American citizen. [volume] (Butler, Butler County, Pa.) 1863-1872, 1867-01-30
farmers 9eparttuent.
Patent once Report, 1855
CALCARE0US MANURES.
3 - BrlcAnBoNArB or LIME. %
AanLicafion of Lime to Land.

f-HtEf1 (ContiHsed.) llkr 6,
Most varieties of subsoil strata
make good compounds with lime
Sand and lime, with. peat or turf, if
it can be obtained, should be mixed
for elayey soil; and subsoil clay
and lime, for sands, gravels, loans,
and peaty lands. No farmer need
complain of want of materials to
make fertilizing compounds, since
every sort of soil may be used for
this purpose and not only is imme-
diate fertility produced thereby, but
there are few districts in the coun-
try, however barren, that may not
be improved, or brought into fertile
state, by dressing with a well-pro-
portioned mixture of earth, clay, sand
and lime. Care should be taken,
however. to proportion the quantity
Of lime according as the land is light
or heavy, cold or warm. Light soils
have been hurt by too abundant ap-
plication of lime and while one part
of lime to form six or ten parts of
earth may do for light soils, one part
of lime to two, three, or more parts
of earth, will be required for heavy
soils.
The application of lime, alone, to
land long under tillage, is often found
not to be beneficial; but, if the same
quantity had been applied in a COM
pound state, with sand, turf, earth,
clay, or vegetable ould,good effects
wouldhave resulted. On deep loans,
lime may be applied in caustic
state, more frequently than to most
other soils (; but the testimony ofex-
perience is in favor of its being used
in a compound state.
Quicklime has the effect of olsen
gaging and setting free the ammon-
ia from guano and from fermenting
manures. 1t is prudent, therefore,
and safer practice to apply the lime
a short time before or after such
manures have been laid upon the
land. Where the soil is moist, and
abounds in vegetable matter, there
may not be much loss, should the
lime and other manures come in con-
tact beneath its surface but in dry
soils, and on the surface of the land,
the admixture of the two ought to
be carefully avoided. After the lime
has been some time in or on the sur
face Of the soil, and converted into a
mild state, it can exercise no injur-
ious effect upon any kind Of manure.
The most valuable variety of lime
for agricultural purposes is that oh.
tanned by burning oysterNshells, and
allowing it to remain exposed to the
air few hours to slack. Quarry
lime is not so good on account of the
magnesia which it often contains, ,and
from its small quantity or total want
of phosphoric acid. The quantity
used must depend upon the nature of
the soil, and moisture, heat, or cold,
Of the climate for, whilst 80 bush
els to the acre are sufficient for sandy
soils, loans will require 100, and
clay $50 bushels. Again, in q hot
sun, like that experienced in most
parts of the United States, the guam
tity should not be more than half as
much as in Great Britain, where the
Climate is cloudy, cool, and moist.
1t must be regularly spread, and
lightly covered Immediately with
plough, or narrowed in with the seed,
but not too deeply, for lime, as agen-
eral rule, should be kept near the
surface.
Those unaccustomed to the appli>
cation of lime or charcoal to land,
by sowing or spreading them upon the
surface, are often at loss to know
how thick a coat to put On in order
to dispose Of certain number of
bushels to an acre. Therefore, II
show at glance, in the following
table, the depth, 10 the nearest thous- |
andth part of an inch, given num- |
Der of bushels will cover an acre of
ground, assuming the bushels to con. |
tain 2,150 42-100 cubic inches; al
so, the nuu.ber of bushels necessary
to cover an acre of land to requir-
ed depth. For exrmple, if there be |
800 bushels sJread to an acre, the
depth will be 103-1000 of an inch. |
If the depth be one inch, it will re-
u1iirn 9 9l6 o37-1000 a,.boI, 49,.