The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1906-07-23
POISON IN THE SOIL.
Toxic Material That MAY Tn5arc or
Even Destroy Crops.


Toxic Material That May HnJarc or
Even Destroy Crops.
The results DC recent Investigation
] BY the national department OF agrieul-
/ ture and some Of the beliefs to which
/ they lead Chief Milton Whitney of the
bureau Of soils are placed IN reach OF
4 farmers through recent bulletin on
..Soil FegfiIity.Y The ideas exploited
/ appear to be a radical departure from
DID theories. AIT least they represent
the expression IN modern terms OF lat.
est conclusions from facts both new
and old as they exist today lii the
minds OF a number OF able investi.
4 gators Among other things. Chief
/ whitney says:
Plants must have heaIthfni home
1 TO live Id. Plants. like animals, throw
4 OF excreta, which must be disposed on.
I we know thar when nltrifying nelds
we need lime 70 take care Of the nitric
/ acid that lis formed by the nffrafying
bacteria. because II the nitric acid.
which IL the product Of tho bacteria,
4 accnmuIates they will surely them.
1 selves be destroyed. We must put
something On the soil 10 destroy or
change their afiuyia. SO that the hac-
/ terla themselves can 40 on working.
\ VIC must clean out The soil ais re ia
the stalls Ia our stables. II we do not
the substances given on by the plants
Or the substances that are formed from
/ those substances BIZ the action OF bac-
I teria win produce acid substances
I VIII produce what we call toxic OF
poisonous matter--that will seriously
affect, X not XIII the crop
some Evidence.
The chemical Edes III the exhaustion
Of a soil is not logical in the light Of
the experience which all on rs have
seen that where fertilizers are applied
the soils are not always made immedi-
ateiy prodnctlve You can 20 into
many Of the regions Of the WORKOUT
soils OF our eastern states and reclaim
these soils or make them productive.
but not With any amount OF fertilizers
you can apply You can give them all
the phosphate. all the potash. all the
nitrate, you desire. but it requires more
than that 10 revive the agriculture on
some Of these soils That there are
toxic substances In the soil 7 think you
win grant me from Jour experience Ia
turning up subsolls. There Is no doubt
at all that il certain sections 0f the
country certain subSoils are poisonous
whan incorporated In soil and that,
while deep plowing il very desirable
it IS unsafe after shallow blowing has
been carried on for years TO run your
piow down and turn up a great mass
Of subsoil and incorporate II il the
soil In a great many cases II will
taka seVsfnl years TO get the fertility
Of the soil back to where itwns before
this procedure Not only is the sub
soil known to be poisonous in many
cases unless It Is allowed 70 lie III
small quantities exposed to the air, but
muck II often poisonous to the soil
unless il is permitted 10 weather be-
fore Il Is applied
Experience Of Gilbert and Lawes.
One OF the most Interesting instances
going 10 show that toxic substances
are formed and that what Is poisonous
TO one crop II not necessarily poisonous
or injurious 70 another is a series OF
experiments Of Lawes and Gilbert.
which probably some OF you have seen
or heard Of, the growing OF potatoes for
about fifteen years on the same field.
AT the end OF this period they got the
soil into condition In which II would
not grow potatoes at all. The soil was
exhausted, and under the older ideas
II was necessarily deficient IN some
plant food. II seems strange thar. IN
der our old ideas OF soil fertility. IL the
soil became exhausted for potatoes il
shonld grow any other crop. because
the usual analysis shows tho same con
stltuents present In an OF our plants.
not in the same proportion. but 81 are
present and all necessary. so far as we
know This field was planted ID bar
ley. and on this experimental plot that
had ccased to grow potatoes they rot
seventy-flve bushels Of barley.
g1s4t. ia