522 EUROPEAN AGRICULTURE. 



CXXXVII. MANURES. 



I proceed to the subject of manures, as it presents itself in 

 Continental husbandry. The Flemish call manure &quot; the god of 

 agriculture.&quot; Of its importance not a word need be said ; and 

 the Flemish, in the pains they take in its accumulation and use, 

 evince the estimation in which they hold it. Manure is indeed 

 the foundation of all good husbandry. 



1. MINERAL MANURES. Manures divide themselves popu 

 larly into three kinds mineral, vegetable, and animal. Of min 

 eral manures, such as lime, gypsum, and marl, the use seems 

 well understood; but, within my observation, they are not applied 

 to so great a proportional extent as in England and Scotland. 

 Lime, or the carbonate of lime, is employed upon lands which 

 are clayey, cold, and heavy ; and in such case it answers a double 

 purpose, to divide the soil and render it light and friable ; and 

 secondly, to warm the soil. That plants take up some portion 

 of lime from the soil is established ; but this is so small an ele 

 ment in their composition, that few soils are found deficient in 

 the necessary quantity. That it should be applied to the land 

 in a caustic or warm state seems likewise an established point. 

 Some of the Flemish farmers advise to the mixture of lime with 

 earth, and to its application in that form ; but this seems only an 

 increase of labor without any obvious advantage. Others advise 

 to the mixture of lime with heaps of vegetable matter, so as to 

 reduce it ; but, in such case, it is likely to destroy some of the 

 most valuable parts of the manure. The efficacy of a dressing 

 of lime is considered by the Flemings to endure three years ; 

 but this must obviously depend upon the quantity applied. 

 Thirty bushels of unslaked lime after being slaked is consid 

 ered by some farmers a proper application ; while others advise 

 the application of thirty bushels each year for three years in 

 succession. 



I have met with the frequent application of marl to light lands, 

 and to the surface of peat lands, where it soon forms a productive 

 soil. The application of gypsum can scarcely be said to be 

 general. It is sometimes applied in the ground to the seed of 



