The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1875-07-19
THE FARM AND HOUSEHOLD.
How to Get Large Crops.


Now how are we to get larger crops per
acre? The atmosphere perhaps furnishes US
with all the carbonic acid which plants re-
quire; and the rains and dews furnish us
small quantity of nitrogen; but not nearly as
much as we need to produce large crops. Nj
trogen, phosphoric acid, potash, etc., are an
nually developed from the SOIL The amount
SO furnished, varies greatly according to the
character of the land. On light, sandy soil it
may not be sufficient to furnish food for
more than quarter of a ton of hay, or five
bushels of wheat to the acre: or it may be
sufficient on some soils to furnish food enough
for ton ofhay or twenty bushels of wheat
an acre. Whatever the amount is, that is
what call the normal yield of the soil cult
walton may accelerate the development. 1t
may procure us larger quantity in given
time. A meadow which produces less than
half ton ofhay to the acre, ifplowed up,
well worked, and seeded down again may
give us two tons to the acre. This is due in
great degree to the decomposition of the
roots, which have been formed from the
slowly developed matter in the soil for some
years past. This is not the normal supply of
plant food.
In Mr.. Lawes' experiental wheat field, the
annual yield of wheat for over thirty years,
without manure of any kind, and the crop of
grain and straw all removed has been about
fifteen bushels per acre. This is the normal
yield of wheat on that soil, with two plow-
ings each year, and hoeing between the drills
to keep the crop clean. l have used this
well established fact to illustrate what Mr..
Geddes calls my ''pet theory of the advant-
ages OF raising. at long intervals, large crops
OF wheat by Summerfallowing.' hope the
careful readers of the Agriculturist under
stand my views better than to limit nv theo-
ry merely to Summer-fallowing. That is only
one OF the means have suggested. Raising
clover, peas, mangles turnips, mustard, rape,
corn, oats, rye, buckwheat and grass, and
feeding them out on the farm, carefully saw
ing and returning the manure, is Just as
much one ofmy ''pet theories" The princ-
pie is the same.
What contend for is that wemust in some
way get greater accumulation of available
plant food in the soil, especially for our, best
paying crops, and those which require the
largest amount of labor to the acre There
are but two ways of doing this: First. Buy
the plant food. This we can do in artificial
fertilizers. The nitrogen in this form will
cost US twenty to thirty cents per pound. We
can also buy stable manure from the cities.
We can also buy hay from such of our neigh
bors as are willing to sell, Or bran, ocake,
grain and other foods, and feed it out to cat
tie, sheep and pigs. There are some who can
get fish, seaweed, swamp muck, etc. Second
We can get this accumulation of plant food,
by saving that which is annually developed
from the soil. And it is right here that we
need all the aid which science and experience
can furnish us. 1t is the starting point OF
good farming.
If you have a good, calcareous clayey soil
like that of Mr.. Lawes, which will produce
fifteen bushels of wheat per acre every year,
contend that it is poor farming to sow it to
wheat, or barley or oats, or corn every year,
and sell all the produce. 1t would require
less seed and less labor to raise a crop of thir-
fy bushels every other year-and the land
would be cleaner. Yuu raise and sell Just as
much wheat in the one case as the other. I
do not say that by Summer following you
would be sure of getting thirty bushels every
other year, or if you Summer-fallowed two
years in succession, that you would get forty
five bushels every third year. have only
used these figures to illustrate my meaning.
What L contend for is, that we should
raise fewer wheat crops, and either Summer
fallow more, ION heavy soils) or raise more
clover or other crops which are consumed on
the farm. l want to raise just as muc b
wheat as we do now; but want fewer acres
and larger profits. And want more good
beef, mutton, wool, pork, cheese, butter and
milk into the bargain. believe all this can
be accomplished, and I do not think Mr..
Geddes should oppose nv plan unless he can
suggest better one. It is easy to say YOU
cannot afford to produce good beef in the
state of New York, or to raise large crops, or
that we cannot make farming pay. 1t is GER
tain that if farming will not pay in this coun-
try, other business interests will not long
prosper. american Agriculturist.