Year: 1869




The explanation is very simple, though
puzzling when you know not the chemical
points that are involved in the investiga-
ton. l cannot deny myself the gratifca-
tion of showing to you, in few figures,
that, in a thorough chemical point of view
clover is the most exhausting crop that
you can possibly grow, whilst in
thorough practical point of view, it is the
most restorative crop, and the best prepa-
ration for wheat that you can possibly
grow. Now if we examine what is taken
from the land in the shape of clover, we
shall find that, assuming an acre of land
to yield four tons of clover hay, these
four tons of clover hay will remove 672
lbs. of mineral constituents, and not less
than 224 lbs. of nitrogen, which is equal
to 272 lbs. of ammonia. Four tons
of clover hay the produce of one acre,
gen, and remove from the soil an enor-
nous quantity of mineral matters abound
ing in lime, potash, and also much phos-
phoric acid. Now, comparing what is re-
moved by crop of wheat, we find that,
in clover crop, we remove fully nree
times as much of mineral matter, and a
great deal more, six times as much, believe
of nitrogen, as we do in crop of wheat
The total amount, to give the exact figures,
of mineral matters removed in an average
crop of wheat amounts to It's lbs. an acre;
that is, taking in both the grain and the
straw, the total amount of nitrogen remov-
ed in the grain of wheat amounts to only
26.7 lbs. per acre (not quite 27 lbs.
and in the straw of wheat 1872 lbs. or
| in both together 46 lbs. of nitrogen, which
is only about one-fifth of the nitrogen con-
tanned in the produce of an acre of clo-
yer. We should, therefore, naturally ex-
pect that clover, which removes SO much
more nitrogen from the soil, would be
greatly benefited by the application of
nitrogenous manures but the reverse is
the case. Wheat, it is well known, is
benefited by the application of nitrogen
Gus matters, but not clover On the 9TH
er hand, clover is benefited by mineral
manures; and at the same time it leaves
the land even in better condition in this
respect for the succeeding corn crop than
it is without the intervention of clover.
believe vast amount of mineral manure
is brought within reach Of the corn crop
by growing clover. 1t is rendered avail
able to the roots of the corn crop, while
otherwise it would remain in loeked-up
condition in the soil, if no recourse were
had to the introduction of the clover
crop. Clover, by means of its long roots,
penetrates large mass of soil. 1t gath
ers up, SO to speak, the phosphoric acid
and the potash which are disseminated
throughout large portion of the soil;
and when the land is ploughed the roots
are left in the surface, and in decaying
they leave in an available condition the
mineral substances which the wheat plant
requires to enable it to grow. Although
in clover hay these mineral matters are
removed in great quantity, yet the store
of mineral food that we have in six or
twelve inches of soil is so great that it is
utterly insignificant in comparison with
what remains in other words, the guam
tity of mineral matter which is rendered
available and fit for the use of the sue
ceeding corn crop is very much larger
than the quantity which is removed in the
clover hay. But the accumulation of nj
trogen after the growth of clover in the
soil is extremely large. Even when the
clover crop is insignificant large quanti-
ty of nitrogen amounting to tons is accu-
mulated in the surface soil, and the better
theclover crop the greater the accumula-
tion of nitrogen.


In one of my experiments l tried to
determine the amount of nitrogen which is
left in the portion of the field where the
clover was, comparatively speaking, poor,
and | found that on the brow of the hill
in that field, for it had considerable de-
clivity, the clover was weak, the produce
to an acre being ton, IL cwt. so lbs. /;
whilst at the bottom of the HILL where the
clover was stronger, there being more
soil, it was tons, cwt. 81 lbs. OBJ
serve, too, that at the bottom of the field
the wheat was always better. Now, it is
in virtue, 1 believe, of this accumulation
of nitrogen that the wheat grew so much
more luxuriantly. l had another exper-
iment tried two seasons ago upon land on
which clover grew tolerably well. The
experiments to which L refer were tried
at Leighton Buzzard, upon the farm Of
Mr.. Robert Valentine.


We had capital field of clover, and l
thought I should have good opportunity
of ascertaining whether there was more
nitrogen accumulated in the soil after the
clover crop was cut twice, or whether more
was accumulated when the clover was
mown once, and then allowed to run to
seed. At first sight you would think that
the land was in q worse condition when
the crop is grown for seed. We know,
indeed, that this is generally the case
but in the case of clover we have a re-
markable exception to this rule; and |
find, on looking into this matter, that,
after growing clover for seed, a very much
} larger quantity of nitrogen remains in the
surface soil, in the first inches of soil as
| well as in the Cd inches, than when the
, clover is mown twice. have ascertainet
when you feed off clover by sheep, wher
} it is still young, and everything is retpr,