The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1877-07-20
THE COMPOST HEAP,

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word could better express the idea. A com.
post is compounding of such elements of
pant food as will best serve to render land
fertile A good cook brings his food on to
the table so compounded with fat and lean.
so seasoned with salt and pepper, and so pre-.
pared for easy assimilation that the very
smell stimulates the appetite and the stomach
hnds no trouble in its digestion What the
COOK does for the food of man the farmer
should 40 for the food of his plants. Com
post such elements of nutrition us will hest
noursh vegetation, and let them lie together
AID cook during the warm weather. as thew
VII, by the heat generated internally by
oxtdstson5 favored by the genial condition Of
the air. The compost heap may be likeped
to- loaf Of bread, in which little lcavcn
mas ieavened the whole lump, converting by
c"emicai process unpalatable dough into
sweet food
The simplest form OF vegetation requires
ut least dozen elements for its perfect de-
vclopmcnt. Hence compost properly prc.
pared is the true idea Of plant food. il is
nonsense to suppose that because the potato
'sn potash plant it can live on potash alone.
All plants and animals must die unless fur.
nlshed with food compounded of dozen or
more elements. Not that every fertilizer
must be such compound, for many, gencr
any most, of the elements of plant food
abound in the soil and air, and it may ONLY
be necessary to supply those that arc lacking
IN order to render soil fertile
This leads us to inquire OF what the com.
post heaps should be made. The answer to
this question must depend somewhat on the
condition of the soil aud the nature of the
crop to which it is applied. IF the soil is
naturally full of vegetable matter aud in.
clincd to be cold, it would be folly to make
muck the basisof the compost heap. Sand
or sandy loan would be much preferable.
On the other hand, if the compost is to be
applied to sandy soil, muck is just tho thing
for its basis. In like manner if the compost
is to be used for heterogeneous crop, cabba-
gcs for instance, ammonia in some form
should be prominent component part In
general it may be said that phosphate of lime,
ammonia, and potash arc the constituents
NEST likel ly to bc found wautipg il our long
cultivated fields, and most essential to plant
growth. These therefore should enter large.
-. .'..o .h oan,Pns. -hnap Other nnastitn
cntS shoald be added as the soil demand, or
opportunity is furnished to supply them
Among these we may mention chloride of
sodium, Common salD and surhuric acid
which can most economically be applied in
the form of sulphate of lime, (rlastcr) All
the Inorganic elements Of vegetation may be
found in ashes. Wc'thcrciorc put upon our
, compost all the ashes, lcachcd or unlcachcd,
upon which we can lay our hands.
These constituents of the compost placed
in juxtaposition and being mixed and COW
cred with some absorbent, such as muck
! earth, or leaf mould, heat up by chemical
action, are dccomposed and recomposcd-
in other words arc cooked, forming new COM
pounds which arc readily assimilatcd by
plants. The muck and leaf mould are also
fastened in their decomposition BY the nflu-
ences of the dccomposing mass, the whole
forms food which plants dcvour grecdily
But where shall we get the phosphate of
lime, the ammonia and other constituents of
the compost heap" is the next very proper
question of the farmer Bones are the great
resource for the phosphate of lime These
are lying around every slaughter house,
every lanyard and almost every farm in the
country, dried by the sun and air, and con-
scquently slowly dccaying. Let them be
gathered and broken up by sledge ham
mer if there is no mill convenient for grind
ing them, or they may be put into large hogs
heads with alternate layers of wood ashes
and kept constantly moist for few months
during warm weather, when they will be
found sufficiently softened to be cut with a
sharp spade. In this condition put iuto fer
menting compost they will further disintc-
crate and add greatly to the value of the pile.
The next constituent of the compost hcap
is ammonia, and this may be found in barn
yard manure, night soil, dead leaves, and
dead animals Of all kinds, the refuse of the
tannery, the woolen or paper mill, the slaugh-
ter house, the cesspool, and divers other
places too numerous to be mentioned Pre-
cious as ammonia is, there is probably no
substance which is moro wasted 1t is going
off to the sea in our sewers by thousands of
tons each day. The rivers which pass our
manufacturing establishments and dense
villages are full of it, so much so as to be
sources of miasma during the warm and dry
months. There is no lack of ammonia, If
farmers will only keep vigilant eye for it.
In fact they may shut their eyes and their
noses will tell where ammonia abounds.-
Ten chances to one they can smell it ascend
ing from their horse. stables, barn-yards,
| privies, and cesspools, to be waited over