SAL 



528 



SAL 



nitrate of potash. Let no one fancy 

 that the salts are a very trivial propor- 

 tion of the fabric of plants. In the 

 Capsicum, they constitute one-tenth of 



narcissus, ranunculus, Stc. ; and in the 

 fruit garden it has been found beneficial 

 to almost every one of its tenants, espe- 

 cially the cherry and apple. On lawns 



its fruit ; of carrot juice, one-hundredth; i and walks it helps to drive away worms, 



of Rhubarb, one-eleventh ; of Potatoes 

 one-twentieth; whilst of the seed of the 

 Lithospermum officinale, they actually 

 constitute more than one-half. Their 

 constituents are as follows. — 



Carbonate of lime . . . 43.7 



Silica 16.5 



Vegetable matter, phos- 

 phate of lime, &c. . 

 These amounts are nearly as much 

 of earthy saline matters as exist in hu- 

 man bones ; but if we turn to the mar- 



39.8 



and to destroy moss. 



Ammonia. — The salts of ammonia 

 are highly stimulating, and afford by 

 their ready decomposition, abundant 

 food to plants. The dungs of animals 

 are fertilizing exactly in proportion to 

 the amount of ammonia in them. The 

 only care required is not to apply them 

 too abundantly. Half an ounce to each 

 gallon of water, given at the most twice 

 a week, is a good recipe for all the am- 

 moniacal salts. The ammoniacal gas 



row, it only contains one-twentieth of liquor at the rate of one pint to two 

 saline matters; the blood only one- i gallons of water, is highly beneficial to 

 hundredth; muscle, only one-thirty- spinach and grass. — Gard. Chron. 

 fourth ; yet no one will argue that these 

 saline constituents, though smaller than 

 those in vegetables, are trivial and un- 

 important. 



Saline manures are generally bene- 

 ficial, and often essential. An import- 

 ant consideration, therefore, is con- 

 tained in the answer to the query — so 

 often put. How should saline manures 

 be applied ? Our answer is, that, when 

 practicable, they ought to be in very 

 small quantities and frequently, during 

 the time of the plant's growth. No 

 plan can be worse than soaking seed in 



Phosphate of Ammonia has been ap- 

 plied with advantage to cress. 



Sulphate of Ammonia. — This, and the 

 nitrate of ammonia, have proved bene- 

 ficial to potatoes in Scotland. A writer 

 in the FloricuUural Cabinet says, that 

 having obtained a pailful of gas liquor, 

 he diluted it with water, and added 

 some sulphuric acid, thus forming a 

 solution of sulphate of ammonia, and 

 watered with it in October, a bed (twen- 

 ty feet long by four feet two inches 

 wide) destined to be planted with Ra- 

 nunculuses. They bloomed very strong 



a saline solution, for the purpose of. i'l this bed, some of the flower-stems 



giving such salt to the plant of which it 

 will be the parent. It is soddeningthe 

 embryo with a superfluity totally use- 

 less to it, and if it does not injure the 

 germination, it will be most probably 

 washed away before the roots begin to 

 absorb such nutriment. For the mode 

 in which salts are beneficial to plants, 

 see Manures. 



were two feet high ; the blooms averag- 

 ing between three and four inches in 

 diameter; the roots also lifted large 

 and clean. — Flor. Cab. 



Chalk may be applied in large quan- 

 tities, twenty or thirty tons per acre, to 

 render a light siliceous soil more re- 

 tentive or a heavy soil more open. Its 

 basis, lime, enters into the composition 



Common Salt. — Chloride of sodium, ' of most plants in some state of combi- 

 applied in the spring at the rate of | nation. It is very far from immaterial 

 twenty bushels per acre, has been found where this mineral is obtained from to 

 very beneficial to asparagus, broad improve the staple of our soils. Those 

 beans, lettuces, onions, carrots, pars- [ chalks which are merely carbonate of 

 neps, potatoes, and beets. Indeed its lime, with a trace of oxide of iron, are 

 properties are so generally useful, not I unexceptionable ; but there are some 

 only as promoting fertility, but as de- i which contain phosphate of lime, and 

 stroying slugs, 8e.c., that it is a good these are very much to be preferred, 

 plan to sow the whole garden every ! Mr. Brande states the chalk of Brighton 



March with this manure, at the rate 

 above specified. The flower garden is 

 included in this recommendation ; for 

 some of the best practical gardeners 

 recommend it for the stock, hyacinth, 

 amaryllisj ixia, anemone, colchicum, 



to be thus constituted. 

 Carbonate of lime . 

 magnesia 



98.57 

 0.38 



Phosphate of lime . . 0.11 

 Oxides of iron and manganese 0.14 

 Alumina and silica . . 0.80 



