Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1855-03-09
AGRTCUL LTU RA L
What is Practical Farming.

The ashes of plant, are called inorganic
matter. Though apparently homogeneous
these ashes have certnin distinctive features
which are important to the farmer. Tho
same plant without reference To the soil on
winch it grows, always yields an ash of about
the same comrostion. Different classes of
plants yield different kinds of ashes fnor.
ganic or ashy matter is obtained by plants
only from the soil. II is Of a mineral char
acter, and never exists naturally in the at
mosphere. From these facts we 500 that the
soil, in order to produce perfect plants must
contain tho matter necessary to form their
ashes, while these being different in the va
rious crops, the soil NAV he fertile for one
crop and not for others. because the rroror-
tions Of its inorganic materials NAV he such
that it can furnish food for the ashes OF hut
the me kind Of plant Other soils again are
fertile for all plants. and If We examine these
by chemical analysis, we shall find that they
contain all that is necessary for forming the
ashes Of all plants
The first fact that strikes MS in studying
the composition of vegetable ashes is that
they consist Of the same substances in all
plants, the differences consisting onlv in
their relative proportions to each other.
These substances are called potash. lime,
magnesia, phosphoric acid, sulphurc acid,
chlorine, "a constituent of common sllt.)
silica, (the base Of sandy oxide Of iron. (or
iron rusty and in some plants. oxide Of man
ganese. These constituents. EXCEPT tho last
named, exist in all of our cultivated plants.
the proportions varying with the kind Of
plant. For instance the ashes Of wheat and
other seeds contain large proportions of
phosphoric acid, the Iotato yields much
notash, clover possesses large quantities of
lime, etc. The relations between the soil
and its natural productions seen to he invari
able, and we observe in practice that. other
things being equal. a soil in which phospho-
ric acid largely predominates, is hest for
wheat. rye. corn. &c. An excess of potash
fits the soil for potatoes. Lime induces
growth Of clover or other plants having ash
es OF similar composition.
The same principle explains another APP
parent PECULIARLY of cultivation. 1t is often
observed that soils which are fertile for ono
crop refuse to produce 1t after years cul-
| tivation, though they will produce some
| other crops in abundance. The reason for
this is. that the constant production Of one
| kind Of plant rohs the soil chiefly of one or
| two ingredients, until they are too much
duced in proportion to afford proper -usten-
ance to plants requiring them so largely
though it may still contain other Ingredients
in sufficient quantity to sustain another class
! of plants. Thus. successive crops Of wheat ROB
the soil of its phnsphoric acid, willie they re-
| quire its potash in less quantities. Supposing
the two constituents to have existed in equal
proportions at first. at the end Of five years Of
wheat-growing there would be remaining in
the soil more Of potash than Of phosphorc
acid. and it would be better fitted for tho
growth of potatoes then for that of wheat.
On this principle is founded the rotation Of
crops, which consists in cultivating say three
or five kinds Of crops in yearly succession,
thus so varying the demands on the soil that
it SUPPLIES the various kinds of inorganic mat
ter in about the same proportions, and Is lett
at the end of the rotation in proper balance
that is, having no constituent largly predom-
mating over the others. While On this
subject we may mention very plausible the
ory on the subject of weeds. 1t is the ma
tural tendency of soils to produce spontan-
eneous growths of plants, the composition of
whose ashes corresponds with their own.
Many of the more noxious weeds differ great
ly in their inorganic parts from crops which
we wish to cultivate, and when the ash of the
weed corresponds more closely with the soil
than does that Of our crop, the weed has tho
best chance of success, and unless closely
watched will crowd it out. 1t is reasonably
supposed that if we SO improve the character
Of the soil as to render it more congenol for
the crop and less SO for the weed we may pur-
sue our operations with better hope Of sue
cess. This is u matter which may be easily
brought into practice, and which must greatly
advance the interests Of the cultivator. The
compositions of the various kinds of the veg
etabe ashes have been often published in ta-
bles of analysis by the assistance of which we
may know the exact requirements of our crops
and may fit our soils for their reception.
, The farmer should always bear in mind this
law of nature, viz The uarious classes Of
plants hare ashes Of different compositions,
and no ertp can come 10 perfection wHhoul the
matters necessary to form The ashes peculiar
10 it-Y. Y. Eve Post.