Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1848-03-03
AGRICULTURAL.
From the American Farmer.
G R E E n M A URING
Or the duplication of Vegetable Matter in the
Green state

Or the Application of Vegetable Matter in the
Green state.
From knowledge gained by experience we
have long since made up ONT mind, that Agri-
cultursts place too low an estimate upon the
advantages to be derived from the sowing of
green crops to be ploughed in as a means of
improving their lands. Few, if any, are able
to make, by the ordinary process resorted to,
a sufficient quantity to answer the demands of
each succeeding spring and from the remote
ness at which they live from the large cities,
1t is impossible to obtain supplies thence
Necessity, which is said TO be the mother of
invention, one would think, would long since
have caused many to have turned their atten-
ton to this certain, and comparatively cheap
mode but such has not been the case. Those
who have Glover leys to turn in, of course,
stand in no need of a resort to this plan but
most certainly, those who have not advanced
that far towards the melioraton of the condi-
ton of their soils, should not hesitate in adop
ting this, the next best plan of driving steriIi-
ty from their fields. Many we know there
are, who have been prevented from entering
into the clover culture because of the impov-
erished condition TO which their lands have
they should lay themselves out to enter upon
the system of green manuring the next year.
And with the view of bringing the rubiect d.
rectly home to them, we shall make an ex-
tract from the Lecture of Professor James F.
w. Johnson, of the University of Dublin-a
gentleman of whom ii is not saying too much
to declare that as an agricultural chemist, he
is not excelled by any one living He says:
Is
ing in of green crops in their living state-or
of green vegetables left or spread upon the
land for that purpose.
1. Green vegetable substances contain with
in themselves much water-undergo decom-
position more readily, therefore, than such rs
have been dried, and are Immediately service
able when mixed with the soil.
2. In the sap of plants also, there generally
exist certain compounds containing nitrogen,
which not only decompose very readily them
selves, but have the property of persuading or
inducing the elements of the other organic
matters, with which they are in contact, to
assume new forms to enter into new chemical
combinations. Hence the sap of plants al
most invariably uIdergoes more or less rapid
decomposition even W hen preserved from the
contact of both air and water When this
decomposition has once commenced in the sap
it is gradually propagated TO the woody fibre
and to the other substances of which the mass
of stems and roots of plants is composed
Hence vegetable matter will undergo a com.
paratively rapidly decomposition even when
buried to some depth beneath the soil-and
the elements of which it consists, will form
new compounds, more or less useful to living
plants, in circumstances where dry and where
many forms of even partially decomposed We
getable matter would undergo no change what
ever.
3. Further-when green vegetable matter
is allowed to decay in the open air, it is grad
ually resolved more or less completely into
earbonic acid, which escapes into the air and
is so far lost. But when buried beneath the
surface, this formation of carbonic acid pro-
ceeds less rapidly, and other compounds-pre
paratory to the final resolution into carbonic
acid and water-are produced in greater guam.
tity and linger in the soil.
Thus by burying vegetable substances il
his land in their green state, the practical mar
annually saves portion of the organic foot
of plants, which would otherwise so far rur
to waste.
4. Finally-green vegetable substances by
exposure to the air gradually give up por
| llOll vi tHe SdllHc UldllcI lncy COILdlA W lhe
showers of rain that fall This more or less
escapes and is lost. But if buried beneath the
soil, this saline matter is restored to the land
and where the green matter thus buried is il
the state of growing crop, both the organic
and the inorganic substance it contains, art
more equally diffused through the soil thar
they could be by any other known process.
On one other of these principles depend
~ Ill h. hIoh 1rI
known to follow from the employment o
green vegetable matter in the preparation o
composts
But this explanation of the principles OF
which the efficacy of green manuring depends
does not fully illustrate the important practl
cal results by which, in many localities it i
uniformly followed.
Let us glance at these results.
L. The ploughing of green vegetables OIL
the spot where they have grown may be fol
lowed as method of manurng and enrlchin.
all land, where other manures are less abun
dant. Growing plants bring up from beneath
as far as their roots extend, those substance
which are useful to vegetaton-and retail
them in their leaves and stems. BY plough
ing in the whole plant we restore to the sur
face what had previously been sunk to great
er or less depth, and thus make it more fertll
than before the green crop was sown.
2. The manuFing is performed with the leas
possible loss by the use of vegetables in tn
green state. By allowing them to decay il
the open air, there is, as above stated, los
both of organic and inorganic matter-if they
be converted into fermented Qarm yard) man
ure, there is also large loss, as we shall here
after see and the same is the case, if the.
are employed in feeding stock, with view t
their conversion into manure. Gin no othe
form can the same crop convey to the soil al
equal amount of enriching matter as in tina
of green leaves and stems.) Where the .frS
object, therefore, in the farmers practice ls, 81
to use his crops as to enrich his land, he viii
soonest effect it by plonghing them in IN tn
green state.
g. Another important result is, that the be
nefcial action is almost immediate. Green We
getables decompose rapidly, and thus the frs
crop which follows green manuring Is bene
fitted and increased by it. But patty for thi
reason also the green manurng of corn crop
ped land-{wheat and other small grain)
aided by no other manure, must generally b
repeated every second year.
4 1t is said that grain crops which succee
a green manuring are never lald-and that tn
product in grain is greater in proportion to III
straw than when manufactured with fermen
ted dung.
5. But it is deserving of separate consider
alton, that green manuring is especially adap
ted for improving and enriching soils whicI
are poor in vegetable matter. The principle
on which living plants draw part-scne