CHAPTER XVII. 



MANURE SAVING. 



IFTY years ago farmers in this section paid but lit- 

 tle attention to the saving of manure, any more 

 than to drainage or tillage, or clover growing. 

 They did not need to. The soil was new and 

 strong, bringing large crops anyway, and their 

 whole attention w r as given to clearing up their 

 land and getting a home. When lands have been 

 cultivated for some time, and the original fertility begins to fail, 

 we find the farmers giving more attention to the saving of fertility, 

 some in one way and some in another. I was rather surprised, 

 when attending institutes in Wisconsin some years ago, to find 

 that manure saving was not a popular subject. Their lands were 

 somewhat exhausted by too exclusive wheat growing, but were 

 still too rich to have them pay much attention to the subject of 

 tight stable floors. It is somewhat this way in Southern Ohio, 

 but in the northern part of our State, there are quite a good many 

 farmers now who save their manure as thoroughly well as we 

 now know how. There are many different plans followed in this 

 and other States. Some use a cellar under the stable to store 

 their manure in, having, of course, a cement floor. The manure 

 is shoved down through trap doors, and may be thus kept per- 

 fectly. The objection is odors arising from the manure. Plenty 

 of absorbent and land plaster and tramping, with some light 

 stock, I should think, might nearly overcome this trouble. Others 

 have cisterns and lead the liquid manure to them from the stables 

 in tight gutters. Then it is drawn out in water carts. Where 

 straw is scarce or brings a high price, as near large cities, this 

 may be a wise plan ; but I do not like it exactly. I believe I can 

 do better on my farm than either this or the preceding way. 

 Neither the liquid or solid manure are complete alone. Common 

 sense, therefore, would seem to indicate that they had better be 

 used together, and if used together, why not saved together ? 

 You have to go out with the solid, why not have the liquid 

 absorbed and go right out at same time ? This has always seemed 

 to me to be the best plan for most of our Ohio farmers, who have 

 an abundance of straw which has little market value. I would 

 have the stable floors absolutely water-tight and save solid and 

 liquid together by free use of absorbents. 



Of course, this is for sections where stock are kept in barns or 

 sheds during the winter, as nearly all are now kept in Northern 



