Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1869-02-10

! In 1866 | prepared clover sod iron
which | had taken the year before a crop Of
hay) for wheat, by twice blowing aud manur-
| ing as follows Previous 10 the first blowing,
which was done early in July, drew out aud
spread, Of common barn-yard manure, IL two
horse loads per acre, on rather more than half
the piece. The field was again plowed the
last Of August, and a strip on one side not
previously MANFRED, containing one-lourth Of
an acre, was top-dressed with 30 bushels Of
leached ashes. On another strip of equal
size by the side Of the first spread com.
post, consisting Of 10 bushels Of guano from
the hen-roost mixed with % bushels Of COM
mon garden mold and ON a third similar
strip | put poudrctto, made Of % bushels
Of garden mold and the night soil for year
Of a family averaging five persons. On the
remaining unmanurcd portion Of the field,
well decomposed barn-yard manure was spread
at the rate Of 6 two-horse loads per acre.
The field was then narrowed, and on the 9th
Of September a variety Of wheat known as
the Bald Treadwell was drilled 10, at the
rate Of two bushels per acre.
The summer having been cool and moist,
and therefore favorable to the propagation Of
wire-worms those gentry helped themselves
/ literally to the wheat both before it came up
and alterward, eating out large patches al
most entirely However | observed that the
worms did very little damage on the parts
MANFRED with the ashes. guano and poudrette.
At harvest imo there was no perceptible diff
ference in Ne yield Of these three plots, each
| yielding at the rate Of 80 bushels per acre,
while the rest Of the field, owing to the wire
worms, hardly came up to 10 bushels per
acre.
" One swallow does not make a summer"
nor does one experiment Of this sort prove
that loached ashes, at the rate of 200 bushels
per acre, thc amount applied, are better
than a good dressing of ban-yard manure, or
II good two-horso loads. Something depends
probably on the nature and condition Of the
soil and something on the manner Of appli-
cation. The soil of my farm is clay loan,
with some sand The surface stones are
mainly limestone
| have used ashes previously and since,
aud 6nd that | derive most benefit from them
when applied to the surface in the fall.
should estimate their value leached without
deducting the cost Of carriage, when not pro-
duced on the farm, at ten cents per bushel :;
ull'o"onVu '"'neI 'hoIe' say AT th'I'Von " III
teen cents.
procured Of a soap-maker near me what
ashes | could, and with my own, applied as a
top-dressing to wheat this fall as far as they
would Co. at the rate Of 200 bushels per acre.
: Other portions Of the field were top-dressed
with decomposod barn-yard manure, and when
} winter set in those portions dressed with ashes
: looked as well as any, and confidently ex-
poet therefrom as large yield Of wheat both
t lighter in color and plumper than that from
other portions of the field | have never
found any benefit from blowing under eached
r ashes and conclude that they need to lie near
/ or ON the surface, else they do not readily
yield up their potash to the action Of water.
WM. =. SIssoN.
Ledyard, Caylga Co., NJ Y, JAM o.