Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1877-06-27
Ashes Killing SOrrel.

suit of spreading leached ashes upon piece
of light soil infested with sorrel. He says the
sorrel has disappeared, and thick growth
of white clover and June grass has taken its
place. He wants an explanation of the way
in which the ashes acted to produce this
change.
This effect, of ashes destroying growth
of sorrel and bringing in clover, has been
often noticed by observing farmers. For
want of better reason it has been naturally
attributed to the action of the alkali (pot-
ash) OF the ashes in neutralizing some acid
in the soil favorable to the growth of the
acid plant. But there are serious objections
to this theory. The soils favorable to sorrel
are our warmest, dryest sweetest soils.
Then, an alkali is not necessary to produce
this effect; it can be brought about by other
means. Not only will dressing of well
rotted stable manure do it, but even an acid
superphosphate will also cause the sorre to
be displaced by clover and in addition to
that, chemistry assures us that the acid of
sorrel (oxalic acid) is not derived from the
elements drawn by it entirely from the at
mosphere. And it is a curious fact that this
oxalic acid in sorrel is in combination with
potash, forming the acid oxalate of potash,
which gives to the plant its sour taste.
Thus it is seen that potash, far from being
foe to the growth of sorrel, is actually
necessary to its existence, and to the exist
ence of the acidity it possesses. Shrewd OBJ
servation confirms this, for where did you
ever see sorrel grow more rankly than by
the side of half-burned stump
But if potash is so necessary to the sorrel
plant, how does it happen, the reader will
ask, that dressing of ashes leached or UNI
leached, will drive it out, and bring in more
valuable vegetation?
1t does not drive it out. Take patch of
sorrel, dress it with ashes, keep out the grass
and clover by wedding it carefully, and you
will discover that sorrel likes ashes, and will
double its thriftiness under the treatment
you give it.
But sorrel is plant easily crowded out
by many other plants. 1t is able to live on
poorer soil than grasses and clovers. 1t is
able to find potash in soils that do not
furnish it in sufficient abundance for the
support of other plants. And, strange to
say it does it by means of this very acid
which it compounds out of elements drawn
from the air, by means of its leaves. 1t
sends this acid down into its roots, and there
applies it to the potash minerals of the soil.
A union between it and the potash is formed,
and this union constitutes that oxalate of
potash which makes all parts of the plant
sour to the taste.
So long as other plants cannot find suffi-
cient food in the soil, sorrel has it all to
itself. 1t can live on poorer food, and less
very little phosphoric acid, for instance,
while clover requires much of that essential
fertilizer.
But when the intelligent farmer applies
to the sorrel-infested land a liberal dressing
of ashes, he applies hot only potash, but also
phosphoric acid, since wood ashes contains
liberal supply of both of these articles of
plant food. Now when this is supplied
clover can live there aud grow luxuriantly
and soon crowds down and kills the weaker
sorrel. Aud this accounts for the fact that
leached ashes is about as efficient for this
purpose as that which is unleached. Leach
ing takes out part of the potash, and but
little, if any, of the phosphoric acid from