The Lexington progress. (Lexington, Tenn.) 1884-current, 1914-09-18


- : or mechanical condi.
ton of the soils
upon which they are grown.
The average farmer thinks that so
long as his soils are filled with plant
food that he can produce profitable
crops, when, as a matter OF fact, the
availability Of the plant food content
of the soil governs the crop produc-
ton to a much greater extent than the
amount OF such food.
The only practical difference exist.
ing to-day between those soils which
we term WORKOUT and the same soils
when the virgin forest had Just been
removed lies In the difference In the
physical texture Of those soils, chem.
ical analysis showing that nearly
identical amounts Of plant food are
present with the exception of nitrogen.
but owing to the bad mechanical con-
dition of the soil plants cannot make
use of the food which Ia there and
except for the fact that we improve
the condition Of these worn soils to
some extent by stirring or cultivation.
we could grow no crop at all.
Nature, in preparing the earth for
mans habitation, stored up vast guam
titles Of plant food but left 1t to mans
ingenuity to render or keep available
for the use Of plants the necessary
food. She has at the same time fur
nlshed him hundreds of object lessons
as to the best methods of doing this
work, but man, with his wasteful ways,
has not kept faith with nature In these
matters; so that to-day, instead Of
having carefully conserved the plant
food stored up for his use, he has lost
irrevocably large part of his patri.
mony, and this and succeeding gener.
ations are confronted with the prob
lem, not so much Of keeping, but of re-
storing the elements heretofore lost
One Of the means of both directly
and indirectly improving the physical
texture of our soils Is by the use Of
lime, Its application to heavy, clayey
loans rendering them easier of cult.
walton by making them more porous
and lighter Of texture, while its ap
plication to sandy lands has the OPP
posite effect, binding them together
and making them more retentive of
moisture. 1t also corrects acidity OF
| the soil and promotes the growth Of
leguminous plants, thus giving US
larger amounts of vegetable matter to
| turn under This in turn furnishes
food for the countless thousands Of
beneficial bacteria which give life or
productive capacity to our soil, and
where any free nitric acid is present
In the soil II unites with the lime and
form nitrate of calcium, substance
carrying nitrogen in the nitrate, or
readily available, form.
In growing crops for the purpose
Of improving the physical texture Of
the soil, 1t Is better to grow some Of
the legumes, such as alfalfa, crimson,
red or the other clovers, cowpeas or
soy beans, as we not only get as much
green matter to turn under as from
the non-leguminous plants, but we re.
ceive the additional advantage Of
whatever nitrogen the former class OF
plants may have gathered from the
, air.
OF these crops the clovers are to be
! preferred on account OF their en0r-
nous root growth, there being SUN.
IIcient Of this, even where the crop -
nVn for hay, to greatly increase the
>ctive capacity Of soils where
- grown. and the growth Of
ci0ps will obviate the necessity
pifins, as their roots penetrate
iepth that when they dacay
oil IL rendered porous enough
the water to 80 down without
having to be broken.
too much hardpan exists
the roots free passage down
~ bs better to bfexk 4deeplyI
plow Or subsOil f6lloVlps
ia pillow. but this shauld
eneueh An advances Nv
ding u give ne ground
settle and become arm OK
can he done By harrowiEs
La packing. 'S
latic rotation Of cropel