THE PENINSULA FARMERS' CLUB. 451 



then is to restore to the soil a due proportion of vegetable matter. How is 

 this object to be attained ? In various ways. We must not confine ourselves 

 to one method of doing it, but have recourse to all within our reach. We 

 must manure freely. Should not depend on the droppings of our cattle alone 

 to enable us to do this, but should collect leaves, rotten wood, muck, leaf 

 mould, anything and everythiug indeed that will make manure, or tend to 

 impart to the soil the elements lacking there. Second, we should aim at leav- 

 ing our soil in as good condition after as before cropping. If this cannot be 

 effected through the barn-yard, we must resort to plowing under green crops, 

 such as clover; and the avoidance of such crops as are calculated to impov- 

 erish the soil. 



Mr. Curtis. — These scientific speculations with regard to the chemical action 

 of gypsum on clover, etc., are all very interesting, but I apprehend do not ben- 

 efit ns much at present. One practical suggestion, however, made by Mr. 

 Avery, — that of putting gypsum in our stables and on our manure heaps, for 

 the purpose of disinfecting and fixing the gases, — strikes me favorably. Since 

 Adam was a gardener good crops have been obtained by manuring with barn- 

 yard manure. Mr. Crozier went on to sandy soil and has converted it into a 

 perfect garden by the free use of manure. I don't know why we may not make 

 our soil productive in the same way. The question arises, what can we do that 

 is practicable to effect this object? There are many ways of making manure. 

 Barnyard manure is good, and the richer the fodder we feed to our cattle, the 

 richer will be the manure they make. Clover is no doubt a good green crop to 

 plow under for fertilization ; but I think there is a possibility of making land 

 clover-sick. I do not consider peas and beans as good for this purpose. Gyp- 

 sum also is a good fertilizer. Clover together with barnyard manure and 

 gypsum would surely bring our land into a high state of tilth. These are 

 easily obtainable. 



Mr. Tracy. — There are few farmers but would be glad to feed out large quan- 

 tities of clover on their places, if they had the opportunity of doing so, ia order 

 to secure the manure. Many would even put up buildings and other conven- 

 iences to feed stock if they could make the cattle pay the expense of them, 

 simply taking the manure as compensation for their trouble and expense in- 

 curred in providing the fodder. Now, clover gains nothing by its passage 

 through the animals, and the total amount of plant food resulting from pass- 

 ing an acre of clover through animals cannot therefore be greater than existed 

 in the clover in its green state. Again, it is known that the roots of a clover 

 plant weigh much more than the top, or portion that is used for hay. If our 

 clover is cut, dried and drawn to our barns, fed to animals, and then redrawn 

 to the land, there must unavoidably be much waste, in addition to ihe loss 

 sustained by leaving all the roots and a percentage of the top on the ground 

 in such shape that they can be of little benefit to future crops. If in place of 

 doing this we plow under the entire crop, root and branch, will not the saving 

 of this waste of material and labor, and the securing of the roots while in a 

 proper state for conversion into plant food, more than counterbalance the only 

 advantage the plant in the condition of manure possesses over the green state ? 

 which is, that it is in a more suitable condition of being immediately taken up 

 by the plant. 



Mr. Avery — It has been suggested that we use swamp muck as manure. I 

 used it one year and derived little or no benefit from it. 



