The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1914-03-28

TOT oVQ NOao sS'SsS 49, w. $500"
Forest Protective Association, Mu-
nisins, Mich.
The importance of the subject mat
ter under consideration will be bet
ter appreciated by treating II as, first,
the forest as an agricultural teacher
and, second, the value OF humus in
soil fertility.
Before human life became possible
upon earth, the principles Of scien-
tific agriculture were established by
Nature when 1t brought the forest In.
to existence and left to the future hui
nan race the practical demonstration
OF its teachings. When In the dim
past order was restored from chaos,
the process of soil building became
possible as Natures, harnessed agen-
cies combined to break up, mix and
change the character of the barren
rocks. From the tiny moss to the
.succulent. grasses; from the meadow
to the forest, the process of evolu-
tion went on, and microbic life de-
veloped into more complex forms until
man, the king of animals, came to
assert and maintain his supremacy.
From the oldest history or the human
race we learn that man first lived up
en- fruit which had not been raised
through his efforts, and afterwards
pastured fiocks upon meadows which
he had not planted. Probably the
first attempt at securing bread, the
stan of life, came from gathering the
seeds of widely scattered wheat
plants and planting them within
more compact areas among the
grasses which already supplied him
Indirectly with dairy and meat prod.
ucts, with clothing and artificial
lisht. The poor results from this
crude system OF primitive farming
compelled the study Of better methods
and from the forest man learned how
to pillow and till the soil; how to plant
and cultivate; how to conserve suie-
cient moisture for maturing his crops
and how to maintain the fertility OF
the soil. In the primeval forest trees
60 ON undisturbed and no waste oc-
ours from the food and shelter which
they furnish to its untamed inhahi.
tants. Leaves and decaying branches
60 on forming the moisture retaining
mulch, and the fertility extracted
from the soil is returned to II when
the tree has ended its usefulness.
Layer upon layer of new soil is thus
formed, and the fertility thereof is
enriched by the transforming ma.
terial, the remnants Of insect and an
imal life and the activities Of bac-
terial life. Windstorms, the indis-
pensable purifiers of the atmosphere,
sweep down periodically portions OF
the forest and trees In the prime OF
life are uprooted, burying the newly
formed soil, carrying TO the surface
pertly decomposed rocks and large
quantities of virgin soil which mix
Ing with the new transforming ma
terfal offers more congenial home to
the next free generation and to a
greater variety of plants. Thus the
lesson of scientific agriculture is COM
i plete. and were modern man more OBJ
serving there would be less need for
i agricultural schools ana extension
work so-called would be unheard Of
\ Value Of Humus In Soil Fertility.
II now remains to define the func-
lions Of humus in the process Of soil
building and its relation to the fer
tility OF the soil. Humus Is the most
important factor in soil fertility, for
without 1t plants cannot grow except
urder costly artificial conditions. IN
der ordinary~-ield conditions, newly
formed soil in the shape Of decom-
posed rock with its rich store of min.
eral fertilizers is still AN inert mass
It's activity begins only and is in
creased as generation upon genera
ton of plants grow upon 1t. During
the decompositions of the plants
which give rise to humus, acid sub.
stances are formed which act upon
the rocks in such a way as to make
more Of the plant food available. Car
bonic acid gas, one of the products Of
decay or fermentation, when dis
solved In soil water, is an important
help in disintegrating the rocks.
Roots Of growing plants also secrete
an acid substance that has a solvent
effect on the rocks and on the min.
eral matter Of the soil, and roots also
assist mechanically in breaking
down the rocks. An example OF this
in the shape Of grooves or burrows
upon solid rock may be frequently
seen when removing the roots Of
growing trees which extend across the
rocks. The roots of the plants pene-
trate the soil sometimes to great
depths, and as they decay after death
Of the plants, they leave in the soil
little channels which serve to carry
down water laden with carponic acid
as well as to introduce the oxygen
Of the air which in its turn is fac
tor in bringing about chemica;
changes I'M the soil which assist in
making plant food available. This
formation Of humus with its attend
ing chemical changes increases at the
sarcs time the bacterial life within the
soil and prepares II for the growth of
legumlnous plants. The peculiar prop
erty Of these plants consists in their
ability to draw part Of their food from