The Sumter banner. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1846-1855, 1848-02-23
agrisaltural.
Ffopsthe Charleston Mercury.
MANURlNG OF RICE LANDS.

~ ~ S@sAASN1sS11.3a 4sASSA1 AfaAND0.tsn
The following communication will
commend itself to the attention of those,
engaged in the culture Of Riee--in the
production Of which 30 large portion Of
the capital Of the State is invested,
RICE--EXPERIMENTS ,WITHC COM
OsTs5MANURE, LIME AND CLAY.
MR: EDrToR. The following letter, de-.
failing experiments by an experienced and
intelligent Rte Planter, will be found in.
.teresting, and particularly to those engag.
ed in its cultivntion> -
80 At your request, I. readily givc. you
the results ofmy experiments with Com
post Manure, Lime and Clay. for The I'M.
fproyerneDt Of Rice Land, and nhall feel
fully compensated if you derive ths small
lest profit from my experience.
"As far buck as 1888, from having Sc
verakspota in my fields which we're al
most barren and unproduotive,I was in
duced to Try what. would be the effect of
manuring them with compost manure.
The good effects were so visible from the
coming up Of the crop to the harvesting
time, that | determined to try II extern
siyely on the two succeeding crops. The
quantity applied was equal to wha. is gen.
orally applied to the manuring Of high
land for the planting of Slip Potatoes or
Corn-say 40 or SO single horse cart
loads to each acre, each loaRestimated Us
equal TO twelve hcapcd up bushcl bnsk-
cts. The Rice grew luxuriantly; so
much SO as to lodge, and was fit for har-
vesting ten days earlier than Rice planted
at the same time upon tho same soil, but
not manurcd, and cultivated in tho same
manner,
CAT your suggestion, six or seven years
since, was induced to epter upon vari-
GUS experiments with Lime upon what is
called Bay Land. 1t is necessary that
should explain what mean by Bay Land
| do not mean barren soil, to which this
term is often applied. The land to which
! allude was cleared Of heuYy timber,
Gum, Tupelo, Bay, &c. 1t consisted al
together Of vegetable matter, no clay
whatever being visible on it, II produc-
ed only tolerably at arst, and annually
deterioratcd to such degree us to cause
me frequently to be advised TO abandon
lis culture us not remunerating me for my
labor. To this land, consisting of several
squares, applied Lime ut tho rate of 20
to 100 bushels per acre. Ny experience
is, that 30 bushels 10 the aero forthe first
one or two years is equal in effect to any
greater quantity, and all subsequent ex-
pcriments have confirmed me in this op-
inion. / tried both stone and shell Lime,
and have found the latter in its effects su-
perior to the former.
"Tlie effect upon these lands has been
gradual and steady Improvement, arres-
ting itstendency to deterioration, which
was sosgreat as by this time would have
rendered them utterly worthless, Tho
growth which was meagre and dwarfsh,
has become of the usual average height,
and the product increased to 40 bushels
to the acre; and the quality, which was
before inferior, the grain being small and
soft, is now equal TO the best Southern
Rice.
"But my experience has proved TO me
that Rice planters are not dependent upon
Lime alone for the renovation and i'm.
provcment Of their Rice lands. Stimuli
taneously within experiments with Lime,
entered on series Of experiments with
Clay. dug from tho adjoining high lands.
The purer and richer the better, but /
consider the application of any kind OF
Clay as highly beneficial TO soil ofde-
composed vegetable matter,
"On square Of twenty acres, 10 which
hud applied thirty-two bushels Of Lime
to the acre in the spring of 1s45, / re-
served line of one.eighth Of an acre in
width through the entire field; to this | ap-
piled some blue Clay, taken from the
edge Of the adjoining high lands, and
which had been dug out in the previous
autumn. This was pulverised, aud rolled
in wheelbarrows upon two inch plank, and
scattered on the reserved one.eighth acre.
The improvement ofthe whole field was
beyond my most sanguine expectation.
The part clayed kept pace with that lined;
and the product of the whole was good
crop. In ls46 planted tho same square,
without Lining or applying anything to it,
and it proved again one ofmy most pro-
ductive fields; no difference being per.
ceptblc in the lined and clayed parts.
In 1s47 tIrned it with tho hoe, and ap-
piled twenty. -four bushels Of Lime to the
portion lined in 1s45, and Clay to the
same line claycd at the Same time. The
result was precisely the same.
"Thc lust spring, upon two different
plantations, ] applied one hundred bush
els Of clay per acre to forty acres The
result has been perfectly satisfactory. /
also tried the following experiment: On
q square 10 which | had threo years ngo
applied thirty.two bushels Lime to the
acre, on one-quarter of an acre put ten
bushels Lime, on one-quartcr of an acre
did not apply anything.
"All received the same culture and nt-