The Portland daily press., 1868-04-17

A VIZ tier in the Country Gentleman says
he does not hesitate to pay fifteen cents pei
bushel tor ashes, to be carted eight miles, to
put on any land in the State. He goes lit.
tie farther in praise of this fertilizer than we
do. Although ashes are an excellent ma
nure for some soils, yet they are not very val
liable on others. According to our expert
ence and observation very wet, heavy soils
are not much improved by ashes; at least in
any considerable quantities; but ON light,
sandy land they operate as an excellent fertil-
izer, and what adds to their value, they
endure, and the good effects are seen for
years. The second year is better than the
first.
The writer alluded to above says he
in few years and always with the very best
results. He restored twenty acres of light,
sandy soil which had been "corned and ryed
to DEATH" And this minds us of farmer
in this county who inherited farm which
had been much exhausted by crops. The
land was white and pitch pine plains-soiI, a
light, sandy loan. And where the pitch pine
trees pledominated before ii was cleared the
soil was rather coarse and gravelly as it gen.
orally is when it bears such growth. Hav-
ing tried a small quantity of leached ashes on
a little patch, and finding them an excellent
fertilizer, the owner erected a building on his
farm near Royals river which run through it,
and engaged in the work of making potash
not so much for the potash as for the leached
ashes. He followed this business few years
and covered his fields with these ashes, the
results of which he never had any reason to
regret. He improved his land wonderfully
and made il quite good grass farm, to say
nothing of other crops that yielded abundant
ly. True, he made use OF other manures, but
the ashes laid the foundation, for without
proved so beneficial.
The writer whom we have quoted informs
US how he restored worn out sandy land.
He says any time between spring and autumn,
plow rather shallow and spread about one
hundred bushels of ashes to the acre Ia rath-
er large dose), about September first sow
rye Early in the spring SOW clover seed and
about two hundred pounds OF plaster-har-
row with fine toothed light harrow TO bs
followed with roller. Take off the rye but
let nothing disturb the clover the first wear:
let it fall down for winter protection -
Next year NOV the first crop of clover. Let
the second fall down again, and if stable ma
nure can now be procured, spread it on the
clover sod, and in the spring, when the clover
is well up turn it under, plant to corn and
look for good crop. In our climate, we
think the clover would not obtain much OF
a growth before it was time to plant the corn.
We will add il the cultivator will have pa
thence to wait another year before he crops
the land. LET him turn the clover under in
June, sow with buckwheat and plow that
under in September OF as soon as the plant
is fully developed. The next spring he may
plant with corn or SOW with wheat and bave
the best of reasons to expect an abundant
crop. Such a process will restore to tertil-
lty any worn out lands. Clover and buck
wheat are excellent crops to pow in. Almost
any land may be enriched by such a process 5.
And strange it is not more freqrently fol-
lowed! Nothing pays better
How often have we seen iarmers-if thew
can properly be so called-turn in their cattle
upon newly laid down fields to feed on the
green clover that grew with the oats or wheat,