104 



yll)c im-mcr'G iHoutl)lij lUsitor. 



-MMi 



tlieiuselves, iis tljey were passin;,' tliioiifili llieir 

 coni-tielil, inillinj; oft these delicale liliie.-, as 

 caielesisly :im tljey would remove a riiiiyiis or a 

 moss IroiiJ a lice. It is niuiiily to siijifiesl a word 

 of caiilion to llie faniiei f;eiierally, and Ids more 

 tlioiiKlilless cliildreii especially, lliat lliese laets, 

 ill iheiiiselves it is lioped, not eiilirely destitute of 

 interest, are communicated. — Farmer tiiul .Ve- 

 chaiiic. 



r>om llie Maine Cultivator. 

 Gypsum. 

 Gypsiiin is a salt of lime. VVIieu pure it con- 

 sists of lliiriy-lliree parts of liii e— forly-foiir of 

 Sldpluiric acid, and twenty-one of water. It 

 aljoniids extensively in tlie United Slates where 

 its value as a stimulant on most soils has lonir 

 been well understood, particularly in the New 

 England Slates, and the central and western 

 coimties of New York, where it forms the chief 

 siippoit of the staple crop of llic country — wheal, 

 as well as of many other piodnctious, in the ciil- 

 livalion of «hicli its application is considered 

 iiidispensahle, and attended with the hest re- 

 sults. The maimer in which this siilist.-iiice pro- 

 duces cfTects, has hcen the siihject of much spec- 

 ulative inipiiry, and a multitude of hypotheses 

 have lieen su_!,';;ested in order to solve what is 

 .still a mystery to science. Some have assumed 

 the posiliou ilial ils action on veiietation is refei- 

 ahle 10 its well luiown capacity of ahsorliini; and 

 relaiuinir water: others, that it acts hy iiidiicin); 

 the decomposition of inert animal and vef;etahle 

 or!;auisnis contained in the soil, and Davy de- 

 monstrated that the mi.xture of ^jypsiim with 

 these m.illers tends decidedly to this result. 

 Others have contended that the only advaiiiaije 

 resiiltin!; from its application arises lioiii ils ca- 

 pacity of alisorliin^ and fixing the ammoni.i con- 

 tained in llie atmos|diere, and thus gradually 

 yielding it to the vegelahlesin contact with which 

 it is applied, (/haptul's theory is, that its heiieli- 

 cial cU'ecls are the result of its stimulating quali- 

 ties, ami that it is prevented from operating inju- 

 riously to the crop, like some of the other salts 

 of lime, hy the deleteriousncss of its action, lie 

 ohserves that — 



•'The soUihilily of plaster m water, appears to 

 be of precisely the degree most beneficial to 

 plains; 1300 pails of water will dissolve only one 

 of plaster, lis action is, (heretiu-e, constant an<l 

 uniform without being hiirlful. The organs of 

 plants arc exciteil hy it without being irritated or 

 corroded, as they are by those salts which, being 

 more soluble in water, are carried more abiiiul- 

 anily into plants, producing upon them the most 

 injurious efFccts." 



I'l ofessor Liebig, however, proposes a differ- 

 ent tlieory. His reasoning on the subject is very 

 ingenious, and is nune satisfactory than anything 

 yet advanced. Having established the fact that 

 ammonia exists constantly as a conslineiil of 

 alniospheric air, he says: 



"This fertility arises exelnsivfly from the I'lirt 

 lliat the sulphate of lime fixes in the soil the am- 

 .liioiiia dissolved in llie atmosphere, wjiich would 

 otherwise be volatilized with the w;iter as it 

 <fvaporales. The carbonate of ammonia con- 

 tained in rain water, is decomposed in gypsum, 

 in precisely llie same manner as in the mannfac- 

 Jure of sal ammonia. Soluble sulphate of am- 

 jnoiija, anil carbonate of lime are Ibriiied, and 

 >his salt of ammonia possessing no volatility, is 

 ^onsciineiitly relaini'd for the use of plants." 



One thing has struck us us very »liignlar in 

 (•egard to ihe application of gypsum. While 

 acme reeommcnd it as n.snfu) 07i/_i/ on sandy or 

 loamy soils, .others consider it as .ilmost worth- 

 less on all lands except the heavier ami mori! 

 viscid clays. Mncb, doubtless, jlepends on the 

 seasop, Slid not a little upon the state of the soil 

 and chanicter of the cr/>p, and the overlooking; 

 .of these points, has doubtless ronlribuled, in a 

 very great measure, to that singular diversity of 

 opinion as to the direction iiud melbod of its ap- 

 plication which so stronglj prevails at present, 

 not only in this Stale, but in every >*late of the 

 iUnioii where it has become an article of exten- 

 sive or general use. \Vo shall close our obser- 

 vations on the subject at the present time hy an 

 extract from an ariicle \u one of our exchanges. 

 The writer says: 



"Gypsum is scattered by the hand at the rate 

 of two or three bushels per acre, and its effects 



years. It is best strewn when ihe leaves are wet I 

 with a sli:;ht rain or heavy ilew, and alter the 

 leaves of ihe plants begin to cover ihe ground. 

 Some have objected to the n.se of plasler, that it 

 produced greater crops at fir»t, but that il speedi- 

 ly exhausted the land, and inipoveiishcd it. — I 

 'i'liose who make this objection prol,;ihly look | 

 eveiVlhiiig from the land, and rcliiriied nolliiii;; ; 

 to il, relyiog wholly on the plaster to kei-p up ihe 

 fertility, a course manifestly erronemis. CUiver 

 should always acctmipany the use of plaster, and 

 when this crop is Hid otl' on the land, and made 

 part of the course of rotaticni, no deterioraiioii, 

 hut on the contrary, an increase of the grain 

 crops has taken place. The plaster mills of New 

 Vork usually reduce llie maifiial to powderalier 

 only drying it in Ihe air, but kiln dr_\iny at a 

 moilerate heat drives off ihe_w,iler of cryslaliza- 

 tion, and renders it more valnahle to the pur- 

 chaser, as it takes in ibis case a ■irealer ipianiily 

 of the active materials, ihc siilpliale and Ihe liinc, 

 lo make a ton. Consiileiahle ipiaiitiiiis of earthy 

 malerials are usually mixed with plaster, iiiviiig 

 it a dark color, and on the proportion of these 

 in ihe mass, much of the value is depenibng. 

 Dried gypsum absorbs water rapidly, but it may 

 be preserved many moiiihs without its properlies 

 being sensibly affecled, if headed up in light bar- 

 rels. Cliaplal affiriiis, I'roin his own experience, 

 that ihonjih ihe baked plasler evideiiily produced 

 a heller efl'ect ihe first \ear, the next three years 

 the difference was almost nothing." 



(T/^ Gypsum or Plaster is used in niucli irreater 

 tpiaiilities in the fine limestone soil of more re- 

 cent formation in the northern valley ol' ("on- 

 necticut river and in Vermont, than upon Ihe 

 older rormalion in the granile region and v.illey 

 of the" Merrimack river thirly to fil'iy miles e;ist- 

 ward. Has it less efit^rt where there is no lime- 

 stone ? or is ils operalion more slow? We have 

 known the liirmers of Vi'rmont to transport |ilas- 

 ter in the stone at an almost incredible expense 

 over hilly roads, blocked with snows, to the dis- 

 tance of 150 and 200 miles. Some of our neigh- 

 bors in this vicinity pronounce plasler to be good 

 for nothing applied lo their laiifl — they would 

 not thank you to spread it over their ground gi-ji- 

 tuitously. We are confident that plaster here as 

 an assistant is a most valuable manure. If the 

 present season is not favorable for ils full opera- 

 tion, the value will come al'lerwards. Wi' cannot 

 recommend ils application to cold clay land.*. 

 Wilhoiit other high srimnlants il may not operate 

 there at all. Hut in all light soils in a ilry season 

 it is valuable to almost any crop — lo rye after it 

 is up, to pastures in the spring, lo corn, potatoes, 

 beans, &c., alter the lirsi of .Inly. A lew weeks 

 ago, a Massachusetts traveller stopped over night 

 in the town of Sharon, Vermont, in the valley of 

 White river. His lanrllord pointed liini lo the 

 capital letter W written in the green <A' a side 

 hill some hundred rods distaiil. and inliMined 

 him that letter was produced by the simple ap- 

 plication of plasler seven years bctbre. Here is 

 a fact, if true, which proves that longer than veg- 

 elJihle mannres is felt the effect of gypsum ill the 

 soil.— E(/. .U. Visitor. 



from the following letters will be inieresirng ' 

 they will at least amuse, it" lliey do iiol inrlrm-i 

 the reader.s id' the Visitor. 



LETTERS 

 On Agricultural Improvement. 



BV I. J. .MKCIll. 



( These are dislribvleil, f^raluiton^li/, hij the Ji riter lo 

 jiromole the •^rttit tind imporlanl cause uf A'dlionnl 

 .IgricuUural Improvement.) 



LETTER I. 



Sir — As Agriculluial Improvement is the or- 

 der of the day, allow me lo mciuion an i-xtreme 

 case — the expendilme ol £()';!00 on a F.irm of 

 mine, KiO acres ('I'iptree-llall, near Kelvedon, 

 Essex,) that only cost £:.VihiK In due course, 

 when the results are accurately ascertaineil, I 

 shall deem il my duly lo siihmil slalisiical details 

 and drawings of the buibliii;;s lo i-wry .AL'ricid- 

 lnr:d Sociciy in the Kin;;dinn, in the Iidjh- ji may 

 give confidence lo llio.-e who, having ibe means 

 lo improve their properly, anMloiihlliil as to such 

 ini|iro\eiiM'iiis paying a ri'inimeiaiiiig profit to 

 lioih Landlord anil Tenant. The expenditure 

 above meiilioned has been appropriated lo — Isl. 

 The perfect and permanent (irainage of the land 

 with stones and pipes, 4 \ards apart, and .^'J 

 inches deep — between 80 and UO miles of drains. 

 'it\. To the entire removal of all limber trees, 

 which cannot be profitably grown in corn fields. 

 3d. To the removing all old, crooked and un- 

 necessary haiik.s fences and ditches. 4tli. The 

 cutting new parallel ditches and fences, so as to 

 avoid short lands. 5tli. The iiiclosiire of waste, 

 and conversion of useless bog into good soil. 

 Olli. The economi/ing lime and distance by new 

 roads, arches, and more direct communications 

 with the exlremilies of the Farm. 7tli. The 

 erection of well-arranged farm-building',*, built 



f brick, ircni, and slate, in 



Farming in Great Britain. 



We (Farmer's Monthly Visitor) have received, 

 presumed to he from the author, copies of a 

 pamphlet containing letters mi .Agricullural Im- 

 provement, in which the story is lidd of a profit- 

 able inve.-lmenl ol a most enormous expeiiililnre 

 in ptu'iiiaiieiil iniprovcment ol'a farm in buildings, 

 upon and under the .soil, and in various otiii'r 

 wavs. We have read and beard related the melli- 

 ods (d' improved farming in I'.urope, « h<'re a 

 higher stun was paiil for the animal rent to the 

 landlord than llie entire cost of firm lands in the 

 I'liili'd Slalcsof .America: and «e have wonder- 

 ed how a .svsleni of profitable liirming could be 

 suppiMled uinler such a rent and under govern- 

 ment taxation four limes as gri'al as in this coun- 

 try. Such an expeiisive system of fiirming can- 

 not be here supporle<l : yet il is our belief that 

 if iialf the money laid out in land could b(,- laid 

 out ill the iniprovement id' half Ihe ipiaiilily |iur- 

 cbaseil, the iiivi'siinenl would be a decided im- 

 provement, and would be shown in the steady 

 ai'ipiisilion of four-lold protils. 



Allliouj.di it is impiissilile in New England at 

 this time to go fully into the Hrilisli system ol 



00 the "i-asses are perceptible for three or (bnr ' improved fiiriniiig, yet the iurorinulion derived 



conliniions raiiiie, 

 excluding all cold winds and ciirrenls of air, but 

 open to sunny warmlli. 8lli. The bnihiing a 

 siibslantial and genleel residence, with all due 

 requisites for domestic condorl and economy. 

 Olh. The erection of an eflicient threshing ma- 

 chine, and needlnl apparatus for shakinj; the 

 straw, dressing the corn, culling chaff, bruisin:; 

 oats, &c., soconstrncled as not to injure the straw ; 

 avoiding by its perfect action, that immense waste 

 ofgraiu visible m .almost every liuss or sii.iw we 

 examine. 10th. Theavoidance oflhatchni^ anil 

 risk of weather, hy ample barn room, wiih con- 

 venience for in-door hoi se labor ;it llirashing, &c., 

 when not employable wilhont, so as to have no 

 idle days for man or beast. 1 lib. The saving of 

 every pound and pint of manure by a lank (90 

 feet long, 6 feet deep, 8 (eel wide, with slated 

 roof facing the noith, and with well and pump,) 

 into which is received the whole drainage from 

 the farm-yard and stables. 12lh. The convey- 

 ance by iron guilers and pipes of every drop of 

 water from the rocd's of each building, so as in 

 no manner lo dilute the uiamire in v.-irds. I3lli. 

 The perfect draiiiai;e of ibe I'oimdalions ol the 

 barn, and every building on ihe Farm. 14ili. .A. 

 sleam-hoiise to prepare food Cor cattle. 1 am 

 thus particular in ileiail, because it is from each 

 of the above branches of expendilnre that some 

 portion of lemnneration is expected. But, din- 

 ing the progress of my underlaking, I have been 

 warned, eiiliealed, and dis.'-naded by my liirniing 

 friends, who pri)te>ted that a profitable return llir 

 such ail enormous expendilnre Has impossible; 

 my calculations, hosvever, were made, and mere 

 assertions without tacts and figures weighed 

 nothing with me. .■Mthough the operations were 

 only commenced eaily in 18111, llie resells, so fin- 

 as they go, are gralilying and convincing. .As 

 oni' inslaiice of success, a field of oal-s sown on 

 the Itilh of May, after ilraiiiage, was harvesleil 

 and stacked, before another (sown two monlli;j 

 earlier im belter bill undiained land) was ready 

 to cut. Herealter you shall have iletailed statis- 

 tics of every deparimcnl in which saving is el- 

 t'ected and increase proihiceil. In a moral and 

 goci.il point of vievv, these improvemenis have 

 acted beneficially. They have excited the ener- 

 gies of the TriKint and his Laborers, stimnlaling 

 them 10 think, cinnp.ne, and improve. They 

 have awakened the atlenliou and curiosity of the 

 neighboiing farmers, who are watching the re- 

 sult, and already have they caused many under- 

 takings in drainage, which olherwise would not 

 liave been Iliouglitof Had I invested my money 



