Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1881-08-13
WEEKLY CHRONICLE.


Free Use OF Fertilizers on Impoverished
Farms.
Commissioner Hawkins issued the follow
ing circular on "Plant Food" yesterday:
Plants Of all kinds require for their
growth fourteen elements These fourteen
elements are required by different plants in
different proportions and combinations.
The absence of any one of these elements
in the requisite quantity is fatal to the
growth and maturity of plants.
Four of these elements are termed or
ganic elements, are derived in the main
from the atmosphere. These organic eles
ments constitute about 95 per cent. of the
food consumed by growing plants. They
are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitro
gen OF these four, carbon, oxygen and
| hydrogen are supplied wholly from the air
| and from rain and dew. while nitrogen is
! partly drawn from the atmosphere, and
| partly from the soil.
When plant is burned the organic elee
ments which it contains are dissipsted in
! the form of gases, and escape with the
smoke and steam, while the organic sub
| stances or elements remain in the for 10 of
ashes. These ashes invariably contain the
| remaining ten of the fourteen elements re-
lerred to- They constitute about one,
! twentieth of the substance of The plant.
| AS ] have said, however, these proportions
vary. Tobacco conta Ms ebOut 10 per cent.
Of organic matter, while clover has only
about per cent These inorganic ele-
| IneHts sre derived from the soil alone.
| They are potash, phosphorus, soda, mag
| ne5ia, lime, sulphur, chlorine, silica, man
| g8nese and iron
All virgin soils OF good quality contain
| all these elements in sufficient quantity to
! insure fair crops Of such plants 6s are
| do cd To n inn of
crop however. robs the soil of proper
| ton of these elements. These must be re-
stored IN some form, or, rs a necessary re-
| suit, the soil will become impoverished
| OF th ten inorganic elemer is six to-
wit, magnesia. SD phur, chlorine, silica,
manganese and iron, usually are found in
sufficient quantity in all our soils however
s Grille, The remaining tour, however, are
| trtQuently so exhausted by successive
croppi g as to become in efficient 10 meet
| the requirements Of plant growth. When
this occurs the soil is said to be tired or
worn out. This exhausted condition may
dep nd upon the want of any one or two oe
these elements, while the others are found
III sutficieht quantity.
A chemical analysis of worn out soils
will usur lily show scarcity ofOne or more
ofthese four elements. Thi-, no ever, is
| not always the case, as in some instances,
| while tue elements are found IN the soil
hey are not in the proper chemical condi-
ton TO be readily appropriated by the
! growing plant.
! To cause an animal to grow you must
| feed it y ith food suited to its necessities.
| A plant is likewise a living organization,
and requires TODD suited IL It's devel D.
ment. Failing to receive this it literally
! sfarves. To make it grow you have to
furnish it with cd of such character and
In such cOud tions MS are suited to its nour>
ishment. The food of auimals must be in
a solu bic state, must ia fact be in a state of
solution in the alimentary canal so that il
can be taken up and carried through the
sy stem by the absorbent and capillary YES
sells. In like manner the food of plants
must be in state of solution. Hence the
necessity Of water in the earth to hold
these elements in solution and thus permit
hem to be absorbed by the capillary ves-
sells contained in the roots of all growing
plants
Ii you could always know exactly wha
element was wanting in your soil, the feed
ing of your crops would be simple mat
ter as the feeding Of your pigs. This, how.
ever, the ordinary farmer, unskilled il
chemical manipulation finds himself IN
able to determine by analysis. Every
farmer. however, knows this much: II,
knows that u sufficient application of stabit
4 manure to the poorest soil will produce
but does ne know or has he ever though
that this is 20 for the simp pie reason that tt i
manure, being formed by the decomposi
ton of plants. contains the very element
necessary to the growth Of new plants--il
/ other words, that it contains potash, soda
lime, phosphorus, ETC., in usJ the r0por
ton required? Barn>yard or stable u anur
is, therefore the very best fertilizer which
can be applied TO our soils Now, if every
FIJI ,
husbaHded, and returned in this form, Their
would be little danger of i'm poveris b N ent
This, however, is manifestly impracticabi lie
Every bushel of corn, wheat, fruit or othe
product which you sell, every ANNA
which you dispose of, carries off q per
centags of the fitness of your land. Thi
you must restore, or your land become
poorer from year to year. Now, the ques
ton arises bow shall this be prevented
How can We most chesply and efficiently
maintain the fertility of our lands? Nue.
may be done by husbanding all the re
sources of the farm for making menGres
by gathering such vegetable products q
have no marketable value. by saving tn
dropplngs of our stock. &c. Very mucl
may be accomplished by judicious rota
ton of CT ps, but of this it Is not my pur
pose low to peak. But when ali has bee
Done which caa be accomplished by thes
agencies, there will yet remain necessit
Iof other means of fertilzpg our sol :
even II we aim at nothing more than main
talnlng lts original productiveness.
Every farmer, however, should aim s
something higher than this. He sbonl
endeaVOr to make his farm, at least. belts
for his having ived upon it.
Happily for US, and more happily fc
posterity, the Introduction of commerce,
fertilizers furnishes the means, il judiciou
~ employ ed, Of accomplishing these end
In every market these articles are no
49, offered for sale, more or less rich in til
Il. very elements needed upon our poort
n SOILS and worn out feds. That these fe
a ulzers may be made of great practIc,
r utiity there can be n, question. b.
." these 0enths are not to be attained b
he heir blind and indiscriminate use. The
n application must be Girec ed BY int, II
geuce. The farmer must study the natu,
- and the wants OF his soil. By exper men,
carefully conducted he must ascertain
what one element, or number of elemen
his lands are deficient whether in potasl
soda, PHOSPHORUS or lime. ASK yor
u fields what they want" and they will gi,
'o you no Uncertain answer.
m he use Of commercial fertilizers has
c, yet received bat little general attention
s. Tennessee. The exhausted condition
% many of our fields, however, warn us th
u the time is at hand when thu practic,
- agrit ulturist must avail himself of the
- benefit.
The poetical fancy thst there al
tongues in trees. sermons in stones, an
3 voices in running BROOKS" contains phile
: sophical truth, rs II as poetic beaut,
but to hear the lesson taught by the du