Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1845-1854, 1846-06-17
From the American Agri culturist.
How to Sustain and Improve the Soil.

CIouI tuo THoiASou
How to Sustain and Improve the Soil.
IT has become an important inquiry a.
mong many of our farmers, how they shall
fertilize such of our lands as are yielding
large burthens Of produce, which are taken
off the premises for sale. Where remote
from large city, or places for supplying
this is most important query,
and one which they are highly interested in
having answered correctly. 1t is absolute
ly certain, that farmers cannot annually rob
their farms Of large crops of grain, grass
and roots, without either supplying manure
to the soil, or losing rapidly in its fertility.
We shall briefly indicate some Of the most
obvious resources for sustaining and i'm
proving the productiveness of the soil.
In the first place not an ounce of animal
manure should be suffered to be wasted,
either liquid or solid. When not dropped
on the feeding grounds, but around the sta
bles and yards, it should be carefully saved
and treasured up, where it cannot be wasted
till used. This should be carefully and ju-
diciously compounded with turf or peat, or
vegetable matter, so as to retain all its
gases, and not be permitted to drain away,
and as soon as proper time offers, it should
be carried on to the fields and al once in
cerporated with the soil. Another resource
for many of our eastern farmers, is the i'm
mense stores of peat and muck that are
within their reach, and which tends great
ly to beneftting light, sandy or loamy
soil. All the animal matter, ashes leached
or unleached, should be carefully collected
and applied to their land, and any OF her fer
tilizing substance which is to be found a.
round the premises or can be collected at
not too great an expense in the neighbor-
hood.
But in many cases where the stock of
cattle is not large, and the produce sold
from the land is considerable, some more
definite and certain means for sustaining a
farm must be resorted to-. With the most
intelligent and systematic agriculturist, q
proper rotation is adopted, which has been
found by experience, to be adapted to the
locality and products. By this is meant, a
regular succession of crops on the same
field through series of years, which at
their expiration, are again repeated. They
are so arranged that two grain crops never
follow each other, but are separated by
root crops, grass, &c. This system pre-
vents the necessity Of the soil yielding SIM
liar ingredients through two or more sue
cessive seasons, which it will seldom do to
an extent sufficient to produce good Sec
ond crop. Time is required for it to de-
compose such Of the ingredients which it
contains, as are necessary to form what
are called the inorganic portions Of the
plant, in such conditions to be taken up and
appropriated by the plant. 1t also ena'
bles the cultivator to apply his green or
putrescent manures to such crops as are
most properly adapted to receive them.
Such are corn and roots, and nearly all the
objects of cultivation excepting the smaller
grains.
The great object of rotation, however, is
to give the land rest as it is termed, when
allowed to remain in grass or meadow; or
refreshment when clover or other fertilizing
crops are plowed into the soil for manure
Such crops carry back to the soil so much
of its materials as they have taken from 1t
and in addition, important elements which
they have distracted from the atmosphere;
and they are found by long practice, to be
of great benefit in sustaining the fertility ol
the soil. Before passing on to consider
alton connected with this particular poin
in the subject, of the highest Importance
we would say, that large share Of the
benefit 10 the land, derivable from this
practice, may be secured, by feeding the
clover to such animals as will consume il
on the ground. We say part only, for al
the food which goes to supply the respira
ton of the animal, which is no inconsidera
ble share, passes off again into the air, ant
is lost. Another part is slowed up in tn
augmented size of the animal, for it is Ger
tain that whatever weight it acquires whil
feeding, is at the expense of the soil. l
milch cows are pastured, the abstraction o
valuable ingredients is still greater, as
has been found that pasture fed off for
long time by cows, have been robbed 0
large amounts of phosphate Of lime, an
other important matter. If horses are thu
fed and taken on to the roads or elsewher
to work, it is evident that large quantitie
of this manure will thus be lost to the field
supplying this food. -,ls 4. 1t
Sheep are undoubtedly the best adapted
to the object we have in view. They re-
main stationary in the same fields where
they feed, and return to them all they have
taken, save what escapes by respiration,
evaporation, or is stored up by the wool OF
carcass. They also drop their manure on
the highest and driest parts of the ground,
where Il ia more beneficial than elsewhere.