76 LIMB. 



phere, and it is, therefore, reasonable to suppose that 

 a wet soil would only rewder the lime a mass of mortjar. 

 But as was observed of marl, it benefits clayey land 

 by opening the pores of the soil, making it friable and 

 giving free passage to water and the roots of vegeta- 

 bles. Now there is sometimes too great a quantity 

 of acid in the soil, and the lime serves a good part by 

 neutralizing this acid, and thereby benefiting the 

 plants growing therein. 



Lime is beneficial also to sandy and gravelly soils 

 by binding their particles together, by which they re- 

 tain whatever falls upon them. The heat of the sun 

 vaporizes and carries off from sandy soils, the best 

 and most nutritious portions of vegetable matters and 

 gasses. When the soil is limed, great care should be 

 taken that it be covered from the sun, so as to retain 

 these juices and gasses. 



Care must be taken how and when lime is applied. 

 It is well known that quick lime is caustic, and that 

 lime water destroys a plant when thrown upon it. 

 But when lime is spread upon land, it unites itself 

 chemically with vegetables, becomes a compost, dis- 

 solves in water, and in this way becomes nutritious to 

 vegetation. 



Land should properly be limed in the summer, say 

 in June or July, when the soil is in fallow, by which 

 it will be thoroughly -incorporated with the soil be- 

 fore the sowing of the crop. This should be the 

 case, if it is intended that turnips should be sown. 



