24 Subsoil Cultivation. [Jan., 



soil cultivation, in a measure, renders plants comparatively inde- 

 pendent of the season; for if the season is dry, by encouragmg 

 deep rooting, and the retentive nature of soil thus cultivated, the 

 plants or crop cannot suffer much, as it retains for a longer time a 

 sufficiency of moisture; and in wet weather the depth of soil 

 readily absorbs the water, and conveys it to its natm-al or artificial 

 outlet. Of two pieces of land of equal size, and an equal quan- 

 tity of manure on each, the one deep cultivated, or subsoiled, and 

 the other in the ordinary way, the manure in the shallow cultiva- 

 ted lot, not having a sufficient body of earth incorporated with it 

 to rectify its rankness, the crop on it may at one stage of its 

 growth look more luxuriant, than the crop on the other lot at 

 the same stage of growth ; but when dry weather sets in, the or- 

 ganizable portions of the manure not already appropriated by the 

 growing plants become inactive, or more frequently are lost in 

 evaporation; consequently the plants become stunted, and a short 

 crop the result; whereas, in the deeply cultivated lot, the manure 

 having been rectified by mixture with a great mass of earth, every 

 particle of organizable matter in the manure is retained in the 

 ground, and is taken up by the plants as they require it; the 

 consequence of which is, the growth of the crop has been more 

 gradual and natural, and less the result of artificial excitement. 



Another reason why subsoil cultivation is beneficial, is the under 

 soil very often contains what the upper soil requires. Take, for 

 example, lime; it has a tendency to sink in the earth, and is re- 

 tained by the subsoil out of reach of the common plough, and 

 when this is found to be the case, all that is necessary is the use of 

 the subsoil plough. There are, however, occasional dangers to 

 be apprehended from subsoil ploughing and trenching, as the soil 

 may occasionally contain noxious matter, when brought in con- 

 tact with vegetation, that may prove destructive; and here is one 

 of the instances where a knowledge of agiucultural chemistry 

 would enable the cultivator of the soil to proceed knowingly in 

 his operations, and not in the dark, as the great majority of us 

 are obliged to; since by chemical analysis, he could ascertain exact- 

 ly what the soil contained, and if the subsoil contained what the 



