The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1879-12-03
FARM, GARDEN AND HOUSEHOLD.
How Mulching Helps Fertility.

The advantage of q E:ulch in making
the soil productive is generally recog-
nized. One reason why newly cleared
lands are rich is because of the constant
shade of the trees during the growing
season, and the annual mulch of leaves
which it receives. We find now that
lands partly cleared for several years be-
fore breaking up are not as rich rs fields
used to be when tE- whole growth was
cleared off in single season, and put
into crops. Probably the burning over
of the soil in the early clearings had
much to do with its great productive
ness, but think that, in any event, the
soil that has been mulched a series Of
years will be the ricEer for it. One way
in which heavy growth of clover helps
land is by affording an excellent mulch.
It does not always keep the land moist,
for growing crop of clover takes moist
ure from the soil with wonderful rapid
ity, but in shading the soil from the rays
of the summer sun, it directly helps to
keep in it elements of fertility that would
otherwise be wasted. A board or flat
stone serves tue same purpose, and will,
indeed, keep the soil more loose and tri-
able than anything else that can be so
easily applied:
A mulch which eftectually shades the
soil promotes it's fertiityin several ways.
Moisture alone. if not in excess, disinte-
CRATES the particles of soil and prepares
them for plant food. I think, too, that
the air in the soil while this Interrogation
is progressing is itself resolved into its
elements, and that it's nitrogen, being at
liberty, ,unites with some base and forms
nitrate. If potash is present, nitrate
of potash or saltpetre will be formed,
| which is one of the most active and
efficient fertilizers. do not know any
better use for potash than to SOW it on
young clover. In the first place potash
is an important constituent of clover.
The failure of clover to catch on light
soils are more often due to lack of pot
ash than to any other cause. Heavy
soils usually. contain potash in abun-
dance, and the use of|clover on clay is
largely to fit the potash for use as plant
food.
It has been found that where the soil
is sheltered from winds or in still air,
and in the darkness, nitrates are formed
quite rapidly. Under and behind
close fence we find the crops always
larger than elsewhere. Something is
due to the droppings of horses and
housed cattle which seek such shelter,
but the shade from light and winds is
an important factor. Something is lost
by every days exposure Of the bare earth
to the sun, rains, and air. These con-
ditions may be favorable to. disintegra-
tion of the particles of earth, 80 as to
make their fertilizing elements availa-
BILE; but what is thus gained is at the
expense of d permanent loss of fertility.
A summer fallow kept bare all the sea-
son is wasteful of fertility. No doubt
good crops can often be thus grown !;
but to produce one good crop is not by
any means test of good farming. A
tallow crop which well covers the
ground is much better tor the farmer if
not ior the ensuing crop. It will at least
furnish something to keep up fertility,
while the bare fallow is stalking heavy
expense in cultivation and tillage one
year on very uncertain prospect of q
good paying crop the season following.
In winter good covering for the soil
is almost equally important. In many
places the second growth of clover is
worth more as a mulch to fall around
the roots in fall than it is worth for seed
or to cut for hay. l do not mean that
it has so much greater manurial value
before feeding than after, hut tits spread
over the ground more evenly than could
be possible after it was passed through
stock, and. besides this, the changes
| which occur under q mulch of clover
leaves are greatly promotiye of it's pro-
ductiveness. The extraordinary gains
in fertility from leaving clover to rot on
the ground are much beyond what we
might expect, and may, think, be ac-
counted for by the theory that it helps
to get something, either from air or
slowly soluble clements in the soil,
which the clover itself does not furnish
in large enough quantity.-W. j. F., IN
| COu,atru Gentleman,