Sharp County record., 1881-08-11
Fertilizing the Farm'

thOnS lify of a farm depends upon 'iio mo- -,
IN ~ aryof' ;ts cultivation. a farm may DC
rist h ,t;vated. and vet be growing more
Jpd.l nd more sterile; this is well lilustraIeu
q foTs the case of farms that are leu 10
inc areIess and unscrupulous tenants VINO
Or, sa,,, ~ helieve that the ability to SKIN
CO .1 sa,.rr as If is sometimes termed isone
q ~, Tho cardjnal virtues; at least they
no a.. ean, To lack no disposition to cultivate
u tbe1 nd nractice the absurd notion. nap.
rsons ilv however, tenants are not an ol
YunJ.. this class. and have due regard lOr
an I. bo ,;ohts of the landlord, and Whlle
.nt.i III l1ork;ng for their own profit, also have
,oroeVlV sbarp lookout for his welfare. Ihls
IS IN A lass is one that always enjoys the PRIV
centa- leges of tenants at pleasure on thelr
9Ieq, ,wn part; that is, it is seldom they are
ario, S,blioed to vacate any premises lor
rros! ,epiect of observance of the laws OF
9rncir, rood husbandry'
ceDte5 'lTilIage, in general sense, denotes
AMI mcb nreparation of soil, by mechanical
Bile +, means and fertilization, aud such gen
SITS sr ,ral Treatment as will insure an improved
-esin~. 'ertilef condition, even after the re-
e tan,s noyal OF the crops. This is very much
nd eve. ,ided by q iudiciods rotation OF crops
ives h. .eouiring a less expenditure OF tertlll-
Vb, sizino material; but there has never yet
prt been discovered any means that would
Ire a, entirely do away with the use OF some
Of asortof application to the soil tnat IS con
e. n tinually cropped. Resources Tor 1erl-
nd -ty are many and various, including ac-
vDlg,, foundations of the various kinds OF ma
lclnsr, nure upon the farm, the natural stores,
as found in guano banks and phosphate
ere deposits, and in the various kinds OF
Of "A manufactured articles that are found IN
ltic As the markets.
nbs 1t is a great convenience that chemic-
d Cel- al science has pointed out the manner
ON NJ of combining the simple elements OF
nony fertility to be most serViceable to the
ther farmer in the use that he may desire TO
recers make Of the same as a supplementary
men manure; but question of great impor-
anir tance 10 all farmers Isl whether 1t IS de-
Jrocs sirable to enter very extensively into
when the use of this class of fertilizers. III IS
anil supposed that the mineral elements ap-
pubi piled are the same that exist to some
andl extent in the soil--in fact are part
sands of the soil, and may, by gradual accu-
ID csImulations, exist to, excess, and in such
prom state of affairs maximum crops might
and r be expected; but is this always the case?
The NJ May not farm be really mineral sick,
refur so to speak or, in other words, become
eza by constant application of this forcing
III gg5 kind of manure, as to be partially IN
was sensible to its direct effects? 1t is said
. that an individual by gradual and
beel constant use of arsenic, will produce
Juds such state of the system as will enable
{ ce,i the taking of dose without fear of any
i'm q harm, as would at first produce instant
wen death. So too continual use of stimu-
/. A, lants by an individual in time, renders
lO Co such Individual wholly insensible to any
ldcu stimulating effect, except when taken
e mhI in large quantities; but there is food
imD5a that is natural to the human system,
.hs and although the use is continued, if it
en- r be in a iudicious manner, the body con-
suH tinues healthy and life prolonged.
was So it seems to be with the soil; a con-
y tha tinued use OF stimulating or peculiarly
faSy forcing commercial fertilizers, while
tM good for few crops, will, in little
Of Il time, lose their efficiency. This will
a2 undoubtedly explain why, in some cases.
led farmers who have been accustomed to use
eya particular brand of fertilizer because
geGf it at first gave such excellent satisfac-
ton, will abandon it for another, be-
Deel cause the results are not as good as for
sSn merly, when the cause is not so much a
aa difference in the quality, as it is con-
lesa tinued use; and in that case another
ll brand of different combinations will
ted give, apparently, new energy to the
oren soil.
'aya That all such fertilizers serve an ex-
I cellent purpose, and are excellent helps
'P,u to the farmer, cannot be denied; but
.r the part OF wise policy would forbid
l'. the too extensive use of the same. 1t
~ was the saying of wise farmer who, in
)" answer to the enquiry of the three
.,,,, principal things necessary in farming,
v y. replied; manure, manure MANURE.
t%l The importance of this is very large
-, ly felt when it is considered that the
d, soil requires double action which
n, manure happily supplies besides fer
nSs os tility, the mechanical actions which its
i'm chemical changes produce in the soil,
rr are just what are required by the plant;
J, and again, manures, as they are accu-
mulated from the stables, or by means of
composing, are the natural food of
plants and, so to speak, keep the soil
IN a good healthy condition. Expert
trp ence has demonstrated that the best
ri farms for growing crops are those upon
I'd. which are kept the largest amount of
I'd stock, and, as q consequence, where
es there are the greatest accumula-
h tions of manure. 1t is sort of increas-
/. fcd rotary movement the more stock
..et the more manure-and the more ma
n nure, the larger the crops; and then
oJ again, the larger the crops, the greater
the ability to keep more stock, which
still increases the manure pile. A
farmer OF good judgment has said that
it's far better to buy corn than to buy
egr ~ fertilizers, because, by feeding the corn.
there will be an increased amount of
W. beef, pork, butter or cheese, besides an
accumulation of manure that is better
% adapted to continued use than phos.
v pilates.
q. The main dependence of the farmer
W should be the manurial resources of the