The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1881-10-13
Improvement OF Land.

.
and my object is not so much to gathe,
crops from it as TO bring it into condi
tion i'll which it would produce good, re.
muncratiye crops. In II word, have a
good deal of land, and ] wish to improve
it. Especially would l like TO know
what Is the best plan TO restore my land
to its power of producing wheat, or
grass, or corn. give you large text,
and would listen with great attention n
ana respect to whatever you may have to
say Oh it. Respectfully, INQuIRER.
Our correspondent owns large farm.
Is q farmer, and is happy indeed, in that
lie has generous support independently
OF his agricultural ventures. Congra!u-
lating him upon his lot, SO exceptionally
inrlunate. and bearing in mind his re-
sources and surroundings, we shall dis
course upod his text, not in all its am.
plilude, however, but shall coniiue our
remarks rather TO the special point which
his note seems to raise
How shall the land be treated that
wheat and the grasses may bc prolitably
raised again?
Our first suggestion is, that two years
should bo allowed at first for n crop of
wheat. This our correspondent can we'll
afford TO do, as he has largely more land
than he can proiitably cultivate, and will
seek Tor few years the improvement of
his farm rather than remunerative crops.
We would advise him TO select a certain
area for wheat. In the fall, SOW it in
rye, and rs early IL the fall ms circum
stance will allow The ryo will thus
have time to get well rooted. and acquire
considerable growth, before the hard
weather sets i'll. During spells of good
weather in winter, it may be grazed by
calves and lambs. When the rye begins
to head, turn it under with two. horse
plow, and ut once SOW peas, dragging
them well in, and leaving the land in a
nice condition.
When the pea pods begin to brown
fairly, turn them in also with double
pow. Upon this pea fnllow, SOW lime,
say 20 bushels TO the acre, and drag the
land. The lime will hasten the decom-
position of vegetation, and may besides
be useful in supplying Il deficiency in the
SOIL OF that necessary and generally large
constituent of the ash of al plants. This
work will be done in July or August.
Let vegetation be kept down by the use,
as often as may be Necessary, Of the drag
or cultivator, until the time of seeding
wheat. We should put in the wheat
without rciallowing, if the land, as may
bc expected, be clean. If, however, there
be too much vegetation on the land for
this, we should plow shallow with single
plows, roll the land, i::A put in the wheat
by drill.
What objects are accomplished by this
treatment? We answer:
~ The land is clean. The wheat when
lhreshed will be free ofipartridge pea,
onions, cookie, etc, and hence will com
mand better price. This rcsult-tho
cleaning of the land-will be almost GER
tainly accomplished by the fall plowing
when rye is sown, by the second plowing
when the peas are turned under, and the
repeated harrowings between that time
and the seeding of the grain.
~ Whcat!o loves G ;o!eTabIy coinpac. aoil,
and this plan secures that rcsult rs far
as the mechanical texture of the soil
will permit. Only the surface is pulvcr-
lzed by the harrow or drag or, if the
single plow he found necessary, only
four or five inces of the soil is turned up,
all below having been constantly settling
since ;hc summer plowing, when the
peas were turned under.
(3) The land is now in the incest
condition for the drill, the Use of which
we urge because the seed will be nut in
more uniformly and covered at a moro
uniform depth than when scattered
broadcast. Less seed also, by at least 25
per cent, will be sufficient.
"a Apply to the soil, when the wheat is
seeded, il you wish to produce the maxi.
mum result, or feel disposed to be gencr-
ons, 800 or 400 pounds per acre of
ground raw bone. The organic part
of the bones, gelatin, in u ntroge-
nous compound, which is decomposing
will yield ammonia, the source Of the
nitrogen of plants The inorganic part
OF bones is two thirds Of their weight.
and is made up chiefly (nbout ninety per
cent? of phosphate of lime This phos.
phate OF lime is the special demand of
the cereals upon the soil, constituting
more than half the weight of their ash.
Hence its value.
(5) What has been done in the way Of
the prime consideration, the improve
ment of the land ? The crops of rye and
peas were turned under to accomplish
this result. All of the organic matter
OF plants, constituting nine.tenths of their
weight comes primarily, and the most of
it comes directly, from the atmosphere.
Here, then. is an absolute gain of organ
c matter 10 the soil, which yields, as it
decomposes, ammonia and other forms of
plant food, But this is not all. The
roots of our rye and pea were constantly
striking down into the soil and taking in
soluble mineral matter, which asccnds
with the sap and become assimilated as
an essential part of the vegetable com
pounds i'll the process OF development,
While the absolute amount of mineral
or organic matter is not increased by
turning under green crops yet two impor-
tant objects are accomplished its place
and condition are changed. It is brought
up from the subsoil where it is sparinply
available. 1t can be brought up only in
state OF solution, and hence more finely
divided than can possibly be effected by
mechanical communion. Hence. as
vegetation rots in the soil, its inorganic
parts is already most finely reduced, and
hence, for this reason also, most freely
available.
(6l AS We are in sort Of didatic and
hortatory humor, we will extend our in
structions little further. The best time
for sowing wheat in this locality, which
embraces lnquirer's farm, is from the 1st
to the 10th OF October. Some ob icct to
this as too early. Wheat seeded thus
early $ more likely to be attacked by the
fly. True; but if not attacked it gets
more deeply rooted, and hence is far less
liable to be winter killed, and we are
convinced that this, in the long run, is.
OF the two considerations, the more i'm
portant.
(7) The wheat is seeded secumdum ar
tenn, and our friend may rest now for
nearly half year, so far as this crop ia