The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1902-01-07
VEGETABLE NATTER IN THE Farm.

4hH L hO0hESS4NE AhMEhS WE46oS III
the Southern Cultivator as follows:
Now, while the long nights are
upon us, is good time to plan for
our future farming operations. Our
success in the long run depends upon
the planning we do. OF course our
reading and discussions with other
farmers will help us in making our
plans wisely. Successful farming is
not the result of accident or haphaz-
ard. Long and careful thought is
necessary to settle upon the wisest
ways and best methods. Very, very
many things come into. the plans of
the man who gets we'll paid for his
sweat and toll.
Science and experiment have done
and are doing much TO assist us in
this great work. But natures ways
are often 80 very simple that we are
slow to learn them because they are
simple. We are looking for some
thing very difficult. Failing TO find
that we entirely overlook the plain
and simple plans by which natures
great works are done.
This substance is essential to sue
cessful farming. If this is deficient
the crop is disappointing. If it is
plentiful a good crop grows oven
though the soil seemed otherwise
sterile.
Exactly what it is would be hard
TO explain. It is, perhaps, easier to
tell whence it comes and what it does.
Vegetable matter decaying in the
soil will produce something that
darkens the color and improves the
texture of the soil. At the same
time it greatly increases the pow
of the soil 90 hold moisture and to
absorb heat from the sunshine.
Thus the soil will be warm earlier in
spring. This ia often the turning
point in crop.
The earth, being more porous, will
drink in the rain water and prevent
washing, and at the same time the
surplus water will sink rapidly be
low and leave the upper soil in fine
condition for work, for early plant
ing and for @ration.
So, in this way the humus greatly
helps the work of dissolving the
mineral elements of plant food
ready for use. This is perhaps it's
most important function. This work
seems TO be almost entirely sus-
pended in fields where there is no
humus. But it is very active where
there is plenty of humus.
This seems to be the ultimate prin-
ciple which starts the dormant seed
into active life. If this is true then
We cannot be too careful to do every
thing in our power to increase the
quantity of humus in our farms.
USING VEGETABLE MATTER
The question then is, What can
we do? We can look after the vege-
table matter that is in our reach.
We can grow more of it and be more
careful to put it into the soil. We
can cease to burn the grass and
stubble and leaves and brush and
straw and everything else that will
burn. We can distribute these
various kinds Of waste to better
purpose and turn them into the
thirsty soil with more care.
A few oak leaves buried in fur
TO q will often more than double the
crop of sweet potatoes. The same Is
true, if we put little wheat or oat
straw in she furrow with the Irish
potatoes.
MuIching is helpful to very many
crops because the rot ing of the bot
tom of the vegetable matter used
greatly increases the humus in the
soil
If we utterly destroy the fertility
af piece of land, 80 that it refuses
to make crop, and then let the land
alone, nature at once seeks some
form of vegetation, which will grow
and fall and rot This soon restores
the fertility to the exhausted soil.
FEEDING CATTLE AND SAVING MANURE.
We can greatly increase the profit
and promptness of the process by
feeding many kinds of vegetation to
cattle. The cattle will grow, make
beef, milk and butter, and then give
us the refuse from their own bodies,
so mixed with the refuse of the food,
that the manure is worth as much as