The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1884-01-31
Treating a Lumpy Soil.

There is a difference in this kind of
soil, depending upon the character and
condition of the land when plOwed. If
broken up when dry and hard, the
Jumps are readily reduced after a rain
has soaked them, If allowed to dry
somewhat. Still, the reduction is not
fully what is desired; the ground is
not mellow; only an approach to it.
With the aid of frost, a satisfactory
condition can be reached in most cases,
bv fall blowing. Where the CLAY is
quite obstinate. a good coat of manure
applied after blowing viii be an addi-
tional aid. Thorough working of the
surface as early in the spring as the
ground viii allow, and no later--the
point is impOrtant-will secure a good
seed bed, with the promise of a good
crop, the seed being sown at the time
of working the soil. The land there
after can lie kept good, and even i'm
prove in condition, until it becomes a
mellow clay loan, which is among the
best of soils. 1t only needs to continue
to work in manure and vegetable
material, which sod, green crops and
vegetable stable absOrbents best fur
nish. Such land. with the necessary
| drainage, makes the best general soil,
allowing all kinds of crops to be grown,
and most of them to the greatest per-
lection; for wheat, not surpassed; for
oats, barley and peas, equally good;
for corn, in q warm, shOwery season,
| reaching maximum yields, the rich,
warm river bottoms exceeding it only
| in cold seasons. As to grass and
| clover, no soil can equal it either in
quality or quantity.
Here is where farmers have great
] I
orally aware of. Instead of availing
themselves of it, what do we see? Com
paratively little clay soil can be found
| that is not more or less hard in a dry
! time; and less productive than it ought
| to be. Even where manure has been
used, the manure, owing to the unfa-
vOrable mechanical condition, does not
! afford the same benefit that a mellow
soil admits of, though it will aid some
| what in improving the texture. Then
! there is the delay of putting the crop
| out in the spring, owing to the wet
! condition of the land, the water with
! drawing slowly, and the further danger
| of rain extending the delay, sometimes
| till too late, the soil becoming more and
more packed as the time is extended.
! To pillow it will not do.
Right here is where the great danger
/
its greatest hurt. 1t is usually wet, es-
pecially early in the spring. Even if
comparatively dry on the surface, when
turned up it will show mud, or an APP
proach to it, which in drying becomes
baked and hard, and no amount of
rain during the season can reduce it to
| mellOwness. 1t may be broken by i'm
plements into smaller Jumps, but the
harshness, the brick-like quality. re-
mains. The frost of one winter
| only partially corrects it. 1t will
! take years before it can be brought
to a fine mellow condition, requiring the
action of the elements in connection
with the use of implements and barn
| yard manure. Instead of this the
| spring blowing is sometimes repeated,
making bad worse. When thus reduced
it is seeded down, with the chances
against a good catch. Not unfrequently
| it turns out that the seed has been lost,
and the land has to undergo another
| blowing, with sometimes a second fail
ure at seeding; but Oftener poor catch
is made to do, giving a chance for weeds
| if the ground is strong enough to grow
them: if not, manure will bring them.
l have seen many fields of this char
acter. In one case the weeds were
plowed under, giving them q shallow
covering and, when rotten, working the
surface with cultivatOr and harrow,
securing thus tolerable seed bed fol-
lowed by a fair crop of grain and sue
cessful seeding down.
Clay soil is the most difficult of all
soils to manage. 1t requires the most
careful treatment, and always, whether
in preventing hurt or in curing it. But
it is worth the attention. This atten-
ton is, to a greater or less extent,
thrown away if the land lacks drainage,
which, it is well known, it does to a
large extent. Is it a wonder then that
our clay soil. exposed to the hot sun,
and subjected to bad treatment in an
undrained state, should yield so lightly,
often not paying expense, when it has
the elements of the best Of soils, wait
ing for a chance to develop them?
1t is doubtful whether our efforts to
reduce clOddy lands with implements
pay. A certain reduction, to get rid OF
the rOughness. is necessary, but the
finest condition to which it is reduced is
only to lessen, by division, the size OF
the Jumps, preventing that close con
tact with the roots which is necessary
to a successful growth, leaving the soil
open to the effect of drought. Time is
required to correct such soil, and the
means are heat, rain and frost, aided by
manure. Pillow when the soil is dry
never when wet, not even in the fall,
though it is less harmful, especially
when done late enough to get an effect
of the frost soon after, or before the
ground is dried out. But sometimes 9
heavy snow will fall before the ground
is frozen, and remain till spring as
was the case last winter-and pack the
ground, leaving it in a condition for the
| sprinr winds and sun to drV hard. The
safe way is to make it an infexible rule
to pillow when dry enough to prevent
packing and a greasy appearance. Witt
the land drained there is no difficulty il
effecting this. Then there will be little
trouble from lumpy soil. Prevention
and not cure, is the true doctrine here
as with sickness.-F g., in Country
Gentleman.
COrnS.
e. i