Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1867-10-12
AGRICULTURAL.
FaRn. GARDEN AyD HOusEROLD.

to keep his land in good condition with
ont large additions of manures brought
upon the land TO compensate for the
crops taken off? We believe that, ex-
cept in certain mineral substances
lime, phosphates, etc.-it is not only
possible to keep up the fertility of the
farm, but it is the duty of every farm
er to do it, To say that it cannot be
done except by bringing large quanti-
ties of manure from distance is
merely saying that large part OF the
earth's surface must ultimately be-
come barren, and that the arabic fertile
land will IN time be restricted to more
and more narrow limits. For, on the
tue theory that land gains only from
the manure brought upon 1T, there is,
even under the most careful manage
ment, a certain amount of loss. Ma
nures are constantly making their way
through rivers and lakes to the ocean,
and there is no visible return of that
eyer.howing current. This has been
going on ever since the creation; yet
there is no evidence that the virgin
soil of our newly cleared forests is not
as fertile as at any period of the earth's
history It is only when subjected to
lncessant cropping, and badly managed,
that land deteriorates.
We believe that natures great labor
atory is constantly furnishing the main
elements of plant life. Every breath
of air which penetrates the earth, and
every drop of water which falls from
the sky, carries with it food for the
growing plant. Ii the land was la the
condition to make the mOstnof these,
farms might be heavily cropped and
vet constantly increase In fertility.
But few farms are in such condition.
A soil cold, aud wet and hard, gathers
no benefit from the kindly offices of ma
ture. The rains and dews of Heaven
do not penetrate it, or if they do it is
only TO remain stagnant in and on the
land to again evaporate, carrying away
as much or more of the fertilizing ele-
ments as they brought. In thorough
ly underdrained soil every rain acts as
a gentle manure The water percolates
through the earth, leaving in the pas
sage all its fertiliziug elements, and
runs off in underdrains clear and cold
as water from the bowels of the earth.
The air follows the water, and its am
monia is gathered by the fresh, loose
earth, or by the roots of the growing
plant. The leaves of all strongly
growing plants feed it almost or quite
as much as the roots, and strong, vIgOr-
Gus plants have been grown in pure
sand without q particle of vegetable
matter, and deriving all their nourish-
ment from air and water.
Grain growing plants need some adj
ditional elements; lime, phosphates
and sand. Sand is abundant enough
on almost all lands. If there is black,
mucky soil where the grain lodges,
from lack of stiffness in the straw, a
little deeper blowing of the sub soil
will probably turn up sand enough to
answer all practical purposes. Such
soil also needs lime or ashes so as to
make the sand available. Mucky lands
are usually deficient III mineral matter.
The reason is obvious, as they were
originally mostly under water, and the
mineral elements have been washed
out aud are now somewhere in the At |
lantic Ocean. Such lands are rich |
enough in vegetable matter. They
need only mineral manures, and dress |
ing of lime, ashes and ground bones
would make them the richest grounds
on the farm.
But while we believe the farms can
be kept in a good degree of fertility
without any imported manures except |
of mineral character, we don't believe |
il is policy for the farmer to rely solely |
on these where it is impossible for him |
to procure additional fertilizers. The
price OF farm produce is now high |
enough to pay good profit in using |
barn manure from the cities, sweepings
of the streets, superphosphates and 9TH
er fertilizers, whenever they can be pro- |
cured. The difference between ten and |
twenty bushels of wheat per acre is |
often the difference between a good /
profit and an absolute loss; or, if fifteen |
bushels without manure would yield |
good profit, thirty or thirty five bush |
els would not only pay a great deal of
extra manuring. but would be sure to |
yield greatly Increased profits. Be-
sides the land is always 10 better con-
ditiOn after good crop than after
poor one. A poor crop, instead of |
resting" the land, really exbausts it |
the most, showing that fertility is the
natural and best condition of all soils |
There is no means known of getting a |
large crop from land and leaving it |
poor. Besides the waste from large
crop returned TO the land, to say moth |
ing of what goes into the pocket of the |
owner, has a tendency to perpetuate
the natural condition of fertility, so
that IN this, as in a great many other
things, sit is only the first step which
COSTS" Fifty or a hundred dollars
spent IN fertilizers are permanent in
vestment on any farm. The imIhedi-
ate effects of the manuring will be visi-
BILE for several years, and its remoter
effects will remain forever. .dnc
CnARcoAL FOR TURKEYS. We notice
that California paper highly recon-
mends charcoal for iattening turkeys.
and recommends that it should be pull
verified and mixed with mashed pota-
toes and corn meal, as we'll as fed 10
them in small humps. 1t mentions that
In two lots of turkeys of four each.
treated alike, and one lot given this
mixture and the other not, there wac an
aggregate gain In the weight of the
first, of one pound and half each
While we condemn the practice of mix
ing the pulverized charcoal with the
other food of the turkey, compelling
them to eat whether they wanted it or
moi, we have no doubt of the excellent
effects of supplying fattening turkeys
with charcoal broken into small pieces.
We have had evidence of what we say.
and for number of years have recon-
mended charcoal for this purpose.