Lewiston teller. [volume] (Lewiston, North Idaho) 1878-1900, 1896-04-02
importance or Green Maturing.

iiiibt w SlIPut OF tile preservation VI ti' ,
fertility of land:
Green manurirg improves the physi-
cal properties of the soil by making the
soil more porous and adding to its sup
ply OF humus. 1t brings up the dor
mant plant FOOD from deep down III
the soil and deposits i; near the surface.
where it can Be used by plants feeding
near the surface.
Green manuring with buckwheat
Hungarian grass and other non-legum-
nous plants adds practically nothing to
the soil which was not there before.
except mass Of vegetable matter,
which decays and goes TO form humus.
Green manuring with clovers. peas.
beans, lupines, etc. Oeguminous crops,
actually enrich the soil in nitrogen
drawn from the air. These plants
can grow with very little soil
nitrogen. They store up the nitrogen
of the air rs they grow, and when
plowed under give it up to the soil anu
TO future crops. 1t is the cheapest
means Of manuring the soil with nitro
gen.
Guire nitrogen for food. BY feeding the
crops of clover. cowpea. etc. only about
onc-fourth of the fertilizing materials
Of the crops is lost if the manure is
properly cared for. As the nitrogen OF
the air is the cheapest source Of nitro
gen for plants, so it is the cheapest
source of protein (nitrogen) for animals.
The leguminous crop is best utilized
when it is fed out on the farm, and the
manure saved and applied to the soil.
The greatest profit is thus secured. and
nearly the same fertility is maintained
as in green manuring.
For renOvating worn or barren soils.
and for maintaining the fertility when
the barnyard manure is not properly
cared for. green manuring with such
leguminous crops as cOwpea, clover,
and lupines Is recommended. A dress
ing of potash and phosphates will usual
ly be sufficient for the green manuring
crop.
1t has been proved sufficiently that,
while clover. peas and other crops of the
leguminous are the most valuable for
this use, yet they are most useful on al
least moderately fertile soil, and will
not grow sufficiently on poor land. For
such land, then, it is necessary to grow
, less eXacting crops, as buckWheat, or
| even crop of weeds, and turn these
| under, thus filling the soil with humus
| and decayed vegeta BILE matters, on which
the nitrogen germs may feed, and thus
! prepare the way for clover and its re
lated crops. which then complete the
process Of improvement.
The practice of green manuring on
medium and better classes of soil is
irrational and wasteful. The farmer
should mend his system so that the
barnyard manure will be as well cared
for as any other farm product. Loss
from surface washing, teaching, fer
mentation. and decay should be guard
ed against. Then the feeding of richer
food will mean richer manure and bet
ter and cheaper crops.
The system of soiling or feeding green
crops in the barn in place of pasturage
enables larger number of animals to
| be kept on given area of land and
the manure to be more completely
saved. For this purpose legnminous
crops are extremely valuable.
Hay from legumnous crops is about
twice as rich in protein as hay from
grasses. In enc case this protein mi
trogem is obtained very largely from
the atmosphere; in the other it is drawn
from the fertility of the soil. Legumi-
nous crops yield larger crops of hay
to the acre than grasses. Hence the
production of food materials on an acre
especially protein, is several times
| larger with leguminous crops.
If allowed to ripen, the seed of the
cowpea and sofa bean furnishes an eX-
tremely rich concentrated feed which
can be ground and fed in place of ex-
pensive commercial feeds. The straw
for it is richer than ordinary hay
Grow more leguminous crops. They
furnish the cheapest food for stock ant
remaining may be fed as coarse fodder
the cheapest manure for the soil. They
do this because they obtain from the all
substance necessary for plants and
animals alike, which costs in the form
OF fertilizers and feeding stuffs from /.
to % cents a pound.-Farmers' Review
Planting Peach Pits--As long as We
ill land, no matter how little. in {
locality where peaches can be grown
ne will not fail to raise, occasionally, &
few seedlings for budding This plaI
gives us good trees without a cash ont.
lay. and We know what we have Be
sides. the operation OF budding il
easily learned, easily performed, anf
quite interesting to the amateur. In
recent issue of Country Gentleman tn.
! following directions are given for pre-
pairing the pits for planting: place
in moist earth any time after bein,
taken from the peach. and better no
let them become dried through II !.
desirable that they be placed wher,
they will freeze in winter. and if the,
have been kept moist, the seed Of tht
pit will fill the cavity and freezing Wi
| hn S1ol