132 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



When muck is spread upon a field, much of it blows away in 

 the high winds of summer, when it is very dry from exposure 

 to the hot sun. ^his is a source of loss not usually taken 

 into account. The light mucks oftener belong to the first 

 and second classes, or what I have designated as " peats." 



CHEMISTRY OF MUCK-BEDS. 



The chemistry of a muck-bed is interesting, and deserves 

 brief remark, although the analysis which I have to present 

 will afford information upon this point. It is plain that a 

 substance so under the constant influence and action of 

 water can contain no ingredients soluble in that fluid ; and 

 hence we fail to find in the ash of muck any of the soluble 

 forms of plant-food. None of the valuable soluble salts of 

 potash, soda, or phosphoric acid, are present in tlie muck-bed, 

 unless in extremely minute quantities. In soils on higher 

 lands, the humus and ash contain all these soluble agents, 

 derived from the decay of vegetation. It must be kept in 

 mind, that vegetation decays in water under different condi- 

 tions from that when exposed to air, or in the presence of 

 oxygen, and a different condition of the resultant mass must 

 be expected. 



The greater portion of the inorganic material of muck is 

 lime in its insoluble form, silica, iron, alumina, and often 

 magnesia. Of the alkaline earths, lime is present in greatest 

 abundance. From a careful consideration of the results of 

 analysis of a large number of specimens of muck made 

 during the past quarter of a century, under my observation, 

 I have no hesitation in saying that the ashes of muck are prac- 

 tically worthless to the farmer as a source of plant food. I say 

 practically worthless ; meaning by this, that the inorganic 

 constituents of mucks contain so little of valuable, available, 

 plant-nutriment, that, if they held no other forms, they would 

 be entirely unworthy of attention, even under the most favor- 

 able conditions. This view is sustained by the investigations 

 of Kane, Sullivan, Vaux, Regnault, Mulder, Baer, Peterson, 

 Anderson, Wagner, and many other eminent chemists in 

 Europe, and Johnson, Storer, and other chemists in this 

 country : in short, it is sustained b}* the analysis of every 

 competent chemist whose researches have extended in that 

 direction. 



