■>■■**>«— Mw ^ ' ■wjjm. 'P ULH. i i ijiKJ ii iiujB jj<Uu i*»i «ii iw i uiii ii i ll i i i H>y. i »i>jm wuh'M bw— wiwaaw 



rij^ 



THE FAR 



S' KEGlSTEl- 



J» 



Vol. Vlll. 



APRIL 30, 1840. 



No. 4. 



EDMUND RUFFIN, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR. 



LIMK AND L,IMK BURNING. 



From Prof. Ducatel's Geological Keiiort of 18C9. 



A very sirikintr experiment, iliai speaks volumes 

 ore's;icourai>enieiji to those who siill liesitate in tiie 

 use ol" lime, is lurtiished l)y the Hon. Outerbridge 

 Horsey, a pan of whose liirni, situated at the lijol 

 of the toulii mountain, on liie eu^re ol' what is ter- 

 med " the JNlaryl^nd tract," consists ofa very thm 

 siiicious soil. It is this, ot two pieces of niound, 

 botli ol' tiie same jzeological character and nearly 

 in equal arable condition, one was limed with filiy 

 bushels to the acre, the other was well manured, 

 without lime, and both planted in corn. 'i"he 

 limed portion, previous to the operation, was le- 

 luarkably poor, yieldinjr at most ivvo barrels to the 

 acre. It promised in the month ol' August, to the 

 eyes ol' some experienced liirmers, to yield to the 

 acre eight barrels ot'corn, which to ail appearances 

 was one third better than on the manured portion. 

 But besides the prejudice that exists against this 

 use of lime, as regaids the incapacity ol' certain 

 eoils to receive any benefit Irom it, it is most 

 generally objected to as too expensive ; whereas 

 in truth it is, taking all circumstances together, 

 the cheapest as well as the most eliiectual means 

 «r improving all kinds ol' soil, which assertion 

 will, 1 trust, be nianiliisi by these two considera- 

 tions, namely, that it is the surest and most per- 

 inanent. IT judiciously employed, the directions 

 being simple, as will presently appear, tlie expen- 

 tlitme of capital in the first }ear cannot liiil to be 

 at least repaid by the additional product ofthe next, 

 and nine times out of ten will supply the means ol 

 •extending its further use in future years. J udgment 

 and reflection undoubtedly must accompany lliis 

 as well as every other scheme of improvement 

 tbat could possibly be devised lor any purposes. 



Having taken especial pains to inquire minutely 

 into the subject, referring not only to the results 

 obtained by experience, but to the cause that may 

 have produced these results, I hazard the Ibllowing 

 suggestions to the farmers of Frederick county, 

 and the recommendation applies to all other por- 

 lions of the state. Get lime, at almost any ex- 

 ))ense, and apply it according to the nature of the 

 soil as is herewith directed. If the soil is naturally 

 a good one, and under good cultivation, it is ad- 

 visable to apply at once the whole quantity of lime 

 which may be judged necessary permanently to 

 improve it, and this quantity on such soils need 

 not exceed one hundred and fifty bushels. Should 

 it be impracticable or inconvenient to procure in 

 the same year the whole quantity, from fifteen to 

 aeventy-five bushels may be first applied, and the 

 remainder two years altervvards, after the first 

 cutting of the clover. These directions upply to 

 wheat land, on which it appears prelerable to turn 

 in the vegetable matter first, then apply the lime, 

 to be harrowed in subsequently. On corn lands 

 the method that has been crowned with the best 

 success, is that pursued by one of the most ihriliy 

 larmers of Carroll county, JMr. Jacob Schriver, 

 which is to mix the lime in the soil with stable 

 tnanure. Jn this way, he informs me thut he hae 

 Vol. VHl-20 



obtained very heavy crops upon poor land with 

 only from Ibrty lo fifty bushels of lime. In gene- 

 ral, lor unim|)roved lands, it is alv\a>s better to 

 turn the lime in with stable manure, and when 

 not so provided, with any vegetable matter that 

 may lie on the suil. A good plan is to turn the 

 lime in with the sod, sow buckwheat, and when in 

 blossom return it to the suil, furnishing in this 

 way vegetable matter for the lime to act upon. 

 In this latter case, the returns, though certain, are 

 not so speedily lo be expected. Those farmers 

 who burn their own lime, should not neglect lo 

 use the reluse of their kilns in making composta 

 with alternate layers of it, and of whatever vege- 

 table or animal mailer they can bring together. 

 These, when [irojierly mixed up, and comminuted, 

 are to be used as ordinary manures. The liare- 

 going directions ap|)ly to ail sorts ol soil, whether 

 they be on limestone lands, red lands, chestnut 

 lands, or any kind of lands, whatever 'oe their 

 color, texture, or other |)hysical characters, pro- 

 vided there be soil enough to support any sort of 

 vegetation. 



1 have in former reports civen my theory of the 

 aciion of lime, and alihough larmeis are more im- 

 mediately interested in the results of its appiicalion, 

 they cannot liiil to employ a more judiciously, as 

 well as other manures, when they understand the 

 reciprocal action that takes place between these 

 and the plants which ihey wish to cultivate. I 

 shall, therelore, introduce here a lew simple no- 

 tions of vegetable physiology, and repeal again 

 what I conceive to be the mode of operation of 

 lime. Every one knows that [Janis have not the 

 power of creating new elements, which iliey ai 

 inoct can assimilate and elaborate so as to Ibrni 

 new compounds out of those derived from the 

 earth, air and water in which they live. Accor- 

 dingly, the result of a chemical analysis shows that 

 all ilie earthy and saline matters contained in them 

 are traceable to the earth; whilst by their destruc- 

 tive distillations, they are Ibund to yield gases, 

 that lorm the elementary constituents of air and 

 water. The principal solid constituent of vegeta- 

 bles is carbon, or charcoal, which vegetable phy- 

 siologists assert they derive in the first place Irom 

 the carbonic acid gaa ofthe atmosphere, and from 

 the lermentation of the animal and vegetable sub- 

 stances that during their progress of decompo- 

 sition in the soil also yield tins gas, and is supposed 

 to be either decomposed by ihe leaves of vegeta- 

 bles, or absorbed by their roots when in a state of 

 aqueous solution. It is Ibund that when a plant is 

 allowed to grow under a glass receiver, containin" 

 a mixed atmosphere of carbonic acid gas and oxy- 

 gen, the Ibrmer gas is gradually absorbed, and 

 nothing but pure oxygen remains, and this pro- 

 cess of vegetable decomposition goes on more 

 rapidly under the influence of the solar beams, for 

 during the night the reverse takes place, thouo-h 

 the quantity of carbonic gas which they emit is 

 trifling, compared with that taken up in the day. 

 Thus jilants are constantly lemoving Irom the 

 atmosphere a gas known lo be deleterious to ani- 

 mal life, ihaugli necessary to iheiuseKes. and 



