The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1903-04-07

From al parts of tile country Oos4., ne
complaint "We cannot gross Glove. IS *.
formerly die. Il becomes thgr of r.e.t
Importance TO look into TIC reasons for
the failure The failure may b. i1c re.
suit Of various causes. On some l,r,IIs
soils where cloyer has been grown Tor
years in . short rotation of crops TIE soH
gradually accuinulats S huuLs is el. Il an
extent that il gets iuto an acIG condition
Now the success OF clover largely due
10 the parasitic organism. that llyg ia
the noduies it5 roots and through
which the plants are enabled 10 col
lect nitrogen from the air. When the
soil gets into an acid condition through
the accumulation Of huulic acids these
micro organisms cannot thrive. for they
require that The soil be ia q feebly aka
line condition. Then when the nitrogen
collection microbes fail to grow the clovc~
fails to thrive though the soil may be
rich IN plant food There are many
plants that can abide an acid soil Lut
clover is not one Of ,-se.
Ii was found in New England that on
some Of these soils where clover fa.led
a sweetening Of the soil through an ap-
Dlication Of freshly -slaked lime would
restore the conditions needed by tie
clover and its parasite and the clover
throve. But there are other soils in
which the so-called clover sickness is
due simply to the loss Of plant food from
the soil that the clover needs There IS
no plant grown that responds more
| quickly on most clay soils to agpli-
cation of lime than clover but where
| this IS the case it is largely due, as
we have said, to the sweettening Of the
organic matter in the soil But lime
never made poor soil rich. 1t may bring
| into play IN soils where it is present in
| an unavailable form the potash that the
| clover needs, but there are thousands of
acres all over the country Where the
| mineral matters are absolutely deficient
and no plant will do its best till they
| are supplied.
| There are moro failures Of clover from
a lack of humus IL the soil than there is
| from an excess Of this MISUNDERSTANDING
material. We once took charge OF a place
on which there was field of fertile
| limestone soil We were told that il
was useless to SOW clover on that field
| as it was clover-sick. We gave it q
heavy dressing Of lime, and sowed clover
| or the wheat that followed and mad.
| as fine clover as we ever saw. This sol
| was simply acid, though underlaid b.
| limestone rocks. Now many farmer
| would have at once jumped to the conclu-
| sion that lime was all the manure need
| ed on that land, and that all that need
| be done to get large crops would be t.
| go on applying lime. This impression got
| abroad among the farmers liz the fertile
| valleys of Pennsylvania many years age
| and they applied lime year after year
| Now they have found their error, and
| have gene to the other extreme, and sell
| dom use as much lime as they should
| all because they thought that lime as {
manure had supplied all the needs Of the
| plant while it simply enabled them {
! rob the soil more effectually Of It's store
| Of phosphoric acid and potash. They are
| now using fertilizers to make crors, anC
| putting on the soil IN this form what they
| have for years been rObbine ii Of The
| present necessity for complete fertilizers
| could have been largely avoided had they
/ realized what they were doing. Glover
! failed by reason Of the taking away o.
the plant food it especially needed. and
| the sensible way to restore the conditions