From the Charleston (S. C.) Mercury. 



EFFECTS OF DROUTH ON INDIAN CORN, &c. 

 TO THE PLANTERS AND FARMERS OF SOUTH CAROLINA. 



At the late meeting of the State Agriculuiral 

 Society, the following Resoluliou was adopted, 

 viz. : 



" ITiat the Pi-csident be requested to communicate 

 to the public, before the planting season, such iniorm- 

 ation as he may possess, or which it may be in his 

 power to collect, in relation to the means of modify- 

 ina the etfecls of drouth on Indian Cora and other 

 provisions." 



It is necessary for me to premise, that what I 

 shall say concerning the use of the plow is main- 

 ly derivative. From several causes, the plant- 

 ers of the Sea Islands are but slightly acquainted, 

 in practice, with the value of that great agricul- 

 tural impleinent. To give the experience of 

 the highest authorities is, therefore, on my part, 

 an imperative obligation. It is proper, also, I 

 should in this place observe that, ittfconsequence 

 of assiduous endeavors to obtain facts from svtp- 

 posed reliable sources, in which I have signally 

 failed, this communication, which would have 

 been made at a much earlier period, has been 

 delayed, but not too late, it is hoped, to be 

 wholly unprofitable. 



Satisfactorily to elucidate the matter of the 

 Resolution, would involve a minute examina- 

 tion of many of the topics connected with the 

 science of Husbandry. As I am certain, how- 

 ever, it was not designed or intended that my 

 remarks should take so wide a scope, I shall 

 only briefly advert to those principles and their 

 operation upon which some of the most valuable 

 results in Husbandry rest. 



A 11 the earths have a con.siderable attraction 

 for the fluid which the atmosphere contains. 

 The very best soils possess this power in the 

 highest degree; hence it may with certainty be 

 as.suined, that the moa.sure of their fertility de- 

 pends chiefly on their capacity to absorb moist- 

 ure. In determining their value, however, on 

 that head, two other properties have to be no- 

 ticed : the quantity of water which is e.e.sential 

 to their saturation, and their power of retaining 

 it. In all these respects, clay and .sand occupy 

 antagonistic relations. The fonner imbibes the 

 aqueous vapors like a sponge and parts with 

 them reluctantly : when dry, it constitutes a 

 compact mass ; from the clo.seness of its texture, 

 the dissolvent action of the air is excluded, by 

 which putrefaction is retarded. The latter is 

 friable and a .septic ; from the solidity of its par- 

 ticles and their want of coherence, water filters 

 ea.sily. In the adoption of expedients by which 

 to secure these earths a supply of moisture, dif- 

 ferent processes, in part only, it is advi.sable to 

 pursue. From their predominance in this State, 

 I shall direct my attention prominently to clayey 

 or aluminous soils. What, then, are the means 

 which reason and experience assure us are the 

 best calculated to attain the end in view ? I an- 

 swer, deep plowing : thorough pulverization of 

 the soil ; abundance of manure ; and the use of 

 salt and retentive atmospherical absorbents. 

 iiooy) 



1st. Deep P/o icing. —The roots of plants 

 should be allowed to e.Ktend themselves in every 

 direction. The deeper they penetrate, and the 

 wider their ramifications, the greater will be the 

 absorption of nourishment. The average depth 

 of good soils is about 6 inches. Every inch 

 added increases its volume 8 per cent. ; .«o that 

 a soil where the vegetable laj-er is 12 inches 

 thick, is worth half as much again as that iu 

 which it is only 6 iuche.s.* It is consequently 

 obvious that whatever, from this cause, may be 

 its enhanced value, if not reached at some time 

 in the progress of cultivation, the remainder is 

 in efft'Ct a caput mortiium. By deep plowing 

 the capacity of the whole soil is called forth. 

 While it enables the earth, through the agency 

 of air and water, to inhale atmospheric manure, 

 by diminishing the force of the sun's rays it les- 

 sens materially its exhalations. Should the sub- 

 stratum, which perhaps in every instance eon- 

 tains the principles of fertility, be broken, stilly 

 as a general proposition, the most signal bene^ 

 fits, prospectively, if not immediatelj^ may con- 

 fidently be expected to enure from the opera- 

 tion. Deep plowing ensures the greatest pro- 

 duct from the smallest given quantity of land. 

 If by the vtse of one-half of the soil ten bushels 

 of Corn per acre be obtained, it is reasonable to 

 infer, all other circumstances being equal, that 

 were the whole in tilth, twenty bushels would 

 be harvested : indeed a much larger quantity 

 ought to be the result, for the deeper the soil 

 the greater will be the number of stalks, and the 

 larger and more numerous the ears. '■ The 

 maize," says Taylor, " is a little tree,'' and pos- 

 sessing roots corre.spondent to its size, penetrates 

 a depth almost incredible — 9 feet, it \i known, 

 have been reached. It follows that, w here, from 

 the vigor of the plant or the friability of the laud, 

 the roots meet with no ob.struclion, the conse- 

 quences of drouth will be sensibly diminished, 

 if not entirely prevented. It is believed that 

 the rolling of the leaves of com is attributable 

 solely to the abstuice of moistin-e. This is an 

 error. Scanty manuring or shallosv tillage is as 

 often the true cause. 



To render deep 'plowinet effectual, it should 

 take place in autumn. The expansive power 

 of frost, and the mollifying influence of air and 

 rain, and the action of these in breakinir the con- 

 tinuity of fibrous matter, are strong reasons in 

 favor of the practice. Whether it .should be 

 done once in two or three years only, which, I 

 believe, is the opinion of "the most' successful 

 farmers of Great Britain, or annually, as is com- 

 mon in parts of our country, certainly as j-et an 

 undetermined point. 



2d. Pulverization. — The soil must not only be 

 made easily accessible to the descent and spread 

 of tlie roots, but there should be such a diain- 



* Thaer's Principles of .Agriculture, 

 t About 12 inches. 



