The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1879-05-22
The Origin or Ammonia and the Source
OF It's Supply 10 Plants.
.M,Mvs. Eaiitors .imcricun farmcr

.Nssrs. EditDrs .1mcric.m Farmer.
For years we have measured swords
during our pleasant chats on the above
question, you contcnding that the pre-.
pondcrance Of testimony favored the ne
cessity Of applying, in r.ost eases, am.
moniacal matter to IA. soil whilst
have contendcd, without being able to
prove it, that t..crc was a constan; and
sufficient for'aatiGn Of ammonia from the
chemical action going on in the mir be-
tween nitrogen and the .apor, forming
nitrate or nitric Of ammonia, which is
the true condition for it to be in to make
love TO the growing plants. At last.
light begins To spring forth with evidence
OF the great truths which have so long
had possession Of my thoughts by dav,
and may say dreams at night. For
these fanatical ideas, 80 called. have
been laughed at, and by some thought
crazy ON the subject. Recent aud simple
experiments have conc,i,ivcly proved
my theory, which | do not claim ~ NV
own, that ammonia is being formed by
every drop OF water that pa>,cS from the
earth In the form Of vapur. whether ut
low or high temperatures. and from any
porous sub-taiicc exposed to the air.
a. V. Lprscckc, in the irrhi,,x M
Ihnrmncic NJ, No. |, TRANSLATED. in tie
Hnrmnci| of March, 1879, gives mum
Der OF experiments, which go tn show not
only the correctness Of Schonbrin- oh.
servatlon that ammonium nitric is form.
cti during the evaporation Of water from
the surface of porous bodies, but that
THIS compound is formed when it vapor-
lzcs without their being present.
number o: trials showed that the re-.
mainder, after evaporation of II cori,id-
cradle portion of chemically pure water.
gave, in ncrly every case, reactions of
ammonia and nitrous acid, the expert
lnent indicating that ammonium nitric
is formed mare nbundantly at lower
than ut higher temperature, and that
not alone is this salt generated on the
foliage of plants by the evaporation of
water, (to be absorbed by the stornatcs
or breathing pores,) but that greater
proportion of it originates on the ground.
whence, in all likelihood, il is conveyed
to the plants through the roots.
Aside, therefore, from the nitrogen
which Schact assumes plants derive from
the air, but which MuIdcr contend, can
only transpire through the Intervention
OF the soil where ammonia is formed
and which, combined with humic acid
he believes to constitute the source Of
nitrogen in plants, there would remain.
Locsecke says, manure and ammonium
nitri i-' arising from the evaporation of
water, The importance of this is esti.
mattel iToin Ills computation that the
Of nitrogen cnnv3rted into am
monium nitric through the evaporation
OF lpVpr N
tending over hcctnrc, would he O.7639
Kilograms. That is, rs kilo-2 o04
pounds, and hectarc-2.i7O acres. the
evaporasion Of stratum of water cen
or about 4-l0th Of IN inch. deep.
would give O.6Sli pounds Of nitrogen to
the acre.
Let us trace out the elements forming
available ammonia. First, we find mnfe,
composed OF hydrogen and oxygen in the
proportion OF one part Of the former to
eight OF the latter. 10y weight J and
men air, consisting of nitrogen and oxy-
zen IN the proportion Of seventy eight Of
Inc former and twenty-five Of tho latter,
lin -aund numbers.) To form nitric
acid, we are only to combine II parts Of
nitrogen and 40 of oxygen, (by wcight,)
ma tnen we have one of the most c0rro.
wv !'iuius @'ioWn 10 science. Again
combine 3 parts of hydrogen with II
parts of nitrogen, and we have ammonia.
onc OF the strongest bases and of sufIo.
,ating nature. Combine the two and we
nave harmless salt, from which laugh
ng gas is made, and this is what is being
formed for it's ultimate object:
irst, to form the blood of fruit and grain
gluten,( and finally blood for animal
lie. All these elements are found in mir
MI water, from which, with that almost
INVISIBLE companion, carbon, comes forth