The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1877-06-28
FARM, GARDEN AND HOUSEHOLD.
Manures.

/ we call eSpeCldl aICeHLlOu vi OUT IhrIueT
readers to the second paragraph under
our caption in another column-Chips.
We have simplifed this selection from
Prof. Ville's little book by reducing his
"Hectares" to acres, and his "Kilo-
grammes" to pounds. 1t will be the i'm
mediate conclusion of most of our readers
that this is very heavy manuring, and
costs to much for lands that are not
worth in market half the price of the
manure to be annually applied. This
may be so, perhaps is SO, but then each
farmer can reduce the quantity recon-
mended of each ingredient to suit the
capacity of his soil.
There is one idea in his formula that
does not exactly agree with our expe-
rience. Prof Vile suggests cheaper
manure for barley than for wheat, and
the same for oats and rye that he does
for Barley. Our experience is that land
can be stimulated by commercial tertili-
zers or by manures to such an extent as
to make the wheat crop oyerdo itself, and
therefore fail to remunerate by producing
a greater proportion of straw than grain,
and no such result has ever occurred with
US in manuring barley. The heavier
manuring the better the barley crop.
We once saw Sc bushels of wheat taken
from single acre in Fairfield County.
We never have grown over 35 bushels on
single acre. We have frequently grown
so bushels of barley on an acre, and have
averaged over 25 per acre OH ten acres.
And similar treatment of similar land
would not yield us an average of over 16
bushels Of wheat.
Our experience, too, with oats and rye
would not suggest that they and barley
should be treated exactly alike or be
classified together as Professor Vile sug-
gests. We have known seventy bushels
of oats grown upon single acre in Alb
beville County, and we have even found
that on manured upland oats will pro-
portion to the manure applied. Land so
manured that it would produce fifteen
bushels of wheat, would, under the same
circumstances, produce about twenty
bushels of barley or over forty bushels of
oats.
As to rye, we scarcely know what to
say. Every farmer knows that "rye will
grow as high as the fence that encloses
it," be the land rich or poor; but wheth-
er the application of caustic fertilizers
would increase the yield in equal pfopor-
tion to the increase in other grains, we
are unable to say. We once sowed one
third of an acre, that had been heavily
cow penned, in rye, and harvested nine
bushels of excellent grain. The same
land under the same circumstances would
have produced probably eighteen bushels
of barley, twenty bushels of oats and as
much wheat as rye. We give these in
stances of our experience, and venture
our judgment upon the comparative re-
suits of the same land in different grain
crops, so as to advise our readers, that
however perfect agricultural chemistry
may be in fermentating perfect manure
for any crop, there is much behind these
simple prescriptions that must be reck-
oned in the calculation before the results
can be anticipated with unerring certain
ty. The preparation and productive
capacity of the soil, the climate and sea-
sons, the time of attack upon the crop by
dry or wet, hot or cold weather, and per-
haps other hidden influences wrapt up in
the arcana Of Nature, are all influences
or contingencies that must be considered;
so that whether the farmer be Paul or
Appolos, he must patiently await results
that will be beyond his power to control.
Any farmer, however, who understands
the capacity of his farm, and its adapted
ness to grow any kind of grain, can with
these formulas in his hand prepare a ma
nure that will, under ordinary circum
star es, warrant his antici ipating all
abundant harvest of grain.
We need not tell them that if the
farmers combine together and purchase
in bulk, the acid phosphate Of lime can
be bought in Charleston at about one and
quarter cents per pound. The two in
gradients, nitrate of potassa and sulphate
Of ammonia, are abundantly supplied for
all red lands by liberal application of
cotton seed. The sulphate of lime is
plaster of Paris, and is worth about half
as much as the acid phosphate of lime.
Gray lands will need an additional guam
tity of potash, which is cheap, or can in
a great degree be supplied by a liberal
use of ashes.
If we were called upon to suggest a
manure for small grains anywhere in the
cotton belt, we would answer thus, basing
our reply upon our experience compared
with the thoughts advanced by Prof.
Vile: Wheaton, all red lands that
needed manuring, acid phosphate, 800
lbs.; cotton seed, 40 bushels, or 1000 or
1000 lbs., and sprinkling of 100 or $50
lbs. of plaster of Paris applied broadcast
in latter part of February, just after tile
grain had been narrowed with two
horse harrow. Oats-200 lbs. acid phos-
phate, 20 bushels of cotton seed, and per-
haps no plaster. On gray or sandy lands
we would mix in 100 lbs. of potash per
acre for the wheat. We don't think any
application of commercial fertilizers or
cotton seed on worn lands would be re-
munerative to barley and rye, because
the rye would not produce enough bushels
of grain to warrant the application, and
because the barley does not seem to yield
so we'll upon any lands fertilized with
these commercial manures, as it does
When maze rlcn by OW-penulnS UT sheep
hurdling. On fresh lands we would not
apply either of these manures so heavily,
simply because the increased yield would
not warrant the expenditure. There is a
certain capacity in all lands, beyond
which superabundance of manure can
not carry the product the first or any
single year, but when the farmer knows
this capacity from experience he should
manure up to it, and gradually increase
it by annually enlarging the amount OF
manure applied.
This, we take it, is scientific farming,
and that is the kind and only kind we
now need in this country. We want
reason, thought, brains, applied to the
daily experiences of the farm, and until
we get this there can be but little hope
of material progress in our system OF