Saint Mary's beacon., 1914-01-08


Every season ON the farm has its
duties. fer in no business does work
inieriock To the same degree and what
is neglected today influences profits
next year. By this time the mechani-
cal outdoor work of the fields is done
and nature is left 10 her own devices.
Freezing. thawing, teaching. action of
carbonic acid gas, weathering, all the
forces of mechanical and chemical ac-
tion on the soil are most active now.
IL Is well TO stop and consider what
this means and what the frosts and
SHOWS and thaws do for the land.
Understanding opens the door for i'm
proving. The last crop and fall rains
have taken so much of the plant foods
out of the soil as was in condition for
solution and absorption by the root
lets. This has to be restored for the
coming seasons growth.
USE OF THE WORK DONE.
The soil contains the necessary ele-
ments in abundance, but not in soluble.
or as we may truly say, in digestible
form. The cracking by frost of the
soil particles letting in the water and
acid of the air renders them so.
Whatever work has been done on the
land in breaking il up is so much to
good in aiding these natural agencies.
This much every man understands that
work on land. plowing. breaking clods.
narrowing. draining, helps fertility by
helping natures mechanical forces
unlock plant food.
BETTERING THE WORK DONE.
What the farmer is seldom or never
reminded of IN simple unmistakable
terms is that he can also aid natures
chemical forces for without these.
plant foods are not made digestible or
soluble in the soil in sufficient amount
to pay. To remind ourselves of what
chemical forces are and how they work.
smell a bottle of ammonia, put some
lye or caustic on the skin or take a
taste of sharp vinegar. Then think
how ammonia cleans, lye cuts grease
and vinegar will dissolve marble and
other hard stones.
MAKING TILLAGE EFFECTIVE.
Now, as physical and chemical
forces act together in nature. partic-
ularly in winter, to- make available a
new supply of digestible plant food.
SD must the farmer supplement the
work of tillage by the solvment or
digestive treatment of chemical agency.
European farmers who well under
stand this and average 35 bushels of
wheat to the acre as agains: IL bushels
in America and other crops in pro-
portion, use the one chemical agent
for the purpose. which can he applied
This agent Is lime. Its sharp or caus-
tic property makes it cut the insoluble
silicates of potash and phosphates of
alumina and iron. making potash and
phosphates soluble. Burned lime can
do no harm in winter to growing things.
Where clover and lcgumcs have been
plowed under it furthcrs their decom-
position correcting the first souring
stage and making good humus by
Spring. Manure, which is vegetable
and animal matter that has gone
through this initial decomposition.
should be applied some weeks after the
lime. In this way, and at any rate at
this season, humus destruction by
quick lime is a negligible factor. For
these reasons use lime nov. 1t can be
put on the frozen ground or on the
snow. 1t will at once begin TO work
downward and get in its work. Winter
and fallOw enable il To exert its benc-
fits bringing out what is in the soil
itself. thereby cheapening next sea-
sons fertilizer bill.
KARL LANGENBECK.