Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1859-02-18

/ HdNc IL tduk lHto WHICH the drainage
could run when the water is in excess.
and from which it could be pumped back
when it is deficient. Few people have
any idea Of the value and convenience of
a good manure tank. Water has the
power of retaining large quantity OF
ammonia, and the judicious use of the
drainage in the tank will prevent much
loss of this most valuable ingredient of
manure.
Some good farmers in this vicinity are
abandoning the practice of blowing in
clover for wheat. They break up the
sod ground for corn; clean the land as
much as possible with this crop; then SOW
blrley, followed by wheat the same fall.
And they find Of course, much benefit
from manuriny the wheat either by plow,
ing the manure before sowing, or apply
ing it as topdressing. Such practice
allows the manure 10 remain in the barn
yard during the summer, and, by proper
management, it can be reduced to .sspit
manure with little or no loss of am.
mona, Such manure, so fermented that
1t can be cut with spade, will not weigh
more than half as if it had been used in
the fresh, unfermented state, and. Of
course, the cost of hauling, spreading, &C.,
would be reduced half. Such man
ure, too, acts quicker, and would afford
the wheat plants abundance of nour,sh
ment in the fall, and give them good
stlrt,whlch is a very important consider
alton.
Manure applied to spring crops should
be thoroughly decomposed, or it has
little immediate effect; and if the weather
proves dry and hot, unfermented manure
is as often injarous as useful. We are
well aware that there is amorg o practical
farmers, as we'll as among scientific writer's,
much diversity of opinion on this point.
If We pow in fresh manure, all the food
Of plants it contains is retained in the
soil, and will ultimately exert its maxi
mum effect On the other hand.as man
ure is usually treated, there is great loss
from rapid and injurious fermentation and
more especially from teaching. But this
loss can be aroided Before manure can
be useful to any crop, it should be thor
ou5hly decomposed-either in the heap
or IN the soil. Plants can not live on
organized, matter. 1t is their function
10 convert the crude, inorganic matter,
capable OF supporting animal life. Plants
can no more live on organiza ed matter than
ANIMALS can live on the crude alkalics.
acids and gases Of which plants are com
posed.
M1nures,to act Immediately, therefore,
must be well rotted and in this case. as
IN all others, time is money" The re-
Iatlve advantages Of app yins manure to
wheat IN the fall or to spring crops, in
volve points which we cannot now con-
slider. During the summer, fermentation
proceeds rapidly, and it is easy to get
manure well rotted for fall use: out it is
difficult to get manure made in winter
sufficiently dccomposcd for immediate ap-
/ Fllcatlon to spring crops.
The four principal agents in fermenta
ton, are light, heat, air, and moisture -
Other things being equal, those substan
ees which contain the most nitrogen fer
ment the easiest. On this account rood
manure will rot sooner than poor. Com
+ preston, by excluding the air, retards fer
mentatton; an ercess of water, from the
same cause, has the same effect. If the
heap was perfectly dry, no fermentation
would take place. This, however, never
happens in practice; but the heap is often
too dry, and then the manure fire fangs,'
with great loss of ammonia. The reason
heat Is evolved during fermentation, is
owing to the oxygen ofthc air uniting
with the carbon and hydrogen of the
manure, forming carbonic acid and water
a given quantity Of carbon and hydro.
gen giving out just as much heat as
though burned in a stove. This nascent
carbonlc acid has Il beneficial effect on
many OF the ingredients of the manure,
rendering them more soluble.
The principle object in preserving
manurcs, should be to let the heap fer
nent slowl ly-not SO rapidly as to drive
off the ammonia. To accomplish this,
the hog and COW manure, which ferment
with difficulty, should be mixed with the
horse ami sheep manure, which have,
when unmixed in loose heap, a tendency
to enter into rapid and injurious fermen-
tatlon The heap, too, should be kept
compact, by allowing sheep, hogs and
cattle to tramplo it. 1t must also be
kept moist, bat not too wet. To provide
the necessary moisture at all times, it is
OF great advantage to have good tank
should be kept saturated with plaster
sulphatc of lime), which, when in solu.
ton, will convert the volatile carbonate
OF ammonia into the fixed salt, sulphate
OF ammonia, and this prevent loss. This
effect will be produced not only in the
tank, but, when the sulphated liquid is
pumped on to the heap, the carbonate Of
ammonia in the heap also will be convcr-
ted into sulphate, and retained.
On every farm there is much refuse
matter, which, when decomposed, will
not only make a good manure, but will
also help to absorb the liquid which
would otherwise drain off and be lost
Everything oIthis kind should be added
to the heap Genesee Farmer.
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