the districts of the Inn, of Lower
Stira, of Istria, and of Carniola, the land is of good quality, well
cultivated and very productive. In the last, they have two crops in
the year; sowing buck-wheat on wheat or rye stubble, and millet on
that of hemp and flax.--They every where cultivate Indian corn, and in
Styria (as in Virginia) it forms the ordinary bread of the country."
In Bohemia, Moravia, and Galitia,[4] the soil is uncommonly rich, and
under proper management would be very productive. Austrian Silesia
is less fitted for the production of grain, but excels in forage and
cattle. Hungary, Transylvania and Croatia, abound in every species
of agricultural produce. Their flocks and pasturage are not inferior
to those of the Ukraine; and wheat, buck-wheat, Indian corn, millet,
rice, hemp, flax and tobacco, yield immense harvests to very small
degrees of labour. Yet is agriculture far from being in a flourishing
condition!--Writers on political economy ascribe this fact principally
to two causes--
[4] Geographic Math.
1st. The degradation and oppression of the labouring part of the
community; and
2d. The want of convenient commercial outlets for the produce of the
soil.
We shall find in Hungary a striking illustration of the correctness of
this opinion. "The _Populus Hungaricus_," is divided into four estates,
the magnates, the nobles, and the clergy, who possess all the lands,
and the "_misera contribuens plebs_," who (besides tithes, rents and
corvees) pay all the taxes. This wretched populace is composed of the
burghers and the peasantry, of which there are three kinds--_slaves for
life, temporary slaves_, and a third sort called _liberæ emigrationis_,
who, as their name indicates, have loco motive powers and rights.
Of the condition of this people, since the year 1764, (and before
that period it was much worse) we may form an idea from the edict of
Maria Theresa, called the _urbarium_, or law of contracts between
landlord and tenant, by which it is declared, that corporal punishment
(inflicted by the master for insolent words or conduct) shall not
exceed twenty-four strokes with a cane for a man, and the same number
with a switch for a woman. Nor is the _commercial_ condition of this
people better than the _civil_; they are not only obliged to take from
Austria many things which they could have had in other places of a
better quality and at a lower price, but they are also compelled to
carry to Vienna the products of their own soil and labour, where their
sale is embarrassed and their value lessened by heavy and oppressive
taxes. The same remark applies to Galitia, whose natural outlet is the
Vistula, or the Nieper; but of these she is not permitted to avail
herself, and, like her sister kingdoms, is compelled to seek the
markets furnished by the Danube and Trieste. "The consequences are
obvious--the tenant works only to satisfy hunger, and the landlord is
satisfied with little more than '_victum et vestitum_.'"[5]
[5] Geog. Math. vol. 4. art. Hungary.
The amount of lands annually cultivated in _Bavaria_, is one million
one hundred and sixty-five thousand acres, which produce about six
millions of bushels of grain, of which two millions are surplus.
The Palatinate, (one of the dependencies of Bavaria) is also very
productive. The route between Heidelberg and D'Armstadt, called the
_Bergstrass_, traverses one of the finest districts of Germany, and
perhaps of Europe; where are seen extensive vineyards, vast meadows
and fertile fields, producing wheat, barley, tobacco, madder, rhubarb,
turnips, &c. &c. In the year 1799, all the electorial possessions
within the circle of Bavaria, contained 199,000 horses, 160,000 oxen,
465,000 cows, 961,000 sheep, 320,000 hogs, and 378,000 goats. Yet are
the Bavarians, compared with the inhabitants of the north of Germany,
half a century in the rear. The people are, extremely ignorant and
fantastical: like the people of Rome and Lisbon, they sacrifice
much time to processions and fetes, and like them also are slaves of
the vilest appetites. Debauchery is no where more flagrant than in
Munich.[6]
[6] Geog. Math. &c. art. Bavaria. Compare the productiveness of Bavaria
with England--the comparison is in favour of the former.
_Wurtemburg_ is ranked among the most fertile and well cultivated
countries of Germany. The mountainous parts produce potatoes, oats,
hemp and flax; the less hilly abound in wheat, spelts, rye, buck-wheat,
Indian corn and barley; and in the vallies we find tobacco, madder and
vineyards, in which the grapes of France, Cyprus, and Persia succeed
perfectly. Apples, pears, &c. are of common product and excellent
quality.[7]
[7] Idem.
11. It has been justly remarked, that to know the state of husbandry in
any country, you have but to examine the _instruments_ employed, the
_succession_ of _crops_, and the _condition_ of _labourers_.--Tried
by these tests, the agriculture of _Russia_ will be found to be in
a state of great degradation.--The plough (called _soka_) which
is commonly used, is very light, of simple construction, and but
calculated to enter the ground _one inch and a half_; the _harrow_
consists of one or more young pine trees (whose branches are cut off
about eight inches from the stem) steeped in water to add to their
weight, and tied together. With such miserable instruments, each drawn
by a single horse, the farmer scratches the ground, and without always
covering the seed, which is no doubt the reason that in dry seasons
their harvests are very bad.[8] In the best soil their _succession_ of
_crops_ is of _eight years_--two in barley, two in oats, two in winter
rye, and two in spring rye. Lands of less fertility are sown _two_
years out of _three_, and mountainous tracts one year in three, when
they are abandoned to weeds, until rest shall have reinstated them.
"To manure them would, in the opinion of a Russian peasant, make them
poorer;[9] and therefore he suffers his dunghill to accumulate into
a nuisance, while he goes on to clear and exhaust new fields." "The
grains raised are rye, spelts, barley, millet and oats, which, from
want of sufficient roads and markets, are often low priced; as are
horned cattle and horses: an ox selling for a ruble and a half, a cow
for one ruble, and a horse for three rubles."[10] To this wretchedness
we must add, (what perhaps occasions much of it) that throughout the
_civilized_ part of Russia, the labours of agriculture are performed by
_slaves_ confounded with the soil, and bought and sold with it. In a
great portion of the northern section of this vast empire, agriculture
is unknown; and the chase, the fisheries, cattle and rein-deer, furnish
the only means of subsistence.
[8] Pallas, pages 3 and 4. vol. 1.
[9] Pallas, vol. 5. page 60.
[10] A ruble is equal to 5 livres, or 1 dollar Spanish.
(To be continued.)
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.)
[CONCLUDED.]
Of manures which may be termed fossils we will mention the various
kinds of calcareous substances, the stony matter called pyrites, coal,
salt, peaty substances, silicious and aluminous earths. Limestone,
gypsum, chalk and marle, are the calcareous substances we shall notice,
and each in their order.
Limestone, (carbonate of lime,) has always more or less aluminous
or silicious earth in its composition. Frequently also it contains
magnesia. Limestone of this latter description, when calcined, makes
what the English farmers call _hot_ lime, which is more powerful in
its effects, and therefore less of it should be applied at once to the
soil. That without any mixture of magnesia is considered more durable
in its operation, but less powerful. Magnesian limestone is known by
its effervescing but little when plunged in nitric or other acid, while
limestone that is not magnesian, when thus immersed produces a strong
effervescence. The magnesian, also, when immersed in diluted nitric
acid, or aqua fortis, renders the liquid of a milky appearance. It is
usually of a brownish or pale yellow colour. Being more caustic when
calcined, than common limestone, it is more efficacious in decomposing
peaty earths, and is best adapted for soils which have too much either
of peaty or vegetable matter in them.----Where lands have been injured
by too plentiful an application of this lime, peaty earth should be
applied to them to correct the evil.
The trials of lime in this country have been quite limited, and
confined mostly to the middle states, particularly Pennsylvania. It
has usually been applied there at the rate of about forty bushels
to the acre; but whether the lime used there is magnesian, we have
never understood. Lime may be applied as a top dressing or mixed with
the soil. Its application has been found most successful when the
first succeeding crop was Indian corn; afterwards wheat is grown to
advantage. Instances are mentioned in the memoirs of the agricultural
society of Philadelphia, where gypsum had no effect on worn out lands
till they were first manured with lime.
British writers say that lime may be applied with equal advantage
either when newly slaked or afterwards, that its effects are not
always the same particularly where soils are different, but that
usually it is a very durable manure. A much larger quantity is,
however, applied in Great Britain than has been usual here; but perhaps
the coolness of the summers there renders more requisite. We pretend
to advise to no particular rules in the application of lime in this
country, farther than that about forty bushels to the acre be first
tried; but less for sandy soils, and perhaps more for those which are
stiff clays would be advisable. In clays of this description, lime is
particularly useful in destroying the adhesive quality of such soils,
and thereby rendering them a more friable loam. Such has been its
effects on the clay lands which abound so much in England. Where the
lime is magnesian, let trials be made of about twenty bushels to the
acre.
That country abounds much in the calcareous matter denominated chalk,
which is also converted into lime by calcination, and used as a manure.
It forms a weaker sort of lime. As this substance, however, is hardly
to be found in this country, it will be unnecessary further to speak of
this manure.
Gypsum, (sulphate of lime) is a most powerful stimulant to the growth
of many crops in all dry soils in this country, but with the following
exceptions: it has no sensible effect on lands newly cleared, on those
in the vicinity of the ocean, nor on those which have been completely
exhausted by severe cropping. In soils of this latter description, some
pabulous matter must be given them for the gypsum to digest or act
upon; and this may be a previous manuring with lime, marl, bog-earth,
barn dung, or perhaps any substance that is calculated to improve the
condition of the soil. It should also be observed that the application
of gypsum frequently fails entirely of producing its effects if
followed by uncommon drought, or unusually wet weather. It is generally
most powerful when applied to growths of leguminous plants, to those
extending in vines, such as the various species of the gourd tribe, the
strawberry, &c. and to several sorts of the green crops, particularly
potatoes, clover-grasses, lucern, &c. On fibrous rooted grasses, and
those grain plants most nearly related to them, such as wheat, rye,
oats, barley, &c. it has no sensible effect when applied as a top
dressing to the growing plants. On Buckwheat it is very powerful, and
for Indian corn it is also valuable. Judge Peters, (of Penn.) whose
experience of its uses has been long and extensive, says that although
he has found this manure of little use to many sorts of plants, when
applied to them as a top dressing, yet he has invariably found that all
plants derive benefit from their seeds being rolled in gypsum, after
being soaked in some liquid, before sowing or planting. As a manure,
however, for wheat or grain crops of similar kinds, immense benefit
may be derived from it by applying it to the sward, as a top dressing,
a suitable length of time before the ground is broken up. In this way
two bushels of gypsum may be made to give an additional increase of
eight or ten bushels of wheat to the acre. Take, for instance, land
which in its natural state, and with the usual culture, will only yield
ten bushels of wheat to the acre; in the fall or early in the spring,
give it a top dressing of two bushels of gypsum to the acre; by the
middle of June following, the land will exhibit a fresh green sward,
principally of white clover; and when land is thus clothed in verdure,
it is a sure indication of a great addition to its fertility, and that
a good crop may then be expected. When, therefore, the green sward is
thus formed, turn it under, and then, with the usual culture, twenty
bushels of wheat to the acre may be expected, where only ten would
have been had without this previous enriching of the ground by the
application of gypsum. Yet the same quantity of this manure, applied as
a top dressing to the growing crop of wheat, would have had no sensible
effect. It should therefore be understood, that for all growths which
derive little or no benefit from gypsum, when applied as a top dressing
to the growing plants, the ground should be previously enriched by
applying this manure to the sward, a suitable length of time before it
is to be broken up, which length of time will usually be from two to
three months. At all events as soon as the sward fully exhibits the
effects of the gypsum it may then be turned under. Wherever a sward
is to be turned under, this practice should be invariably pursued in
order that the ground be rendered more fruitful for the crop that is to
follow.
In this country gypsum is a great source of wealth, wherever soils are
sensible to its effects. It has tended much to equalize the value of
lands, by imparting an artificial fertility to those naturally more
sterile, and that at a small expense.--But gypsum alone is by no means
a sufficient source of dependence as a manure for keeping lands in the
improved condition that is necessary for raising the best crops, and
of course deriving the greatest profits. The farmer should attend also
to making the most of such other manures as come conveniently within
his reach. We are, however, no advocate for obtaining manures at any
price; they may cost too much; but almost every farmer whose lands
are of suitable quality, and who stocks them with as many cattle as
he can keep in good order, and then makes the best use of the manure
they afford, may usually, with this supply, and with the judicious
use of gypsum, added to good culture, keep his lands in an improving
condition.
But some soils are so constituted as to be of diminished value without
a suitable mixture of other earths than those of which they are
composed, and in such case are permanently benefited by such additions
of earthy substances. If lands, for instance, are too sandy, or
gravelly, the addition of clay to them, or what is better, of upland
marle, will permanently improve the soil; and where these earths can
be found within reasonable distance it will usually be labour well
expended in making such applications. We will state a case in point.
In the rear of the city of Albany lies an immense body of calcarious
earth, which may properly be called a schistic marle. It is commonly
called blue clay. This, when mixed with a due proportion of sand, forms
a very fertile and durable soil. Farther west of the city lie large
tracts of sandy lands, which require suitable proportions of this marle
to render them fit for good culture, and with such additions much of
them would be found very valuable. Where they lie sufficiently level,
and are not too sandy, it will probably be found that from half a ton
to a ton for every rod square would be sufficient to render them very
fertile, and fitted for the most profitable rotations of crops.
This sort of marle, which may be found in various parts of the country,
and very frequently under tracts of sandy lands, is a very valuable and
permanent manure in all dry soils which are deficient of calcarious
matter, and have not already too great a proportion of clay in their
composition. This manure should be laid on the land as a top dressing,
in order that it may be completely pulverized before it is mixed with
the soil.
Upland marle is sometimes found of silicious texture, in which case
it is good for stiff soils, as well as for others. It is also found
of different colours, when combined with argillaceous matter, and of
different qualities; that containing most lime or calcarious matter
being always the best. Marles of this description are often very
valuable in forming a principal ingredient in composts, of which we
shall presently speak, and the same may be observed of the superior
sorts of this manure found in bog swamps, of which something shall now
be said.
This sort of marle is found, at greater or less depths, beneath the
surface of many bog swamps, and is of a whitish, a greyish, or a
brownish colour. The whitish is the most powerful, having most lime
in its composition; the greyish is next in quality. The super stratum
is either a bog earth, to wit, vegetable matter totally decomposed;
or it is a peaty substance, or vegetable matter in a partial state of
decomposition. The bog earth is good manure of itself, and may be used
separately, or mixed with the marle; the peaty substance must undergo
a further decomposition before it is rendered valuable as a manure, it
being then rendered similar to bog earth. These manures when applied
to growing crops are somewhat similar in their effects to those of
gypsum. They are valuable as top dressings, or for mixing with the
soil. Their effects are very powerful on Indian corn, and they are more
or less valuable when applied to almost every sort of upland crop,
with the exception of wheat, rye, barley, &c. For these they are to be
applied to the sward, a suitable time before breaking it up, as has
been mentioned in regard to gypsum. It should, however, be observed,
that neither decomposed peat, nor bog earth, should be applied to soils
which already contain too great a proportion of decomposed vegetable
matter.
The condition of clay soils is also permanently improved by mixing
a due proportion of sand in them. The most durable and perfect soil
is chiefly composed of certain proportions of sand, clay, lime, and
vegetable matter in a state of decomposition, and, whenever any soil
is destitute of a due proportion of any of these, the addition of such
earthy substance can never fail to serve as a manure.
The stony earth called Pyrites, when pulverised by the aid of a proper
degree of calcination, is much used; and highly esteemed in Flanders
as a top dressing for grass lands, as is mentioned in a communication
of the late Chancellor Livingston to the Society for the promotion of
the useful arts in this state. We will refer the reader to the 2d vol.
published by that Society for the manner of preparing this manure, and
the quantity to be used, &c.
Of coal, we shall merely state that, from the results of experiments
made by the late Mr. Muhlenburg, (of Penn.) about 40 bushels to the
acre of this substance, pulverised in the manner of gypsum, was found a
good manure, when applied as a top dressing.
Common salt, pulverised, and applied as a top dressing, at the rate of
from two to four bushels to the acre, has, in many instances, powerful
effects as a manure. Sea-water is peculiarly adapted for this purpose.
Mr. Deane, in his Farmer's Dictionary, mentions an instance where
a crop of potatoes, and another of flax, were greatly increased in
product by an application of sea-water to them while growing. About a
pint of the water was applied to each hill of potatoes, and for the
flax crop the water was sprinkled over the ground.
Some trials have been made in this country of using burnt clay as a
manure, and its use is recommended, particularly for all dry arable
lands, not inclining to clay. The first step in preparation for burning
clay, is to have a considerable quantity of this earth dug up in spits,
and laid to dry in the sun: when pretty well dried you prepare for
burning by raising a little pile of dry wood in the shape of a pyramid,
say 4 or 5 feet high;--round this you build up the dried spits of clay,
leaving a hole at the bottom, for the entrance of the air, and another
at the top for it to pass off. Such, at least, was the method formerly
practised in Great Britain, but the modern improvement of retaining the
smoke within the mass, agreeably to the plan spoken of by Mr. Cobbett,
for burning earth, ought also to be pursued in burning clay. After the
fire has been set to the wood you continue digging up fresh clay and
piling it around and over the heap, as fast as the fire penetrates
the mass, taking care, however, not to pile on so much at once as to
extinguish the fire. If there be danger of its becoming extinguished,
it may be advisable to make one or more holes in the sides of the
heap by running a hole into it. The fresh earth is to be added during
pleasure or until a sufficient quantity is burned. After the heap has
cooled it is fit for use, either by mixing with the soil as directed by
Mr. Cobbett, for applying burnt earth, of which we will next speak.
By a late improvement, earths, other than those of clay, are
successfully converted into good manure, by the process of burning. It
is effected by retaining the smoke within the mass of earth while in a
state of ignition. Mr. Cobbett says he has tried this manure for the
ruta-baga crop, and found it as efficacious as barn dung. His manner
of preparing it, and which we believe would also be the best method of
preparing burnt clay, is as follows:
"I make a circle," says Mr. C. "or an oblong square. I cut sods and
build a wall all round three feet thick, and four feet high. I then
light a fire in the middle with straw, dry sticks, boughs, or such like
matter. I go on making this fire larger and larger, till it extend over
the whole bottom of the pit or kiln. I put on roots of trees or any
rubbish wood, till there be a good thickness of strong coals. I then
put on the _driest_ of the clods that I have ploughed up round about,
so as to cover all the fire over. The earth thus put in will burn. You
will see the smoke coming out at little places here and there. Put
more clods wherever the smoke appears. Keep on thus for a day or two.
By this time a great mass of fire will be in the inside. And now you
may dig out the clay, or earth, any where round the kiln, and fling it
on without ceremony, always taking care to _keep in the smoke_; for,
if you suffer that to continue coming out at any one place, a hole
will soon be made; the main force of the fire will draw to that hole;
a blaze like that of a volcano, will come out, and the fire will be
extinguished.
"A very good way is to put your finger into the top of the heap
here and there; and if you find the fire _very near_, throw on more
earth.--Not _too much at a time_, for that weighs too heavily on the
fire, and keeps it back; and, at _first_ will put it partially out. You
keep on thus augmenting the kiln, till you get to the top of the walls,
and then you may, if you like, raise the walls and still go on. No rain
will affect the fire, when once it is become strong.
"The principle is to _keep out air_, whether at the top or the sides,
and this you are sure to do, if you _keep in the smoke_. I burnt, this
last summer, about thirty wagon loads in one round kiln, and never saw
the smoke at all after the first four days. I put in my finger to try
whether the fire was near the top; and when I found it approaching, I
put on more earth. Never was a kiln more completely burnt.
"Now, this may be done on the skirt of any wood where the matters are
all at hand. This mode is far preferable to the _above ground_ burning
in _heaps_. Because in the next place, the _smoke escapes there_,
which is the finest part of the burnt matter. _Soot_, we know well, is
more powerful than ashes, and, soot is composed of the _grossest parts
of the smoke_. That which flies out of the chimney is the best part of
all.
"In case of a want of wood wherewith to begin the fire, the fire may be
lighted precisely as in the case of _paring and burning_. If the kiln
be large, the oblong square is the best figure.--About _ten feet wide_,
because then a man can fling the earth easily over every part. The mode
they pursue in England when there is no _wood_, is to make a sort of
building in the kiln with turfs and leave air holes at the corners of
the walls, till the fire be well begun. But this is tedious work; and
is in this country wholly unnecessary. Care must, however, be taken,
that the fire be well lighted. The matter put in _at first_ should be
such as is of the lightest description; so that a body of earth on fire
may be obtained, before it be too heavily loaded.
"The burning being completed, having got the quantity you want, let the
kiln remain. The fire will continue to work, until all is ashes. If you
want _use_ the ashes sooner, open the kiln. They will be cold enough to
remove in a week."
A practice has long prevailed in Europe of paring and burning soils for
the purpose of improving their texture and increasing their fertility.
On clay lands, and such as contain too much vegetable matter, we
conceive the process might be advisable if not too expensive. Its
effect on clays is to destroy the adhesive quality of the soil, as the
earth burned becomes rather of a silicious texture; and at the same
time the surface is much enriched by the operation. In the other case
it is calculated to reduce the redundancy of vegetable matter, as well
as to enrich the soil. The operation is performed in the following
manner:
When the ground is in a good sward of grass let it be carefully turned
over with the plough, the irons of which should be well sharpened. Let
the plough run about three inches deep.--Then cross plough with a very
sharp coulter, and the sward will all be cut into squares of about 10
or 12 inches. You then proceed to set these square chunks up edgeways,
by leaning two together, in which situation they will soon dry.--When
well dried build a part of them tip in the form of little ovens, and
let this be done at the distance of about every 18 feet each way. These
are all to have a little opening or door, at a common windward side,
for the air to enter, and another opening above for the smoke to pass
off. On some dry day when the wind is fair for blowing into the holes
below place some straw or other dry rubbish into the holes and set fire
to it. As soon as the fires have got fully going in each of the heaps,
let the holes in the tops be stopped up, for the purpose of retaining
the smoke, and keep gradually building up the heaps as the fire
penetrates them, until all the chunks of earth are piled up round them;
and when the heaps have fully burned and sufficiently cooled, they are
to be evenly spread over the ground, and ploughed in.
In some parts of Great Britain it has been the practice to burn peat
earth, in a manner very similar to that before described for burning
clay, and the ashes thus obtained from the mass were used for top
dressings; but we believe this practice has mostly given way to that
of rotting or decomposing peat in compost, the method of which is as
follows: you form the compost heap of about one half of peat, a fourth
of lime, and a fourth of barn dung, and these substances are to be
separately laid along in a manner most convenient to be afterwards
thrown into the compost heap in their proper proportions. You commence
at one end with spreading a layer of peat on the ground, say, ten
feet square and four inches in depth; then a layer of lime on this
and another of barn dung, each two inches thick; then another layer
of peat, as before, and then the lime and barn dung, as before, until
in this way the heap is raised about four feet high, and let the last
layer be of peat: then commence another ten feet square along side of
this, and raise it as before, till you raise it to the same height;
then with another ten feet square, at the end of this mass, and so on,
till the heap is completed. After the heap has stood a while, it will
heat, and when the heat begins to subside, you commence again at one
end of the heap and cut the whole down to the bottom, with the spade,
and form a new heap, throwing the exterior parts of the heap, thus
cut down, into the middle of the other. A second heating of the mass
will then commence, and when that subsides, the peat will be found
sufficiently decomposed, and the whole an excellent mass of manure.
In this country peaty substances are usually to be found in morasses;
as the superstratum of marle, as before-mentioned; as the principal
ingredient of the salt marshes contiguous to the ocean, and as the
superstratum of tracts of cold lands which are covered with growths of
evergreen trees.
In making composts with upland marle, before-mentioned, the proportions
of the marle, with that of the lime and dung, may be similar to those
just mentioned for the peat composts, or perhaps the marle may be in
greater proportion. The layers of each may be as before described, but
the heap only raised to such height that it may be cleft down to the
bottom with the plough, then thrown together in a ridge again with this
implement; and let these operations be repeated, at intervals, till the
whole becomes well mixed, pulverised, and in a state of fermentation,
when it is fit for use, and should be immediately applied to the soil
in the manner before-mentioned.
The use of wood ashes as a manure, is well known. It is good for
almost all crops, and is to be used as a top dressing. It is much more
efficacious as a manure in some parts of the country than others,
particularly on Long Island. It is most valuable on light dry soils,
particularly those which are sandy. Soot, as a top dressing, is much
more valuable than ashes, and is proper for almost all arable lands. It
is most efficacious when well pulverised before its application.
The dung of fowls of every sort has much calcareous matter in it, and
is very efficacious, applied as top dressings. Malt dust is good in the
same way--40 bushels of it is a proper allowance to the acre.
_Night shade_ should be mixed with earth, say, two thirds of the latter
to one of the former, and in the course of a few months it forms an
excellent manure. In most European cities this excrement is carefully
collected, for manure, while in this country its use has been neglected.
Many liquids are furnished from every domicile, and particularly the
kitchen, which, mixed with earths, and other substances, would form
valuable masses of manure. The liquids to which we principally refer,
are the soap-suds, dish-water, brine of meat, urine, &c.; these should
all be preserved, by being absorbed in rich earthy substances, together
with the contents of the hog-sty; and in this way a large heap of good
manure may be made that is commonly lost for want of attention in
saving these ingredients.