Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1850-08-09
Agricultural.
C.ieaninss mud rhoughts.


BY THE EDITOR OF THE AMERICAN FARMER.
Deep Ploughing-Efects Of Lime, Sc-The follow
ing extracts from Sir John Sinclalrs code OF
culture combining as they do, the opinions of some
of the most enlightened agriculturasts of England
should at least direct the attention of the American
husbandmen to the consideration OF the subject of
deep ploughing:
In Curwens report the author states, that - deep
plougbng permits the surfacewater to pass beneath
the roots of the crops in winter, and admits the
action of the air and the influence of season in sum-
mer hence powerful evaporation is carried on
which supplies the plants with moisture during the
driest weather. After every ploughing, the earth
exhaes as much after the most copous shower of
rain"
"When soils are deepened, lime should be applied
to correct any noxous ingredients in them; and pu-
crescent matters to give the soil adequate degree
of fertility 1t is mistake, to suppose, that deepen
ing the soil, renders much greater quantity Of
,tre necessary The most intelligent farmers do not
think that more than ten to sixteen per cent add
| tiOnal is required
"This maxim the farmers of Flanders acted upon,
gradually deepening their SOIL their manure was
augmented"
Edward Burroughs, Esquire, says :-'I have made
many experiments in order to ascertain the advanta
ges to be derived from deep poughing all of which
have proved the benefit of the practice. Even in
many instances, in which the subsoil brought up,
was to all appearances, very unfertie the surface
soil much benefited.
Mr. Parker, of Munden, prefers aine inches for
/ system for many years, good loamy land in Hun
| tingdonshire, as we'll in the clay and hints of
Herefordshire. He never lost crop by it, but has
met with unwearied success and he is clearly of O.
pinion, that the propriety Of deep ploughing, ought
not to be made a question, but received admit
| ted TRUTH
John Middleton Esquire, states, that q the farm
ing gardeners near London. act upon the same sys-
tenn, with great success They plough to the depth
of from 10 to II inches"
MIR. Marshall has known a succession of shallow
ploughing farmers beggared on stiff clay land farm,
and their successors by deeper tillage make far
mers fortune upon it.'
Professor Johnston, in his recent lectures before
the New York State Agricultural Society, says:
"Some plants descend to great depth This is
another important fact for if the habit of plant, is
thus to go down to great depth, and if the deeper
grows the food it extracts from the SOIL then
it is quite clear, that the shallow the soil is
kept the less the farmer has studied the sol'
If science takes hold of the plough handles and
points it deeper into the EARTH in order that the
of plants may reach lo1cer DEPTH for roots will grow
deeper if you will let them and the deeper ey 90 the
robust the plant and the more profit to the far
mer"
Professor Jas F. W. Johnston, of the Dublin Uni
versy gives the following fact in illustration of the
good effects of deep ploughing:
1.-THE Marquis Of T.cedale, in his home farm at
Yesters, has raised his land in value eight times
(from IS. to 40s. per acre) by draining and deep
ploughing. After draining the fields of stiff clay
with streaks of sand in the subsoi turned over
to depth of II to IA inches by two ploughs 1.-TWO
horses each following another the under inch
es being thrown on the top In this state it is left
to the winters frost, when it falls to yellow marty
looking soil 1t is now ploughed again to depth of
9 or 10 inches, by which half the original soil is
brought again to the surface. By cross ploughing
this is mixed with the soil, after which the field
is prepared in the usual way for turnips But it is
observed that if the ploughing has been SO late that
the subsoil has not had proper exposure to the
winters cold, the land on such spots does not for
many years equal that which earlier ploughed.
The reason is, that when once mixed up with the
other soil the air has no longer the easy
to its pores.'
| Now from the premises afforded by the foregoing
experiments; from accounts which we have read,
and from facts which have come within our own
personal knowledge, we draw the following de-
auctions -
l. That deep poughing under favorable condi-
ton of the soil, will prove sgnally conducive to the
improvement of its capacity for production and that
a corresponding improvement in the quality of the
products will be the necessary result and for the
following among other reasons l, That by deepen
ing the SOIL you enlarge the area from which the
plants draw large quantities of their organic and in
organic food, or in other words-you increase their
pasture, and, in doing, augment their food: 2
That as the ROOTS in search of food descends very
far below the line of ploughed ground they must, IN
their descent through the indurated strata of most
subsoils encounter difficulties which but exert
I untrlenQly lnnuence upon the QeVolOpnlenG vi
their structures, both beneath and above the surface
of the soil g. If turn up and pulverze the soil
or 10 inches in depth, it strikes being consls
tent with common sense and reason that it must be
preferable to filth of inches, is too often
the case because by opening the pores of the earth
to the former and greater depth, we admit the an
so much DEEPER thereby present more ample field
for the action of the melrating influences of the at
mosphere and produce condition in the SOIL in it,
It physical capacity, much better adapted, than il
would be, under the shaower filth, to avail itself
those advantages resulting from the operating clau
alluded to- By this increased depth of tllage
much enlarged penetrable body of earth is presen
ted for the absorption of water from the rains; and
of course, moisture will be longer maintained in thu
SOIL than if the body to exhalation had beer
less and in proportion to the extension of
to which such moisture may be maintained so vii
be the resulting benefits to the growing crops thu
10 continuous existence of healthful degree of heat
IN air. and moisture, operates to gorous ant
perfect vegetation: 5. Owing to the free admission
of air into the earth afforded by deep tlage its com
H. potency to imbbe dews is enlarged and it is there
fore, the better enabled to avail itself of whatever
ertilizng gases there may be existing in the atmos
phere its powers of attraction and condensation be
ing increased, In due ratio to the volume of pulver
n lied soil presented the absorbent medium: 6
c. Heavy rains under deep tillage, not njuriou
as under shallow; the condition of the soil, from it
D. increased volume, being better calculated for thei
e. primary reception, and ultimate disposition: T. TIL
,g earth being rendered permeable to atmospher
t. ic influences, under condition of deep tllage must
he consequence, be earlier than that which is sha
ne low from the fact of the greater magnitude of tn
body liable to be thus acted upon, its capacity 70
he the retention of heat is also greater and the hea
As therefore is more readily and equally diffused: s
By deepennp the BODY of puyerized earth the fac