The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-10-31
Farm TOpics-The "Why" of Humuxi
Best Land Unproductfxe


If farmer understands that humus
or vegetable matter is essential to
fertility. that just in proportion as the
soil possesses it it is capable of yield
ing larger crops that is about as much
as he needs TO know as a practical
farmer. 1t is not necessary that he
should know exactly why it is so. 1t
is well to know. however When any
vegetable matter, whether green or
dry as when peas and other crops are
allowed to die on the land, is turned
under the soil and becomes decom-
posed it is known as humus. Until
the vegetable matter has become de-
composed il has no effect beyond
keeping the soil more open absorbing
and holding some moisture that 9TH
erwise would pass into the subsoil
This in itself is helpful, but the real
manurial effects are obtained after
1t becomes humus. Whatever nitro
gen and potash and phosphorus was
contained in the vegetable matter is
then released and can be used by a
growing crop. A soil fully supplied
with humus is kept porous and does
not run together and bake. 1t retains
more moisture and allows the car
bonic acid of the atmosphere to en-
ter freely the soil and from there be
absorbed by the rootlets of plants
No doubt there is a large proportion
of worn land in the South that has
plenty of potash and PHOSPHORUS
easily made available il only plenty
of humus could be given to it. Humic
acid is a solvent of. those minerals
When lands are first cleared they are
more or less rich in both humus and
undecomposed vegetable matter. Ham
mock lands where the original growth
was oak hickory, or other hard woods
are always richer and have a more
lasting fertility than pine lands. The
former have accumulated much more
humus than the latter owing to their
position and the nature of the foliage
of the hardwoods. These soils are
rarely worn out completely by culture
where they are protected from wash
ing. They are capable of being
brought back to the highest state Of
fertility by a system of farming that
restores their lost vegetable matter
In earlier times 1t was the practice
when land became badly worn to turn
them out to grow up in weeds, briars,
and whatever else might spring up on
the land. New land was opened up
and in its turn worn out and turned
out. And thus II went on. 1t is
well enough TO allow a certain part
VI OhN WOAH 70 20 DICK INTO
forest from time to time but the part
most capable of being restored should
be devoted TO pastoral farming where
pasture and meadows take the place
of crops requiring clean culture
where beef, pork. mutton, wool take
the place of cotton, corn to a great ex-
ten II not exclusively. Under this
system there is a wholesale improve
ment secured In no other way and
there is every reason to believe that
before very many years a large part
of Southern lands will be devoted "a
this system of farming
A considerable per cent. of the best
arabic land In Georgian the South
is to-day almost entirely unproduc-
tive. 1t is those lands lying along
rivers. creeks. branches. that have
been cleared OF their forest growth
and have been cultivated. but for one
reason or another have been allowed
10 grow up IN weeds AMI bushes Of
one kind or another. Nearly all OF this
land IL rich and II put In first-class
shape would produce n bale OF cotton
or so bushels Of corn without any
nnanuring Most OF this land too 10
set IN bermuda grass and n nothing
else but n had possession there would
be most magnificent pasture on
meadow capable 81 producing $50
worth Of beef pork or mutton 10 eve
cry acre Of o. " used only - 4
u meadow u would yield from two 10