Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1882-11-16
&a,m aas boase5clS.
The Muck Delusion.

The dclu,ion which prevailed, twenty and
more wears ago regarding the manurial val
We Of what j. known A. muck has lost
some Of it, force. ba, II still exists among
farmers, especially those ne~ IN the indus
try. Among the newspapers 1.-The great
value Of muck 90 farmer - standing ieNt,
from ~hich .aborcd sermon is preached
once or twice a ,car- Treniy Eve or thirty
wear, ago, l.,t.e book Wa- published by
Dr. Dana, Lowell chemist. employed in
ore Of the dycng establishment, Of that
e,ty, which supplies the material for these
sermons, and vii continue 10 DO so, per
hap.. FOR the mex, half century. Tha, book
i full OF errors and absuriitie.. and has led
more farmers iato mourning serious elPen-
dtures wilhou, corresponding returns, than
auy book on manure ever written.
The fallacy Of muck consists in the error
Of regarding II as manure. or substance
which turns spontaneously into manure with
out cost to the farmer The term "muok"
i usual, applied to the dark, wet. une,aous
product Of low meadows. and the black mud
from the bed Of mArshy lakes and frog
ponds. The material wares greatly in ply
steal character and chemical composition, no
tso specimens taken from different localities
being alike. The advocates Of muck, or
the writers upon the subject, have but little
10 say in regard 10 these important modifica-
tons with them muck Is muck, whether it
be made Of black sand or vegetable debris
in a stage Of partial decomposition.
Now. muck Is not MANURE, whether it
comes from pea, meadow or from tie
silcious deposits IN the bed Of q dried up
frog pond I, Is not manure and moreover
il cannot be made into plant food by any
expense Of time aud labor which the farmer
can afford TO apply 10 IL
For a period Of twenty five wears We have
given much attention TO muck. and have in
s;ituied a series Of experiments with ii in
the laboratory and in the field. in all the
forms and notifications IN which It is found
upon New England farms, and we say now,
what We have often said before, II is a
material which. IN general, farmers cannot
afford to spend much time upon. If it had
absolute or potential value as manure. the
vet aud from meadows could not be hauled
long distances with profit. but il has not, IN
der any circumstance. manurial value. The
peat Of bogs, as freshly taken out, averages
Of water fuily 80 per cent. and load Of this,
Of 1000 pounds. gives but couple Of
hundred pounds Of dry humus at the barn.
IT, through inexperienoe OF want Of close
o5sery alton. farmer backs up his cart to q
mud hole. dry in summer, be loads into it 3
substance which is usually valueiess; We
have seen many farmers hard At work, after
having. upon deposit Of this nature. and
have often had the pleasure Of saving them
much toll, by proving on the spot the worth
lessness Of the substance they we're endeay-
oring to utilize. 4 substance holding seven
~ per cent Of clear sand and thirty per cent
Of black mould is zone well calculated to de-
oeive- Il looks rich, aud is tempting TO
many who desire to increase their manurial
resources 4 little Of TINS material put into
a tumbler and stirred up with much water,
At once reveals itself. as the black vegetable
matter floats above.
The true value of muck is well under
stood among chemists, or al least il ought
to be- It really holds no available plant
food, although it contains some nitrogen and
earbonaceous elements. These do not exist
in It in available forms, and cannot be
brought into that state ai a cost which will
under ordinary conditions, warrent trans
portation and manipulation. Muck has a
certain value as an absorbent of liquid ma.
nure, and it may pay to procure and dry it
for such purposes but to meet this want, il
must be convenient to the barn, and of good
quality. Farmers cannot afford to be de.
luded or led astray on any point, and there.
fore it is important that the true value Of
what is called muck should be understood
Boston Journal Of Chemistry.