The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1888-07-03
NEGLECTED RESOURCES OF
, FERTILITY.

requires something mixed with the
soil to hold it together to make a
foundation for manures that may be
applied, and keep it from washing,
and for this business there is nothing
better than rye; no other vegetable
growth is better adapted to all soils.
Sow in September that it may get as
good a full growth as possible. In the
spring, as soon as it shows signs OF
ripening, turn swine on and "hog it
down" After the hogs have pretty
we'll eaten all the grain, turn the straw
under; the remaining kernals will
o on sprout and bring on another>
crop. The decomposing straw will
give food to the young growing rye,
and keep the ground from washing.
The next spring after the rye is two
or three feet high, turn it under and
plant to corn. That fall cut the corn
and SOW wheat, and in early spring
SOW clover seed on the wheat; harrow
first and then SOW, is best. While
taking land through the process, keep
a lookout for manure.
Our stately forests prove that leaves
are one of the most powerful fertili-
zers. Heap them in large piles in the
woods; cover with loan; if loan be
mixed all through the pile, all the bet
ter. Thus covered, the gases are
held. These leaves will be rich in
plant food when we'll rotted, but
would be better composted with stable
manure. q write this article from
practice, not from theory, for l have,
although a cripple, worked about in
the woods on a high chair, and raked
up leaves to improve my garden and
farm with, and anyone else can do it
too). Cover stable floors a foot deep
in the fall while these piles are dry.
They will absorb all the liquid from
the stock. Use of economy in this
way will give a surprising quantity of
valuable manure.
Collect all bones large and small,
and store in a vessel for safe keeping.
When winter comes and you are
burning sound wood, put in boxes or
barrels a layer of ashes and a layer of
bones, then another layer of ashes and
then bones, and so on until the vessel
is nearly full, then fill with ashes; put
about twice as much ashes as bones.
Keep the mass wet with soap suds or
chamber I've, or both if you can, but
do not suffer it to freeze, the process
will stop if you do; do not wet it
enough to leach. Through the winter
endeavor to save extra, a hopper of
strong ashes.
When spring comes and the bones
are not dissolved sufficiently, put the
bones and ashes all into a large kettle
filed with lye leached from the ashes
in the hopper and boil them until the
I've eats them up. Put this away in
barrels until wanted; you can mix it
with dry soil to make it better to
handle. I have thus made a fertilizer
that gives better satisfaction than
commercial manure that cost So per
hundred pounds. Hen droppings we'll
taken care of is second only to guano.
1t should be composted or mixed with
the leaf mold in some dry place or it
can be swept up every week and put
in barrels and mixed with loan as
used. To obtain another powerful
manure, have a temporary clubhouse
made and covered to keep it dry. In
the fall when the soil is dry haul the
richest loan from the woods, put it in
n end of this house and use the
other end for a privy; when the privy
is visited use this dry loan to keep it
clean and to keep down odors. All
the above manures can be b~roadcasted
and thoroughly mixed with the soil
and crops planted. Break the ground
deep as possible before applying the
This will 60 farther put in
the hill. Thus you have not had to
pay out one dollar in money.
Now a beginner on poor land may
plant a small lot of the best of it to
small fruits and vegetables to make a
support until the farm is improved up
to making good crops. Have pigs In
pens, feed all the refuse from table
and garden, keep plenty of sod chip
dirt and woods mold or ever road
dust in the pen as absorbent; pigs will
sod with seeming thanks. This
also make a fine lot of manure,
and give you cheap pork. When your
clover is in it's second year cut it when
some heads are a little brown for feed
in the winter. This clover hay fed to
stock "a calf or two or as many as you
can get if nothing else) and the ma
lure carefully saved, l believe will