The dollar weekly bulletin. [volume] (Maysville, Ky.) 1862-1864, 1862-06-26

amount of food an animal will consume,
other things being equal. depends upon the
amount of aU6aioble ca1bonaceOus substances
it contains, Irrespective of the heterogeneous {.
This was invariably found to be the case
through ont a very extensive series OF eX-
! periments. TO give more for 100 lbs. OF
bran than for 100 lbs. of -four, because 1t
contains more nitrogen would not be WISE
Neither woul Id it be economical to give three
tim es as much for bushel Of peas as Tor d
bushel of corn, because it contains three
times as much nitrogen; for though the ami
4 nal will increase somewhat more when fed
on peas than on corn vet he will eat TIL he
has obtained the necessary amount OF car
bonaceous natter and OF which corn con
ta.ns much more than peas The facS Is:
that heterogeneous substances are IN excess VI
! the available ca,bondceoIs Otherwise, why
/ is it that we strip the heterogeneous bran rom
the starch OF wheat? Why is it that we
churn so much milk for its carbonaceous
com pound. butter; W lille it nitrogenous mat
ter, casein or curd is given to the hogs in
the buttermilk? Why is it that we eat SO
much fat meat and pork? How is it that
sugar has become necessary to nine-t enthS
/ of the world; and that rice and taploca are
! found IN every household? A II these sub
stances contain large amount OF available
carbon, and little or no nitrogen. For feed-
ing purposes, food is valuable il proper
ton to the amount Of available carbon u
contains; yet the more nitrogen 1t has united
with this carbon, the greater will be It's tat
teuing quality.
a natural conclusion from these facts,
| would he to grow those plants, as food tor
animals which contain the most available
carbon; or, in other woYis, the most starch.
sugar, oil, etc.
| But agriculture is a complex art. We
/ must be careful how we jump at conclusions
In MI Lawes' wheat experiments. system
atlcaily continued on the same soil for fifteen
Successive years, the most important fact
demonstrated is this: The a0heat plant, dur
ing rs growth, 0estroys ammonia. That IS
to say, that much more ammonia is required
10 produce a crop of wheat than the entire
crop,of grain and straw contains when fully
matured. 1t was found. ia several hundred
: experm ants, that an application OF nmonla
Increased the crop up to a certain point, de-
pendent on climate Influences, in proportion
to the amount supplied; but that about five
times as much ammonia is required to pro-
auce given increase OF wheat than it con-
taiDS when grown.
Mr.. Lawes' experiments on turni ps, peas,
beans, clover, ETC., show that these crops do
not destroy ammonia during their growth
and that If sufficient avail able inorganic
matter be present, they can obtain Sullic lent
Ammonia for an average crop, from the
atmOs phere. Whether corn, oats barley,
timothy, and other cereals, destroy am
mouia, is not yet proved, bu; it IS highly
probable. Let Us admit that tn csc cerea Is
Ike wheat, destroy ammonia during their
growth, and that peas, beans, clover, lentils,
ETC., do not; and see how it affects the sub
ject Of rotation.
On farm, then, where wheat, maize bar
lev, and oats, are grown as well as tim othy
and other grasses for feeding purposes, it
must be evident that there is an immense
destruction of ammonia; and that if we are
to obtain large crops, large quantities OF am
mOnia must in one way or other be placed
in the soil The cheapest way, under M ost
circumstances, of increasing the ammonia
on farm Is, by growing those crops which
do not destroy it during their growth, but, on
the other hand, retain that which is brought
to them in rain from the atmosphere.
at least half the dry food given to an
animal is Consumed in the production OF
animal heat, and escapes as carbonc acid
and water in breath and perspiration. The
nitrogen of the food, however, is not given
OF IN gaseous state but. except a small
!,
is all thrown out OF the system in liquid and
solid excrements. the former co ntaining often
SIX times much as the latter.
A crop of clover, in root and branch, often
contains so lbs. OF nitrogen, the greatest part
of which is probably derived from the at
mosphere; and this clover, pIowed in or
eaten on the farm by animals, would furnish
30 lbs. Of ammonia for wheat. corr or
timothy crop. which would be increased ac
cordingly. This so lbs Of ammonia can
not be purchased in an artificial form for
less than S12. A good average crop of peas
contains about as much nitrogen as the
clover. and, like it. obtains most of it from
the atmosphere. The same C an be said Of
tnrnips, mangels. beets, carrots, beans, tares.
&c.
1t will be seen, then. that while maize in
one sense is much more nutritious th an peas
containing more available carbon-yet
THIS nutrit1ous quality Is produced at such
an expense or the ammonia of the SOIL hat
1t can not be grown for feeding purposes, I'M
less high price is obtained for the meat
Peas, though in one sense less nutritious
have been produced at so little expense to
the soil. as compared with corn. and besides
contain SO large quantity of nitrogen. that
their growth and consumption on the farm
can not tan to be comparative v..proftable
The comparison between timothy grass and
clover is equally, and for the same reasons.
un favorable to the growth of timothy for
the purpose Of feeding to amin ais on the
farm. Not only does it contain less nitro
gen, but 1t has consumed much ammonia
during its growth. If this is correct in
theory. it cannot be far wrong to saw that the
average yield of wheat, maize, barley. oats:
and timothy, on any farm, will be in direct
proportion to the quantity of clover, peas.
tcurnips' etc, raised and consumed on the
farm.