The western Democrat. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1852-1870, 1855-12-11
From the American Cotton Planter
COMPOSING MANURES.

Your July number is before me; and /
note particularly the remarks of yourself
and others about manures, cOmposts, &C.,
Using cotton seed as manure giving prin-
ciple, L now ask, why be at the expense of
hauling ordinary earth, and even stalks say,
to compost! p Why haul in and haul out
again Would it not be as well to open
burrows, drill in your seed, draw in corn
stalks, and cover with two burrows of the
turn pillow 2 As the cotton seed decays,
the corn stalks and earth absorb all gasses.
If much be used, it might be best to COM
post; but even then, might it not be hauled
into the field at once? Ihave used compost,
of seed, black soil from pond, sand, earth,
stubble manure &c, but for my garden, all
| else hauled out and covered forthwith. l
haul up hundreds of loads, / might say, of
corn stalks, and fill up cow-lot, horse-sta-
blcs, hog pen, and such like; these, at sui
table times, are gathered into pens of some
| 10 feet d cube, and hauled out in the spring.
l cannot spare the time to haul seed to a
| spot for compost, then haul to the field. |
|
the field and cover all up immediately
| Thus certainly can deliver in the field about
double the quantity. Unless more care be
taken of cotton seed than usual, no need to
compost. Taking the past Is years, and
my travel from South Carolina to Louisiana
and Kentuckey, think at moderate esti-
mate, 30 per cent. of value has passed off
| in the air, and some near equal quantity by
rain; not one man in five hundred, perhaps,
thinks of keeping his seed dry. Fresh seed
put in the earth in December, January, or
February, and covered before any decompo-
sition, is worth double the quantity taken
from pile which has been exposed all the
winter to rains, &c.
/ give this as my opinion. l do it not
that there is no doubt of my being correct,
but only as all men should in giving their
| opinions.
If my reasons ere not valid, why it does me
no harm to descend. Look at the premises.
| My fields are, say one-quarter of a mile
| from my lots. If | haul cotton seed to lots
then swamp earth, stalks, &c, to compost
must 10 at the least double work to haul
| into field, for the compost material will be
fully double. Thus a days work that dumps
in my field 40, or 500, or 1000 bushels,
willrequirc two day. work for material, one
one for seed, then three more to deliver in
| field-six days work to one. But suppose
we haul all material to field and compost
there English custom of half centu-
~ ago)-we then have to haul out again
and dump for spreading. The question
on my mind is, is it not as well to keep
seed under cover until dry time, then haul
,, Ill material to the field, open burrows for
bedding for ridges, scatter material for COM
post, and cover! All this advances the
work, and the earth receives all the gasses.
| Why should we double and treble work, if
to be avoided ! Why haul earth to COM
post to lot from field, and then haul compost
hack, at two or three times the labor =
| Why not haul out fresh manure and cover!
As l have said, l have composted, but
only for certain purposes. l prefer well
rotted manure for some garden vegetables :;
but suppose would haul out for garden my
| long manure in October or November, and
spade all under, would not gain all my ends!
Yours, dear sir, in respect, PoLITIC.