The Camden weekly journal. [volume] (Camden, South-Carolina) 1853-1861, 1853-08-09
9or the Sarmers.
Summer Tillagc of Growing Crops.

Aduantages of frequent stirring Of hc Soil.
The benefits Of deep and thorough pulreriza
ton of the soil before planting crop are begin
ming to be well understood by most farmers, but
only few seem to have any distinct idea Of the
importance of keeping the surface of the ground
mellow by frequent stirring between the growing
plants, except so far as may be necessary to pre-
vent the growth of wecds-and even this we
should Judge is not deemed of much consequence
by some who call themselves farmers. Wcpro-
pose therefore to state in few words a few Of the
advantages of frequent tillasc Or maintaining a
mellow surface among growing crops; and we
hope that many of our readers will speedily test
by experience the truth of our suggestion.
j. As a preventive Of injury from drouth, fire.
,quent stirring of soil is cf great advantage-and
in<our sunny climate more or less injury to crops
is caused by drouth almost every summer. A
mellow surface allows the rains 10 descend into
the soil, instead Of running off into guliics and
streams; it also prevents the rapid evaporation
or return of moisture from the soil into the at
mosphere, and in dry weatherit absorbs great
er amount of moisture in the form of dew by al
lowing the air which is loaded with moisture at
night to descend considerable depth into the
ground, and by presenting vastly greater
amount of particles becoming quickly cool at
night, condense vapor and caIse dew, while a
hard surface gives out the warmth received du-
ring the day and thus prevents the formation of
dew. Every person must have observed that
; more dew falls on mellow surface than on a
: hard one, and the. soil beneath remains moist
much longer during severe drouth.
20. 1t cnriches the soil, and thereby increases
the growth of the crop. This is done by allow
ing The rains to descend into the soil as above
stated, and thereby the ammonia which summer
rains always contain, is absorbent aud made
available to the roots CT plants, instead Of being
carried into ponds and streams. The power Of
clayey and ioa,ny soils to absorb ammonia is one
of the most valuable discoveries which chemical
science has made for agriculture We shall
speak of this more fully at another time.
8. The nutriticc clemeats IN tie soil are reaa-
well as moisture to the roots Of plants. Much OF
the food of plants like carbon, is either absorbed
by the roots in q gaseous form, or is rendered
soluble by the action of gasses Of fermentation
in which atmospheric air Is 4 necessary agent {;
hence it is found that msuureS are comparative
" of but little advantage in clayey soils where
the air has not free access, and it is mcasurably
the same in dry soils when the surface becomes
baked and hard.
THE destruction Of acccdS. We should not
deem it necessary to speak Of this, did we not
find some farmers still holding to the mistaken
notion that weeds are an advantage in shading
the ground in time oil drouth! Let such men
consider that every weed acts as suction pnmp,
drawing moisture from beneath the surface, and
sending it off by evaporation into air, and also
absorbn" nutriucnt from the soil-thon the ad-
vautages of their destruction by frequent hocing
&C., we think must he obvious.
There are several other advantages, as the pre-
seryaton Of more equal temperature in soils
that are frequently stirred, DC, but fearing that
onr article will be too long for farmers to read at
this busy season, we will not say more at present.
Min /J,/firoInr