5^4 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



Certain speakers on the subject of limestone in the central 

 states have advocated the use of material in which the coarsest 

 particles were essentially the size of peas, claiming that if such 

 material were used, there would be enough of the finer material 

 to meet immediate necessities, and this coarser material would 

 become available rapidly enough to maintain the soil in proper 

 condition subsequently. Nevertheless, the recent work at the 

 Rhode Island experiment station, covering a period of two 

 years, has shown that the crop losses where there is a serious 

 need of lime are so great the first year or two when coarse 

 limestone is used that it is far better economy to apply a suf- 

 ficient quantity of finely ground limestone at the outset to correct 

 the acid condition of the soil satisfactorily. 



THE LIME REQUIREMENTS OF DIFFERENT CROPS. 



Among the cereals barley needs liming slightly more than 

 wheat. This crop in turn needs it much more than oats, and 

 oats more than rye and Indian corn. 



Among the grasses, timothy and Kentucky blue-grass are 

 often greatly helped by lime where Rhode Island bent and 

 redtop thrive splendidly without its use. Orchard-grass and 

 meadow oat-grass also respond favorably to liming. 



There is probably no subject connected with the use of lime 

 concerning which there are more popular misconceptions than 

 regarding its effect on the legumes. The agricultural press is 

 filled with statements that **the legumes are all greatly in need 

 of lime" or words to that effect. It is nevertheless true that the 

 serradella and certain of the lupines are often injured by lime, 

 even for two or three years after its application. It is also 

 frequently true, at least of caustic and slaked lime, and of 

 preparations containing them, that yields of cowpeas and soy 

 beans are lessened the first season that they are used, although 

 the crops may show benefit in subsequent years. 



Vetch will thrive even on soils which are quite acid, although 

 liming is usually helpful to it. It has, therefore, a far wider 

 range of adaptability than clover and alfalfa, which tend to 

 disappear altogether when soils become exceedingly acid. 



Another illustration is afforded by beans, for even when a 

 soil is so acid that hardly more than half a crop of the golden 



