The Hillsborough recorder. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1820-1879, 1852-06-09
From ihe Sail Of The South.
BENEFIT OF DEEP PLOWING.

5, Mk. EDrron, I hare an item to COM
municate upon this subject. spoke
in nv formerletter Of the excellent red
lands Of Florida. One Of the great diff
fculties Of cultivation of the hills Of
that State as well ~ all the south, Is
the terrible destruction occasioned BY
awful deIuges Of rain that fall in such
foods a. are unknown to any other
country. One of these terrible storms
passed over Tallahassee since | left
there, sweeping away many an acre Of
the soil Of the South into the Gulf of
Mexico. MANY hill side bitches en-
tirely failed. and horizontal pIowing
without bitches proved almost useless.
bitches. however. that were large and
we'll made. saved the plantations from
destruction And so did deep plow-
ing. 1 have Just had . conversation
with Major Ward ofTalIehassee, whom
/ saw last winter breaking up his land
with . two horse plow, such for in.
stance as Aliens No. 10. followed in
every furrow by bull tongue as deep
as one stout mule could pull it. The
beneficial results of this we're seen du.
ring the storm mentioned. The deep
filth Of the soil seemed to absorb the
water as IT fell, and while adjoining
lands that were plowed upon the old
system we're almost ruined for the pre-
sent season by single shower, the
deep plowcd part was but very little
injured. This alone would be su(i.
Icient to warrant the extra amou ~
labor, but this is not all. Major Wsrt
tells me that parts Of his plantation
which had been very much worn BY
washing and cropping. have been re
stored to their original state of produc
tiyeness, almost wholly by the system
Of deep blowing which he has beel
practising for several years.
/ believe you will concede that IN,
!. : opportunity to see the mode OF cultiva
. ton Of all kinds of crops and soil
. in the Southern States, has been equa
to that Of any individual; and shoul'
; the question now be asked me whethe
! l would recommend deep plowing up
on all Southern soils, no matter wha
their constituents, l should say ye
most unqualifieJIy. But would not re
J commend deep turning Of light lands
while I have no doubt il better de
: scription Of stirring plows were used
followed by bulI-tongue coulter
i other sub soiling plow, that the bene
: fits would be commensurate with tn
Q increased labor in yearly crops, Will
: the danger of losing all title to the Ian
2 during the first hard shower, would b
! greatly lessened.
ri Planters upon James River, in VII
Iginia. and upon the Roanoke, in Mort
S Carolina, in several particular instar
ces which | could name, have found
= extremely profitable to pillow their bo1
tom lands with four stout horses and
turning plow, and follow that with thre
more to subsoil plow in every furrov
Some of the poorest old fields hay
been renovated by this process; partic'
= larly when connected with systel
:. : !of manuring by lime, plaster, salt, bor
y dust and guano, the whole Of which
:. most particularly the latter. is purcha
a. ed and applied to the poorest land
those States, with great profit. ! :
not advise cotton planters to purcha'
= these fertilizers only just far enous
III to try the experiment fairly, to see
er it would be profitable. But ! do advl
SO them immeditely to commence looking
!. little deeper beneath thesurface for tn
~ us quality Of soil that God must ha
70 placed there, when he said the ear
he should bring forth every fruit IN
il. season. That it may long continue
ed give you and your readers an abunda
% harvest from the soil Of the South,
j. the wish of one, who is proud to RAJ
IN himself your friend, notwithstanding
he is resident upon the soil OF the Nor'
4 Truly yours,
on S0L0N ROBINSON.
na III New York City. May %, 1851.