Lynchburg daily Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1852-1861, 1853-11-09
mR rpMuNns ADDRESS.


woody fibre of the manure, containing scarcely
! any fertility. Water should never be permitted
Ia run from farm pen; the quantity # the mate
ral~ and the position Of the yard should careful
! i guard against such waste. The extent of the
farm pen aud the quantity Of materials collected
must be source ofno satisfaction, if the fertlz-
ing ingredients have been washed out by success
/ sYe rams,
The other source Of waste j. too rapid fernen-
tation, usually called heating Of mannrcs. Am
lnena j. "a volatile ulknl which i disengaged from
all organic mguures by rapid fermentation.
single example ii be sufficient for illustration
! Fresh stable manure ia the dry state confirms
near three + cent 81 nitrogen After heating in
"a thick stratum, il lost nine-tenths of its weight
aud contained 400 moro than per cent. of nit
rogeu when reduced 70 dryness.-- Bousingault
/ 81. This degree of heating and extent Of loss
nre rnrely permitted, aud The extreme case isquo
/ ted only ~ IA warning against my degree Of rap
/ i'll fermentation in which ammonia Is lost. The
spreading of plaster, mari aud ashes between the
! different layers of the materials of the farm pen
will, 10 some extent, aid in fixing the ammonia,
aud improve the quality Of the manure. Before
hauling out. the heap should be turned once or
twice 10 mix the ingredients more intimately aud
produce moro uniform decomposition.
The slow and gradual decomposition of manure
heaps, containing ashes and cnlcareous carths
not only retain al Of the ammonia and nitric acid
which are formed from the materials III compost,
but an additional quantity is produced by aunlon
between the elements of the manure heap, with
tho free nitrogen Of the atmosphere. In com
posts thus formed and frequently turned, after
prolonged decomposition, the quantity of nitro
gen is found Ia be greater in the ammonia and
nitric acid than contained in the whole of the
substances first plaecd in compost Edlnburg
Quarterly journal AUG 1917 10 5r2 Prof.
Johnston, Bousingnut 250. To produce these
results the presence of alkaline or cueureous
euTbouaips is necessary. aud the luprp hpnbinp
OF the materials OF the farm pen is not sufficient
Bousngault 2l9. As these compounds of nit
rogon constitute the chieffcrtililizing ingredient
oi putresccnt m0norcs, the conditions necessary
To their formation should exist in the compost
heap, aud all tho means Of increasing their guam
tlty, should be carefully adopted
In pointing out the important requisites in the
preparation oi inrm pen mnnnres, do not wish
To be understood rs recommending the use OF all
the resources Of the farm in that mode. The farm
pen To some oAtent is Indispensable There
must be sufficient materials collected to absorb
aud retaln the manurcs, when any portion of the
cattle are penncd. Further than this do not
gard the accumulation Of vegetable substances e.
economical or iudieous.
Among some farmers, there is prevalent i'm
preston that the process of digestion by the cat
lie adds to the fcrtilzing ingredients of the farm
pen-ln other words, makes the materials of the
inrm pen richer. Ihisimpression mast be re-
constitutes both the nutritious principle of food,
and the chlel tcrtilizng ingredient of the man
ures. That portion of the nitrogen which is ab
strncted in the formation of flesh, and which is
eNhaled from the animal Is so much withdrawn
from the fertility ut the manurss-to which must
be added that portion of the phosphates which
forms the bones \ ton of wheat straw, then
must be regarded as containing larger amount
Of ouriehng elements before icing fed to cattle,
than after the process of digestion
There Is always II lurge surplus of straw and
other materials not needed for farm pens; and
the best disposition of this, is 10 haul it directly
10 the lnud You desire to manure, and to spread
II broadcast. II is much lighter in hauling when
dry, and can be haulod in more convenient sea
sons. In the process of decay fertilizng
principle is given off to the air. for it is asserted
on hugh authority the result of experiment,
that substance containing nitrogen, all of whose
parts are in contact with the air, in the process
ot decomposition, never contributes nitrogen to
The confined atmosphere i'm which it is placed
tBousingault, 2l2) But ON the contrary, por-
ton of the hydrogen evolved in putretaction
unltcs with the nitrogen of the atmosphere sur
rounding il, and forms ammonia The absorbent
powers Of the sold aud Of the organic substances
are sufficient to retain rhe ammonia thus formed,
until consumed by the growing crop.
The productcn OF ammonia and nitric acid
FROM the nitrogen of the atmosphere by the de
cay oforganic matter in the soil, is unhesitating-
~ asserted by Professor Johnston-even when
the docomposing substance is purely carbonace-
Gus cd. Quar-. Jour, Ag- p. 5Sl.) 1t is IN
necessary to give the absruse laws of chemistry
upon which these results rest, but 10 assume the
conclusion Us correct, that when decomposition
of organic matter occurs in contact with air, n
small and variable proportion of ammonia and
nitric acid are produced at the expense of the free
nitrogen of the atmosphere. Ibid. See also
l}ousmgalt, 3l2; Mulder as quoted in Ed. Jour,
Ag., 1917 p ~. In this connection he also
states 'n proportion as the presence of lime
promotes this decay of vegetable and other or
ganic matter in the soil, in the same proportion
does IT promote the production of ammonia and
nitric acid at the expense of the free nitrogen of
the atmosphere, and this may be regarded as
one of the valuable and constant purposes served
] by the presence of calcareous matter in the soil.
! And, cline influences in an unknown degree the
nitrogen of the atmosphere To become fixed in
larger proportion IN the soil in the form of nitric
acid and ammonia than would otherwise be the
case; and this il does both by the greater amount
OF decay or oxidation, which it brings about in n
given time, and by the kinds of compounds, which
under its influences, the organic matter is per-
suaded to FORM
have thought proper to impress upon the So
cety the iact, that the decomposition OF vcgeta-
bile substances may be rs iudiciously conduct
ed IN the soil, on its surface, rs in the farm
pen-and that there is really no gain from the
laborous process of hauling in straw to be
drenehed with ran and partially fermented, to be
hauled out with great additional weight and la
Dor. Even unrotted pine leaves, as raked up
from the woods-though ON acid soils they pro-
duce injurious ettects-on soils which have been
rendered cacareous, "producc only and always
beneficial results; and that is the best as well as
the cheapest mode of their application ~
These researches of distinguished chemists are