Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1872-09-20
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From the Maryland Farmer.

To sska crops grow, so far as planting
and cultivating are concerned, to harvest
and prepare crops for market. are easy
matters | suppose, compared with the i'm.
provement Of the soil. or maintaining a
high state of fertility. The latter lies at
the very foundation indeed of success, yet
it always seems, for the present. so short
sighted are We. of secondary importance.
The aim is, year by year, the present
crop; our interest centres in that, and for
Its sake we are willing to sacrifice in a
measure that which does not so immedi-
ately concern u.s. For this reason, and
because of the ruin to our lands that has
come Of it, it seems necessary to keep the
subject of the restoration and preservation
of the soil continually in mind, and to
take study of the cheapest and most
economical methods of efecting this.
We find much written therefore in the
journals, as there should be, on this SUBJ
iect, and we do not doubt that our ambi-
tious young farmers especially are making
it matter of careful study There is
nothing in country life, we believe. that
SO take the heart out of an enterprising
young man, and SO surely disgust him
with farming, as the necessity of working
poor land.
NATURES METHOD.
A we'll written article in Northern
weekly treats Of three modes of improve
ment. Of these he says, first: One way
of improving land is by neglecting to cul-
tivate it-by allowing vegetable growth
to mature from year to year, and to decay
where the plants grow. This is Natures
own process for rendering barren soils
fertile, and rich ground still more produc-
tive. 1t is here where the eminent value
of noxious weeds for agricultural purpos-
es is disclosed, &c.
We hear good deal said of Natures
own process" in the papers, and may nc
doubt take useful hints, but may not rely
OF Nature for direction. We are furnish
ed in Nature with materials to work with,
but our own intelligence taught from va
rious sources is safer guide. As to this
point, one Of the worst things we can do
with land that we would improve is ''neg-
Iecting to cultivate it." Soil, it is true,
has been formed by accumulation of vege.
table matter upon the surface, but it has
been, we must bear in mind, very slow
process we can hardly afford, In this age
of haste. to initiate Nature. Vegetable
matter is what our poor fields mainly
want, but they want it quickly. and they
want'it without the accumulation with it
of she seeds of noxious weeds. We must
not neglect to cultivate therefore. We
must make to grow by cultivation such
plants as answer best the purpose. and we
get not only growth that suits Us better
than Natures, but we employ double a.
gency at the same time that is, the We
getatiou and the cultivation. No one can
doubt that land, especially clay land may
be almost indefinitely improved by good
ploughing alone-the breaking up and
exposure to the atmosphere of the parti-
cles of soil. The vegetable matter helps
the process. while It furnishes organic
material for the nourishment of plants. -
A sensible man who goes diligently to
work. will distance dame Nature in the
work of improvement.
WHAT PLANTS MUST WE USE
Chiefly clover. This we said last
noatb, but as the types made little con-
fusion of it, let me repeat few lines just
here: We should keep close to this tho't,
that the first great want Of our Maryland
agriculture is more and more, and always
increasing manure; and of all manures,
that which is most easily obtained, and
most available, and therefore cheapest is
clouer. Just to the extent that we would
make substantial, permanent and ever In
creasing improvement of our land the
leading thought of our practice. must we
adapt our cultivation to the increase OF
the clover crop.
But what else. There are thousands
of poor acres where clover seed would be
only thrown away; what must We do for
these without manure enough to start the
clover? Will rye, or oats, buckwheat.
field peas or broadcast corn do? All these
will grow where clover will not. and surely
add vegetable matter to the soil. Of the
RI6dG fdLVO Va peas tuCIo 10 uO uouUb ~
all. There is the objection to them that
asuHiciency of seed added to cost of pre-.
pairing ground for sowing, makes them
somewhat costly. The value of neither
oats nor buckwheat for the purpose has
seemed sufficiently marked to attract much
notice.
We have sown rye for this purpose, and
with good success apparently; having
ploughed under when in bloom crop oil
rye that bid the mules which turned il
down, and made an excellent crop Of TO-
hacco on the ground. We find it spoken
of as fertilizer in an article in the New
York World, but not SO definitely as ID
desirable. That it can be made most
useful adjunct to the improvement of poor
lands by sowing it largely as food for
sheep We have no doubt. The article
named says: Rye viii grow and often
yield largely on soil containing not more
than one and a. quarter pes cent. Of organ
ic matter. Ii affords fine winter pas
ture for stock. Is = **
We have seen statement lately that a
crop Of rye, cut of for feeding when in full
bloom, made second growth that produc-
ed good yield of seed. and yeas ago we
saw what seemed an usually 6Re growth
that had been grazed very closely as
SO -