The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1881-05-05
GLOVER TIE BEST MANURE.

The value OF clover to restore lost Ter
tility to the soil has again and again been
set forth in the Prairie Farmer, but 1t is
topic that is never stale, and we repro
duce the following paragraphs pertaining
to it, from the pen of Prof. w. J. Beal,
of the Michigan Agricultural College:
''Clover seed is the best manure that
farmer can use" ALI plants draw much
of their food from the atmosphere, and
of those used in agriculture none are ex-
ceeded by clover in the large proportion
of nutriment thus derived. In this re
spect other leguminous crops are much
like red clover. Here We incl1de all the
clovers, vetches, beans, peas, sanfoin,
lupins, and iucerene or alfalfa. To keep
up the fertility of our soil, we must re-
store to it phosphoric acid, potash, nitro
gen and other substances which are
found in farm crops. OF the three very
important and valuable substances just
named, nitrogen is the most precious
and costly to obtain. In various places
there are abundant supplies of potash
and phosphoric acid. As may be said,
these are Sin sight" Agricultural chem
lists are now studying on the problem of
the future supply of nitrogen for agricul-
tural purposes. So far, clover seems to
be the important factor in this problem.
Whole crops of clover are aften plowed
under to restore or keep up the fertility
of the soil, but l am safe in saying that
it has been proven better practice to
cut off the clover, feed it and use the
manure, than to pillow under the whole
crop. In other words, for various rea
sons, all of which may not seem plain, it
has been shown that blowing under a
clover stubble is followed by about as
good results GOTTEN better as though the
whole crop was turned under.
/ can hardly do better than give here
some of the conclusions of DIR. Velcker
in regard to the great value of clover.
I find these in the Journal Of the Royal
Agricultural Society Of England, for 1868,
on page 400: l. ga good crop of clover
removes from the soil more potash,
phosphoric acid, lime and other mineral
matters, which enter into the composition
Of the ashes of our cultivated crops, than
any other crop usually grown in this coun-
try" 2. "There is fully three times as
much nitrogen in crop of clover as in
the average produce of the grain and
straw of wheat per acre" B. "Clover
is an excellent preparatory crop for
wheat" 4. During the growth of
clover, large amount OF heterogeneous
matter accumulates in the SOIL" B..
"This accumulation, which is greatest in
the surface soil, is due to decaying leaves
dropped during the growth of clover, and
to an abundance of roots, containing,
when dry, from Il to 2 per cent of nitro
gen." 6. ''That clover roots are stron-
ger and more numerous, and more leaves
fall on the ground, when clover is grown
for seed, than when it is mown for hay;
in consequence more nitrogen is left af-
ter clover seed than after hay" 7. "This
crop causes a large accumulation of nj
trogenous matters, which are gradually
changed in the soil to nitrates." 8. "Clo-
yer not only provides abundance of nitro
genous food, but delivers this food in a
readily available power Gas nitrates) more
gradually and continuously, and with
more certainty of good result. than such
food can be applied to tho land in the
shape Of heterogeneous spring top dress.
ings."
The above conclusions are somewhat
condensed, but it would be we'll for every
farmer to cut them out and post them up
where he could read them daily till they
were indellibly fixed in his mind.