Year: 1869




seen that wheat invariably grows less lux
uriantly when you feed it off quite young,
and that the best crop of wheat is produc-
ed when you grow clover for seed. have
repeatedly seen it. Now, if had been
always shut up in my laboratory, should
never have seen it or investigated it. l
should have followed in the track of those
scientific men who SO frequently turn up
their noses at anything they cannot un-
derstand, or that they think unscientific.
Therefore, the men who make the prac-
tical experiments must be wrong; and
they must be right. Now, think this
is proceeding which cannot be commen-
ded. When we see plain matter of fact,
our simple business is to investigate it
carefully and concientiously. Then we
shall find frequently, as have found in
other departments of chemical investiga-
tions-I allude to my investigations in
farm-yard manure-that practice which
is at first sight contrary to all theory, at
least with what we call theory, but not a.
gainst true science, on being investigated,
is found to agree perfectly with the estab-
lished observations of good agriculturists,
and that there are really good causes which
fully explain apparent anomalies which
sometimes are very puzzling. Referring
to those clover investigations, l would just
give you the total amount of nitrogen
which found in different layers of soil
in the same field, and upon one-half of
which the clover was mown twice, and
upon the second half of which the clover
was mown only once, and then left for seed
The percentage of nitrogen in the clover
soil twice moved for the first six inches
amounted to. 169 in the second six inches
to .092 and in the third six inches to
.064. Thus you see that it becomes very
much less the deeper you go down. The
accumulation takes place chiefly in the
surface soil, and l believe it is principally
due to the dropping of the leaves. When
we grow clover for seed those leaves con-
tinually drop and enrich the surface soil
and ifit be the case, which think is likely,
that the clover tribe of plants is satisfied
with the ammonia which exists in the
atmosphere, we can at once account for
the accumulation of nitrogen in the soil.
The clover plants take the nitrogen from
the atmosphere and manufacture it into
their own substance, which, on decomposi-
tion of the clover roots and leaves, produ-
ces abundance of ammonia. In reality,
the growing of clover is equivalent, to a
great extent, to manuring with Peruvian
guano; and in this paper of mine l show
that you obtain larger quantity ofmanure
than in the largest dose of Peruvian guano
which farmer would ever think of apply
ing that there is larger amount of nj
trogen accumulated in the first six or
twelve inches of soil than there is in the
heaviest dose of Peruvian guano that any
person would think of using. On clover
soil once mown and left for seed, found
in three layers of soil larger percentage
of nitrogen than where the clover was
mown twice. In the first six inches it was
.189; in the next six inches .134 and in
the lowest six inches .0S9. Now the total
quantity of nitrogen calculated per acre
for II inches of soil amounted on that por-
tion of the field mown twice for clover, to
5,2499 lbs; whereas the total amount of
nitrogen in II inches of soil on that por-
ton of the field which was mown only
once and then left to stand for seed, was
S,1261 lbs; thus producing an excess of
nitrogen on an acre of soil II inches deep,
calculated as ammonia on the part of the
field mown once, and then seeded, amoun-
ting to 3,592 lbs. A very large quantity
of nitrogen was accumulated when the
clover was left for seed and the total
amount of large clover roots was much
greater in the part where the clover was
grown for seed for the longer it is left
in the soil the more the roots extend.
In the different layers Of the soil, also, in
every instance more nitrogen was found
where the clover was left for seed than
where it was twice mown. There was,
as just mentioned, upon one acre 3,592
lbs. more ammonia in the land where the
clover seed was grown than ON the other
portion where the clover was made entir-
ely into hay. The chemical points
brought forward in the course of this in
quiry show plainly that mere speculations
as to what can take place in the soil, and
what cannot, do not much advance the
true theory of certain agricultural practices.
l would just mention that it is only by
carefully investigating subjects like the one
under consideration that positive proofs
are given showing the correctness of in
telligent observers in the field. have
frequently been struck with the remark
ably luxuriant appearance of wheat after
heavy crop of clover has been removed
from the land. at first doubted it: but
at last was obliged to confess that it in
variably follows when you get good crop
of clover that you also get good crop of
wheat An enormous amount of nitro
genous organic matter is left in the land
after the removal of the clover crop, and
this gradually decays and furnishes ammo
MIA, which, at first, during the colder
mouths of the year, is retained by the well
known absorbing properties which all good
wheat soils possess. An investigation
, which have now in hand, however, shows
| me that the ammoniacal salts in the soil
are rapidly transformed into nitrates
Gradually. the oxidation Of the ammonia
l on1 nltu ,uL ioh aro ,,nnl,,nod pro,r, tho dn.