The Port Gibson reveille. [volume] (Port Gibson, Miss.) 1890-current, 1921-10-06

su.l4lueFsbuuy OF the late JoseDh Il
Wing, possibly the best authority d
soll-building in the United States. til,
hevellle secured his promise to furn
lsh the paper with series Of article,
on this vital subject. We are sur,
that there has never been a nan i,
claiborne county SO we'd posted Of
thesubject, and we ask our reader,
to read and preserve his articles.
Following is the first of the serie,
OF articles which Mr., Sacksteder ia,
promised to write:
Since 1876 England and France
have practiced Inning the soils IN
sinking chalk pits and Scattering ths
soft chalk, which is almost pure lime
upon the land. In the early davs N
agriculture in this country, before
machinery was invented for grinding
raw limestone, the farms Of the east
ern states piled lime rock and wood
n heaps and set fire to the wood
thereby producing caustic lime which
was then put out in piles upon the
land 10 alr-slack, a process REQUIRING
several months, and when thoroughly
puiyerlzed It was scattered upon the
lteluSs
Nowadays we have machinery that
will grind to any fineness, but too
fine a dust disappears faster than is
necessary to keep the soils or alkaline.
SO that we recommend as coarse a
stone as can be distributed BY the lime
sower without clogging the machine.
Quarter inch screenings are satisfac-
tory.
So important has this industry be-
come as a factor in maintaining soil
fertility that the railroads are MAX
ing special inducements to farmers
in the way of freight rates. The
Gulf, Mobile & Northern railroad and
its subsidiary lines is offering to haul
limestone for agricultural purposes to
farms on its right of way free Of
freight, having published a tariff to
this effect.
The Illinois Central r. r. recently
sent ten cars Of agricultural limestone
INTO Mississippi territory free Of all
cost for demonstration purposes. In
Illinois there had been a steady in
crease in the use Of limestone on the
farms until the increased freight
rates in 1919 caused decrease in or
ders of so thousand tons, in spite of
the fact that many new county farm
bureaus were organized. Upon being
presented with these facts the Illinois
Central r. r. voluntarily cut the ag-
rlcultural limestone freight rates for
Illinois points from 10 cents to 80
cents a ton below the rates in effect
up to Sept. Goth Simlal reductions
nave been lnadc by the e. Z u. I. il. X.
ranging from "a cents to ~ cents per
ton.
In southern Illinois there are about
100000 acres of sour or acid soils,
some Of them 50 strongly acid that
can grow on them without
II will take 100000 tons
of limestone as a beginning to bring
these soils back to production. Coun-
tries where the rain fall is heavy and
tillage has long been practiced are
very likely to be acid and the longer
the application of lime is put off the
less chance there is for the farmer to
afford the expense. 1t is while soils
are still capable of producing that
owners can afford to buy this neces-
sary aid TO land power. In southern
results Of the application Of
one ton of limestone, in eleven differ
ent fields covering as long as 16 years
in some fields and less time in others
showed an increase under average
of II bushels Of corn; II
bushels Of oats; II bushels of wheat;
half ton Of hay; five bushels Of soy
beans.
The cost Of a ton Of limestone $100
sidings in Claiborne county is about
$500 per ton in open cars, shipped
from Waynesboro, Mississippi The
shell district of Claiborne county was
once rich in lime, but tillage and rain
fall have leached away most Of it, SO
that only here and there we find good
fields of medium red clover, and oc-
casionally along the deep cuts in the
roadways we see sptigs Of red clover
which too will gradually disappear.
Shallow roofing clovers still grow on
these soils because they, like the COW
peas and soy beans, can survive the
acid conditions. 1t is the deep root
ing clovers such as Medium red, Mel
lilotus, alfalfa that enable us to bring
from deep down the crop clements
that are lacking in the top soils and
thus help to maintain larger produc-
tons. They also gather large quanti-
ties of nitrogen from the air through
the increased bacterial activity, which
is due TO the alkaline quality or sweet
ening of the soil by lime, condition
to their growth.
A soil test showing only 100000
bacterias before the application Of
lime showed 100000 bacterias two
months after the application grant,
ing liberal supply Of organic matter
in the soil such as manure straw and
other vegetable growths. Such an in
crease in bacterial life in the soil can
only result in increased liberation Of
plant food, enabling the crop to feed
faster and IN the presence Of a liberal
supply of phosphorous Fastening ma
turity and seed development.
Limestone should be applied after
plowing and narrowed, SO as to keep
it near the surface but not on the sur
face. It has been found in Illinois
that the annual loss IS about IA per
cent Of the total application. Owing
to the heavier rain fall in this state
the loss by teaching would probably
be greater This fact only empha-
sizes the greater need of beginning
to maintain applications now in order
to maintain and improve the soils
while they are capable Of paying for
the improvement
Eighty acres lined and phosphated,
viii in the hands Of capable farmer
earn as much or more than TWO hund-
red acres under present methods.
In addition 10 improved crops, the
application Of minerals to the soil.
such as limestone and phosphates and
in abnormal soils potash. VIII greatly
improve the feeding qualities Of the