Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1873-02-10
al ariculfurai department
I'D. r. COLLINS, Editor.
ARTIFICIAL MUCK.


houses of vegetable fertilizers, which she |
decomposed in her slow but sure labora-
tory, then there remains for him but to
improve the hint she gives, and, by
rapid process, supply for himself the gift
she has not thought fit to bestow. The
muck found in the swamps and boys is
simply vegetable matter which has ac-
cumulated in that low place and been
rotted in the presence of moisture; it
may be leaves, it may be grass. or
mixture of these and woody fibre.
Knowing what it is, the farmer has be-
fore him u simple plan whereby to form
the same material. He need only grow
some plant, cut it down. and place it
under the same physical circumstances,
and he will have the muck artlfcially
made. 1t is evident that the plant con-
talns most of the materials necessary for
the fertilization Of the soil, or of the
, chemicical components which make up
the valuable principles of muck. when il.
its green state The muck is formed from
the plant after it is dried. and as we
know that the atmospl ere gives to plants
some of tleir life and vigor, so, when
they dry part returns to it; hence if
we take the plant IN the green state we
save the valuable principles which in
drying pass off into the air. and thus get
equivalently greater proportion OF
chemical value. We may infer, there
fore, if a muck bed which has been FORM
ing for ten years contains certain
amount of value. a crop of some plant
cut green, or plowed into the soil when
green, has one-ffth the value, ton for
ton, of the muck.
The farmer who has not bed of
muck near him has simply to sow that
crop, either clover, rye, buckwheat, peas,
or whatever may best suit his land, and
pillow under the same so that it will rot
in the soil Any green plant will an
swer, even weeds. Nature with her
rains and heat, will do the rest. Thus
will be formed in the soil deposit hav-
ing all the valuable qualities of muck.
and costing less than that material. If
it is thought best by the farmer to make
regular compost, then he has only to put
his green crop in combination with rich
earth and water. and in few weeks he
will have model muck bed to his salts
faction. 1t will be necessary, however,
for him to add plaster to such compost
for the perfect retention of the ammonia.
In this plan we conceive that no farm
er need complain that he has not muck
bed |; that Providence has not thus bless
ed him and hence he must grumble.
5 The artificial muck bed is within rea, b
of ALL and 10 the end, we believe it is bet
| lGr ludil tHdG "Hloii HdluiC ploNiuco. IL
is cleaner, no handling is required. nc
standing in dirty pools of water; it pos
sesses all the valuable principles Of the
common muck, and 1t Is readily and
. quickly available We have seen that
the great value of muck is its property
= of forming ammonia and its possession Of
humic acid. whereby even without al
alkali the silica will be made soluble
The properties of any green crop arr
prominently these as it must be evi
dent to any one that the green plant con
= tains vegetable acids which will in pro
cess of its decomposition be transferred
) into humic acid, or from an acid yer,
analogous to it. At the same time VI
know that in the decomposition of an,
= vegetable substance ammonia is formed
=, this experience or observation has laugh
. all of US. We know, further. that it
, absolutely necessary for the compositio
= of the plant that it should contain som
alkali Hence we have an acid at leas
, similar to that of muck we have mate
rial at least capable of forming ammoni
- while it is being rotted, and we hav
10 some of the alakli the soil needs. I
% this must be added soil for retaining tn
- ammonia or what is better, soil an
gypsum With this mixture we hav
, all the valuable qualities of muck, an
where is the man who possesses an acl
. of ground who cannot have it?
y these artificial muck beds spring up a
~ over the land. we shall see also sprins
ing up crops of richer green, and whe
- gathered in of vastly greater yield.
One of the most enthusiastic an