Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1854-01-13
nIanures ana NIanuring.

How to prepare and apply manures is a matter in
which every cultivator of the soil must feel deeply
interested. 1t matters not to what expense and
trouble go to procure the finest fruits or veeeta
bles and the most beautiful trees shrubs, and flow
ers or with what excellent taste we may arrange
parterre: unless furnish the soil with such
quantities and kinds of fertzing materials as will
ensure vigorous, luxuriant, and healthy growth.
The agrlcGturalist may stock his farm with the
purest and best blood of animals that the world can
produce, or he may plant the best improved grains
and grasses or root crops that money will purchase
but without udicous and liberal feeding in the one
case, and skillfu thorough culture in the other he
will be no better off in the end than his neighbor
who has remained satisfied with such stock and such
seeds as he could most easily and most cheaply pro-
cure This every one will most cheerfully admit in
theory, but great many deny it in their practice
and thus the obstinate opposers of improvement and
progress have been furnished with their strongest
arguments. Here, they say, Mr.. Brown and
Squire Jones, who have spent fortunes in collecting
new and fine things from all parts of the world
they have every known variety of fruit and flowers
they have employed celebrated gardeners to lay
out their grounds, and have spent thousands upon
labor; and what have they? Why, they have to
come over here to us and purchase supply of fruit
for their families and the old lady across the way
whose garden is mere patch, and who does all her
own work, can show and finer flowers than
they can any day In the year! This is not an ina
glnary case; we have repeatedly heard these re-
marks and had occasion to regret the pernicious in
fuence of such examples On the other hand, we
could point to instances where single example of
small garden successfully cultivated, has awakened
entire village and neig borhood and set them at
planting and gardening with the greatest enthusi-
asm-and upon the right principle
One OF the very first matters that should occupy
the attention of persons embarking in horticulture
whether on large or small scale, should be the
preparation of the soil. This ought to be the stan
ding point and there is probably no other item in
the entire routine of culture in regard to which be-
glnners find themselves so puzzled, so completely
in the dark. If every crop and every soil could
with propriety be furnished with the same quantity
and kind Of manures or fertilizers it would be sim
pie matter; but such is far from being the fact
What may be tit and proper for soil and one sort
OF crop, may be utterly runous to others and there.
fore great degree of judgment and discrimination
becomes necessary. Much may be gathered from
the instruction of books and the experience of others:
but local circumstances, apparently trivial, exert
such weighty influence that nothing save actual
experience with soils afford an unerring
and perfectly reliable guide. This we have found
true in our own practice. We have no hope, there
fore of being able to write anything that every man
may carry out TO advantage, and will merely aim at
directing attention to certain well established facts
and principles that may aid in putting the inexpe-
rienced on the proper course.
One great error and, as we believe, very preva-
lent one, is that OF applying the same kind of ma
to the same soil for great number of years in
succession. We will take, for instance, town and
village gardens, and see how the case is with them
A COW and a horse and perhaps pi G. kept on
the premises. and whatever manure they may pro
duce, or such quantity of it as may be considered
necessary, is annually applied to the garden without
any admixture of other material, and in most cases
without being very properly prepared beforehand
At the same time, the ground is cropped with the
articles year after year with very slight vara-
tions. By and by the crops begin to fail and the
wonder is 1rhy, with such liberal manuring every
year But it is not at all wonderful We have seen
lime, mari, weed, and other fertilizers produce
the most abundant crops for few years then cease
to have any good effect, but rather to be injurious
Thousands of gardens are defective, not from the
want of manure, but from the too frequent applca-
tion of one material People not thoughtful OF
careful enough in saving the waste materials of gar
dens and kitchens to add to the manure heap. The
more vegetable refuse that be returned to the
garden the less will strong animal manure be need
ed Leaves, the dry stalks and waste parts of veg
etabes, weeds, mowings and sweepings of lawns
prunings of trees, clippings of hedges if thrown in
heap and mixed with little manure, lime turf
from old pasture, muck or peat, &C., would make
of the very best composts for gardens, whatever
might be the character of the soil or the crops
, grown it, They return to the soil the very same
substances of which it has been deprived by crops
together with others taken from the atmosphere
Such Il compost is far preferable to strong stable
manure, for trees especially, and may be applied
with entire safety in fertile soils, where il
might be considered that manure of any kind was
y wholly unnecessary. The finest garden crops anG
D the most vigorous, healthy and fruitful trees we
know of, are those of poor cottagers who keep nc
animals and have manure but such as they scrape
up in the form of refuse. Their necessities compe
them to follow system of preparing manure that
every should adopt from choice. dressing O
wood ashes occasionally is. of great value. The al
kali they contain is not only useful to the soil, bu
destructive of grubs hat nfest it. SCOT is also val
$ liable in this respect, and it is point of some i'm
portance for when animal manures alone have
been plentifully applied for number of years, grub
become numerous as to render the garden nearl,
worthless. The best way to apply these substances
is, to spread them the ground in the fall o.
r winter, and spade them under before spring come
!; they rendered perfectly harmless. Bones either
i in fresh state or from the glue factory, make
valuable application to gardens and especially tt
fruit trees If ground to powder, dissolved il
sulphuric acid, they produce an immediate effect
but if simply broken in pieces spaded into th
ground, they have gradual and permanent effect
In taking up from soil where bones have beer
used as manure. find every particle within reacl
of the roots completely enveoped in masses of bres
- Guano superrhosphate of lime, and other prepares
IS manures are becoming extensively used and will b.
advantageous to persons who have extensive ground
( to enrich, with limited means of procuring max
+ ing manure. Those who have but small garden
h have the means of making ali the manure they re
n quire and that too, of kind which we would pre-
fer either to guano or any OF the patent ma1utac
tured compounds.
The manner OF applying manures and the tim
to do requires careful consideration In this
sr trv where have excessive heat, and often
siye drouth in sunimer-and that, too, earl
- period of the summer-soid manures and compost
of every kind should, general thing, be apple
= in the autumn so that during winter and sprin
they may be dissolved and fitted to yield nutrimen
'e to plants when active grcTrth commences. Ever
pcpJc cultiy atork knows that q have a