94 OF AMENDMENTS. 



CHAPTER XI. 



OF AMENDMENTS. 



314. The soil plays, in tlic life of plants, a double part. 

 It serves to give room and foothold to the roots ; and it 

 furnishes or keeps in store for plants the elements nec 

 essary for their nourishment. 



The qualities a soil ought to have, to give sufficient 

 foothold, must vary with the plants. The grains need a 

 somewhat compact soil to give firmness of foothold ; the 

 different kinds of clover a deeper one. On the whole, 

 what is best suited to plants is average qualities, a soil 

 neither too compact nor too mellow, neither too heavy 

 nor too light, too wet nor too dry. 



315. These evils are remedied by Amendments, that is, 

 operations, or the use of substances, by which the soil 

 will be improved in its physical qualities. For example, 

 increasing the humidity of dry soils, diminishing that of 

 moist soils, increasing the tenacity of light soils, lessen 

 ing that of heavy soils, or any other changes in the 

 mechanical or physical properties, would properly be called 

 amendments. 



316. Argillaceous soils niay be improved by the addi 

 tion, not only of sand, but of gravel, broken brick and 

 plaster, in short by any thing which will render them 

 more open, loose and penetrable by air and water. In 

 England, clayey land is often much improved by burning 

 over the surface, or by burning a portion of the clay 

 and scattering it upon the land. By burning, the clay 

 changes its properties and becomes more like sand, and in 

 this state loosens the soil. 



