1846.] Guano. 87 



GUANO. 



It may be, and undoubtedly is, all very well and necessary for 

 England to import manures, and depend very much upon portable 

 manures to fertilize her soil. But it is not so in the United States. 

 We have large resources within our own borders, amply sufficient 

 to furnish all the manures our farmers want for years to come. 



I was sorry when guano was first imported into this country, 

 because I believed that I could see its tendency, to make our far- 

 mers neglect their own resources, and because unless all things 

 are favorable throughout the season, it is positively useless. And 

 such I know has been the experience of very many in the past 

 season. Every thing was unfavorable. In many fields, which 

 were planted, the seed never came up, and the season was so dry 

 that what came up received no more benefit from the guano than 

 they would from the same quantity of pulverized stone or brick. 

 As far as its use in this country can be estimated, it has been a 

 very profitable speculation to the importers, and a losing game to 

 the farmer. The following facts are deserving of consideration, 

 and I have therefore noted them down. 



1. Guano is very uncertain in its action when pure. It is a high- 

 ly concentrated manure, and its beneficial use will depend on va- 

 rious circumstances, such as the dryness or wetness of the season, 

 &c. In Peru the ground where it is applied is thorougly irrigated 

 immediately after each application of the guano, and this appli- 

 cation is made two or three times in the season. And the free 

 application of water is essential to the procuring of the eifects of 

 the manure. But in this country we can irrigate our cornfields 

 only when Providence sends us rain; and this supply is often 

 very precarious, as during the past summer. 



2. Guano is not permanent in the soil. If all circumstances are 

 favorable to develop its best effects for one season, the soil has 

 derived no permanent improvement from it, or at any rate but 

 little. I have never seen any evidence of its remaining in the soil 

 more than the year folloMing its application. 



