Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1900-12-29

or all the soils to be cultivated or to
be restored none are preferable to the
light. sandy soils. BY their porous
ness free access is given to the power
full effects of air. They are naturally
in that state to which drainage and
sub'soil blowing are reducing the
SITTER lands OF England.
Manure may as well be thrown into
water as OH land underlaid by water.
Drain this, and no matter If the upper
soil be almost qucksand, manure will
convert it into fertile, arabic land.
The thin covering of mould, scarcely
one inch in thickness. the product OF
a century. may be initiated and pro-
duced in Il short time by studying the
laws Of its formation.
1t Is we'll recognized fact that next
to temperature the water supply is the
most important factor in the produc-
ton Of crop. Light soils give good
crops in seasons of plentiful and we'll
distributed rains or when skilfully IL
rigated, but insufficient moisture in a
soil is AN evil that no supplies Of plant
food can neutralize. Sandy soils are
rich in mineral constituents and fail to
give good crops in time OF drouth only
on account of their inability to retain
moisture. This can be b>iated by the
application Of fermented peat on clay,
or The sowing of clover. All OF these
enable 1t to retain moisture in times
OF drouth, and the decay of vegetable
substances in the soil gives Off car
bonic acid, a powerful solvent in the
soil,
Peat contains as much nitrogen as
barnyard manure, but as 1t Is dug out
the nitrogen is locked up by acids IN
insolublc combinations and applied to
the land in this condition brings in
s0rrel. coarse and unnutritious grasses.
Composing 1t with an alkali to neu-
tralize its acidlty causes the peat to
heat, then ferment and renders it SOL
uble and fit for food for plants at a
cost of two cents Il pound for nitrogen.
If the land is in a condition to bear
clover it is easily brought to state to
produce any crop, and if not in con-
dition it can be readily made so at a
trifling cost for fertilization. A crop
of three tons Of clover contains the
following constituents: 1913 pounds of
alkali 2l0 pounds alkaline earths, As
pounds phosphoric acid and 127
pounds nitrogen.
Soils are not exhausted when it is
seen the power a suitable crop has to
!iberate and convert the insOluble sub
stances existing in the soil and store
them in plant for future use,
The clover should be cut for fodder
the first year; the second year cut it
once for fodder; then allow 1t to grow
again and go 10 seed, which save for
future use. and there is left in the
clover roots in the soil to the depth Of
~ inches. % pounds Of alkali.
292 pounds alkaline earths, Il pounds
of phosphoric acid. $50 pounds of nj
trogen. available for crop, which,
when plowed. leaves the land clean,
light, retentive of moisture and easily
titled with available constituents in
the clover roots and soil enough to
produce any crop proftably, and the
necessity OF purchasing fertilizers and
applying them is saved. The farm
should he made self-supporting, but it
can only be done so by a judiciouS ro-
tation Of crop. If this is not resorted
to fertilizers, which are much more
costly. must be applied. Andrew II.
Ward, in New York Tribune.