The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1881-08-24

fornia:
Depth Of soil, nine inches. Thorough
" dried it consists Of ooo
crd. 0.O60
live 0.l3l
Nfonnas;a 0.162
nrnnvn nx;Ie If 90. 0.l40
Parox;da Of 1889
aTm;no 1858
phounhor;c acid 0.033
SnInLur;c ccid 0.024
Organic matter and loss .."......"". 235O
I%nsoluble matter.
A specimen of sub-soil taken from
twelve inches beneath the surface at tho
p"tash O.4S1
cd 0.060
SO 0.015
Mnrnos;o 0.5l9
prpun oxiGe oc ...... O.l42
pasoriIa of iron Alas
AI,n,ina $3.50
phnsnhor;c 0.023
SnInbnr;c acid 0.020
Organic matter and oss."""."""... Z.dd d9
Insoluble
These tables, while they do not show
tho best lands in the world, show n
that could not, by any means, be cons!a,,
cred the worst. Taken in from the WHO
state, they usually produce some Klla oI
crops for two or three years REASONABLY
we'll, without aid, but after that a fair re,
turn must be made to them else they VIII
no longer pass muster as productive.
Aside from the chemical agents in when
the foregoing tables have shown them 70
be comparatively deficient, one OF the
greatest needs, usually from the very
start, is
HUMUs,
or decomposed vegetable matter, to pre-,
vent packing" Persons not acquainea
with sandy soils would be apt TO think
them incapable Of packing and becoming
hard under culture, but packing IN dry
weather, especially over the clay suhsolls
making up one of their worst features.
But it il not hard to prevent-an aonn-
dant supply of almost any kline OF vege
table matter sets them right n leaves
them as "mellow as an ash heap through
all seasons In applying vegetable maj.
ter it would, Of course. be pest 70 h,a .,se
use Of something qualified to supply also
the needed fertilizing elements, but in
case where this cannot be done, then 9th
ar charactercd matter should be USED,
such as pine straw, the various piney-
woods grasses and broom sedge. Ihese
will make as good mechanical agents To
prevent "packing' as other species OF
yyece tat;on, and they will ada something
to the fertility of the soil, many opinions
to the contrary Notwithstanding. Our
experience tells us that there is little dan
ger Of getting too much decomposed veg.
etable matter into pine land soil; but
there is great danger Of not having
enough in it. consequently the pine land
farmer should be supplying it IN some
way at every opportunity.
LIME
is another element in which our soils are
usually seriously deficient. They DO not
it so much as all element OF plant
food as they do as a mechanical agent 70
aid in the rapid decomposition OF vegeta-
lille matter. There is naturally lime
enough for most crops to make out upon,
and Where 1t cannot be supplied vegeta-
bIe matter applied to the soil should be
first heaped and thoroughly rotted, else a
large Quantity Of it in a raw or partially
raw state may cause the crop to fire
fang or burn out during the hot n dry
weather OF summer. Along the q
where shells are abundant this lime dei-
cheney may be easily supplied by burning
shells and applying the lime. Shell lime
is greatly superior to rock lime Tor apply
ing TO soils.
THE OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
do we'll on our pine lands, rs a general
rule nrorided we have added q sufficient
quantity of humus, bnt without this they
will not make much Of a crop. Cotton
seed meal is one of the fertilizers in COM
use, and it will make most Gro rs
grow splendidly If the other condition
lust named is not wanting. Few people
realize this great need of humus,.an
hence 60 on blindly raising fair crops ny
applying large quantities of commerciai
fertilizers, double the quantity actually
required for the crop, perhaps. In this
extra application they are growing their
own huinus with expensive fertilizers,
when they might as well have picked II
up in the surrounding woods, or have
made it by turning under a faliow. You
may take a perfectly clean and entirely
exhausted piece of pine land and give it
cotton seed meal at the rate Of two thou
sand pounds to tho acre, and the first year
it will not bring you much of a crop.
There will be more Of the plants nnder
the ground than there is above, for the
land is making an effort to supply itself
with humus, Next year you will get q
fair crop with less meal, for the decom,
posed roots of tho preceding crop Will
have brought to the soil at least a portion
of the vegetable matter needed. If q lib
eral supply Of decompOsed pine straw OF
other non-fertilizing vegetation had becn
worked into the soil prior to appiyirgt the
cotton seed meal one thousand pounds
would have shown far better result than
were gained by applying the ton.
Among other commercial fertilizers
used on our Pine land the ~phosphates
have usually given good returns, ano
where n is not particular To nave Inc
crop use up all the food in its year OF ap'
~plication, nothing is superior 10 an aDuh.
dant supply of ground bone or raw .oone
meal. Cotton seed hull ashes has Work
ed its way into considerable popularity
with us as a fertilizer, and it ID undouht'
eddy good, making up the'solPs denciency
in potash, and to some extent supplying
several other needed elements.
Farm YARD MANURE.
By this we mean the droppings o.
horses, cattle. hogs. sheep, and the IKE
This mover fails; a bountliul supply OF II
invariably brings bountaful crops on ev-
ery character Of our cultivated pine lands
It gives the soils everything they need in
Guiding humus, hence plenty OF farm
ward manure is plenty Of everythingwltf
US. The only trouble that We experience
i'm the premises lies in our inability tc
procure the needed supply Of farm yaro
manure. If We have plenty OF stock ant
will give them plenty to cal, they VII
make the manure for us, Of course; Du'
where are their supplies to come from
Off your enriched land, says ore. b
might seem all well enough in theory, bu'
it would not work out to a meeting O
both ends in practice. 1t would be too
much like perpetual motion, or sn effort t.
lift ones self up stairs by the toss of one
boots. 1t is impossible to prevent s
waste in some way, hence each year mus
find the farm receiving less in return thai
it gave out, and, as a consequence, run
ming gradually down. .,
We must be after making good the De
fciency. It may be done by selling crops
or stock and ouying fertilizers, or II may
be done to some extent by c~ultivatlne
and turning under a~ir-feeding crops
How done makes TO difference, provided
it can be done with profit; when sucn IL
the case The question 10 settled as to the
success CT pine land farming on a large
scale. In days past most Of our pine lane
farmers depend upon their stock for their
success, but the the time when their ole
methods cali be conveniently carried out
is rapidly passing away. They sent theii
stock into the wild range to gather their
own food, AND such as anne home al
night left tho results of their labors TO en-
rich the lands of their owners. 1t was
like bees gathering honey:.--they went
forth every day gathering the fertllizlng
elements indigenous to the woods and
bringing them back rs voluable stores
in the evening. This was called.
COWPENNING.
The stock were mainly cattle, which
were penned at night within a certain e
closure until the owner deemed the land
rich enough for agricultural purposes,
then he moved hia pen, in order that ms
stock might enrich another acre wliie ne
was breaking and planting the site of the
preceding lot. Crops raised on this plan
were often delightful to look at, and there
was never a failure where the crop ana
the land receive propea attention. Nc
finer crops of sugar cane, corr, potatoes
turnips, pumpkins, melons, and ever
Gotten ever grew than we have frequently
,-Ia~ nrnnor m"QnaOAInAnt