162 



FARMERS REGISTER. 



[No, 8 



thai the great and important and then novel sj's- 

 lem of manuring of land with iis own vegetable 

 growthj (or weeds.) is the main oliject, and most 

 importantitem of value of the agricultural work of 

 Col. John Taylor, of Virginia, which was first 

 published nearly thirty years ago, and the rules of 

 which the author had pursued siill earlier in his re- 

 gular cultivation. Clover, or weeds, lo be left, or 

 turned in, as manure, was one of the regular crops 

 in Taylor's rotation, The misapplications of the 

 rule, both in precept by the author, au^d in practice 

 by himself and still more by his disciples, have been 

 numerous and very injurious; and the instructions 

 for practice of 'Arator' have been ibund totally 

 worthless, ibr the purpose of making natural poor 

 land very fertile, (or even to raise any kind abov^e 

 its natural degree of fertility,) by means of the 

 land's manuring itself with its own vegetable pro- 

 ducts. But the want ol effect is owing to the 

 soil's being so constituted as to be incapable of re- 

 taining and profiting by the manure — and not be- 

 cause ol' the manure wanting value, or that Tay- 

 lor had over-estimated its value, for soils needing 

 the application, and capable of profiling by its val- 

 ue. Though. we have elsewhere combalied the 

 opinion of Taylor as to the general application of 

 his- doctrine, and have shown the injury to the 

 progress of improvement caused by relying on the 

 mis-application, (Essay on Calcareous Manures,) 

 still none will go farther in applauding the princi- 

 ple ol' his doctrine, and in maintaining its proper 

 application to be the very corner-stone on which 

 to construct any plan of enriching land. Audit 

 has been acted upon, to more or less extent, wher- 

 ever agriculture has been pursued with profit, 

 though wastefully and without the operator's 

 knowing, or generally having the least idea of, the 

 manner in which nature was aiding and adding lo 

 his manuring processes. 



The general theory or principle may be thus 

 concisely stated : All vegetable matters, in proper 

 state of decay and decomposition, serve as food 

 for other growing vegetables, and of course for 

 manure lo soil needing it. Growing vegetables 

 derive but part of their nutriment firom the soil, 

 and the remainder, (and a large portion,) from 

 the air and from water, the elements of which be- 

 come fixed in the plants, and serve as much to in- 

 crease their substance, and their amount and value 

 as manure for soil and food for future plants, as 

 the other Ibod which had been deposited by nature 

 or by art in the soil. The powerj too, to draw 

 upon, and avail of this atmospheric manure is in 

 proportion to the quantity and suitableness of ma- 

 nure in the soil. Therefore, whatever ihe natural 

 soil, or manure applied, furnishes of food to a 

 growing crop of plants, as much more, (or twice 

 or thrice as much, it may be in certain cases,) 



does nature add thereto, by furnishing lo and accu- 

 mulating and fixing in the plants the elements of 

 air and water. Thus, the crop which drew from 

 the soil say 30 parts ■ of its sustenance, derived 

 thereby the power to draw 30, or perhaps 70 other 

 parts from the inexhaustible sources of air and 

 water ; and the whole amount, if used to manure 

 Ihe soil, by being sufl'ered to die and decay on it, will 

 seive to again double or triple its amount and val- 

 ue for the next year's growth, by drawing a like 

 addition from the atmosphere. In all vegetable 

 and putrescent manures, more or less of this mul- 

 tiplying aid of nature is in useful operation, though 

 it is not understood, nor' suspected, by. those who 

 derive the benefit. And if it were not for this 

 bountiful aid of nature, and the cultivated earth 

 or plants received no more manure than man 

 gives, or by possibility can afford, the most gentle 

 and what is now the most improving system of 

 cultivation, would be utterly and rapidly destruc- 

 tive of the lertility of the soil. 



The farmer should continually bear in mind' the 

 general truth of this doctrine of Taylor's ; and 

 thence learn, and practise accordingly, that every 

 load of manure, every addition of fertilizing power 

 he gives to his field, bountiful nature multiplies in 

 quantiiy and efiect. But let him also beware of 

 misapplying his efforts to soils not constituted to 

 profit by them. The profuse supply of nutritious 

 food, to a diseased stomach incapable of digesting 

 and accumulating what is furnished, will not add 

 to the flesh or the health of the subject ; and the 

 naturally poor land, the disease or constitutional 

 defect of which is the want of calcareous matter, 

 is as little fitted to retain, assimilate, and profit 

 by, the supplies of vegetable matter which the un- 

 restricted application of the doctrine of Taylor 

 would direct to be given. — Ed. F. R.] 



For Uie Farmers' Register. 

 IMPROVEMENT OF LAND BY GRASS HUSBAND- 

 RY. HAY-MAKING. 



Dr. Dwight has said, (if the document I quote 

 from is correct) in speaking of the new land of 

 the. United States, "wherever the forest trees 

 have been undisturbed by fire, they have accu- 

 mulated, by shedding their foliage through a long 

 succession of ages, and by their own decay, a co- 

 vering, of vegetable mould from six to twelve 

 inches deep, and sometimes Irom eighteen to 

 twenty-lour. This mould is the best of all soils, 

 and eminently friendly to every species of vege- 

 tation. It is indeed no other than a mere mass of 

 manure, aiid that of the very best kind, converted 

 into mould ; and so long as it remains in conside- 

 rable quantities all grounds produce plentifully." 



"From this source it has arisen that all the un- 

 burnt new lands, in ihe northern, middle^ south- 

 ern and vpestern states, have been, and still are 



