]\EW ENG1.AND FARMER. 



PUBLISHED 1!Y GEO. C. BARRETT, NO. .5:, NORTH M.ARKET STREET, (at the Acricui.tuh.m. Wakkhousf..)— T. G. FESSENDEN, EDITOR. 



BOSTON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, Jx\NUARY 23, 1833. 



NO. 28. 



COMMUNICATIONS. 



For tlie New England Farmer. 

 STIMULATION OP SOILS. 



The theory of vcf;otatioii presents a great field 

 lor discovery. What constitutes the food of plants ? 

 lu what degree is nutrition derived from the'^il .' 

 in what from the ati.'iosphere ? To what extent 

 does manure operate on the soil? ]io\v on tlic 

 atmosphere ? 



This is an important as well as intricate subject, 

 and much may be expected from tlie increasing 

 light and knowledge of the age, and from the dili- 

 gent sjiirit of inquiry which is now in progression. 

 ' '^K Yon ha\ 0, yourself, Mr. Editor, broken a lance 

 in the controversy with a scicntitic cultivator of 

 Albany on the effects of time on so\l. '• 



Dift'ercnces of opinion, like thos^ exercised in 

 this case, must doubtless lead to th^ extension of 

 knowlc<lge. But the danger is thai wliilst very 

 opposite theories arc strongly urged, an improper 

 <listrust may be excited. The subject, though iin- 

 |)ortant and beneficial may thus fall i^ito peglect 

 and disuse, whilst a decision is waittd for, at 

 which we may .liever arrive with the wished for 

 accuracy. ^ i 



From a frequent perusal of the beuefiti( (terlved 

 ■ from lime in its applicatiou to soil in Kjiope, I 

 have been induced for niore than a score of^ears, 

 .successively, to make use of it for agriMtural 

 pnr|)Oses to tlie extent of more than cue hihdrcd 

 casks annually. \ 



One of my first experiments arose from a oasire 

 to give a top-dressing to a piece of land, wlife it 

 was otherwise inconvenient to do. The soil was 

 a heavy black loam. Having a quantity of hlack 

 earth from a trench, (or top stratum) I procured 

 a quantity of lime. A bottom offburortivc buck 

 loads of earth was first placed ; then a coujile of 

 casks of lime were spread thereon ; then earth 

 and lime again, till my materials were used, or 

 the quantity needed was had at the rate of eight 

 or ten casks to the acre. Thus a cask being sup- 

 posed to produce about five bushels of slacked lime, 

 the cost of which, if the casks are swelled and the 

 lime partly slacked is eight to ten cents a bushel. 

 This is the most moderate application in Europe, 

 and the cost is about the same. 



This mixture after lying twelve or fourteen days 

 was shovelled over, and after some days being 

 found fine and well nfi.xed was spread from the 

 cart on the ground. To my surprise I found the 

 effect produced to be equal to what is usual from 

 connnoii compost manure ! 



In England, whore lime is most used foi- ajiri- 

 cultural purposes, it is considered that in its crude 

 state, or uucalciued state, it is most beneficial, if 

 pounded or made fine. This, where limo.^toilc 

 abounds it is well to know; but there is liule of it 

 in this neighborhood. Encouraged by this ex- 

 periment, 1 coutinuetl jo purchase and ajiply con- 

 siderable quantities of damaged and air slacked 

 lime* in my cultivation, particularly for a low , flat 

 piece of land. This being intersected with small 

 ditches, furnished the earth. I was not able 



* i..iTiiG loiii^ exposed to tlie air, such as sweepings of slorcs, 

 &c. is oC less value aud more chcaj)!/ obtained. 



otliervvise to procure to mix With the lime. It is 

 not well, however, in such cases, to lower the 

 surface by taking 'oft' more than will keep the 

 ililches open. When the earth is tough with 

 sward, &c. it may bo made finer by being carted 

 out and put in heaps on the ground, and spread 

 afterwards. Indeed this is. done to great advan- 

 tage in the winter. The poaching the land or 

 making a roiigh surface for the scythe being then 

 well avoided. ;'. , 



As this laud cannot advantageously be ploughed, 

 I liave in ap))lying every third yeaWS^fifop-dressing 

 as my custom is, alternated, giviu j^i ^^a dress- 

 ing of earth aiv.1 lime, aud at the e^^atifti of 

 three years, a coat of compost manure. 



This has been / done on the prmciplfe that a 

 more judicious mixture would be iriade, and a 

 better composition of soil be had. I have been 

 gtiided herein from general reasoning — not from 

 any proof tiiat the lime might not be j-epeated. 



It seems, however, to be a prevailing opinion, 

 where lime has been most in use, that it o p ens 

 the sod and makes it more porous^iving therJP^P 

 better action to other manures, which a judiciou 

 husbaiidr}' shoidd in succession Wply. 

 apphcation of lime to a grass sward, in a deep 

 springy soil, I have been ^k a Img time well 

 satisfied. It was several ye^Wxeii^B undertook 

 the same practice on a light soil, an^l did it with 

 less ex))ectation. But I was somewhat surprised 

 to find it equally beneficial. 



So fir lime has been mentioned as a component 

 article in lop-dressing for a green sward. Its ef- 

 fect v.ill be shown on ploughed land, and in a 

 grain crop. 



With a view of increasing fertility, I frequently 

 have applii'd on the side of the hills of Indian corn 

 a small handful of slacked lime. I so placed it, 

 lest the caustic quality of the lime should prove 

 injurious to the tender plant when it first started 

 from the .soil. This is my opinion and practice. 

 Though I have often since seen large pieces 

 slacken aud expand on the soil without injury to 

 the grass, which in a lively green color pierced 

 through it. This application of lime to the hill 

 I continued .for some time, and though small in 

 quantity or effect, I still thought it of .5ome advan- 

 tage. I was led, however, to a more extensive and 

 satisfactory experiment. 



I had a piece of ground of about four acres, of 

 rather light soil, which gave promise of a very 

 small crop of grass. Being without the m'eans of 

 obtaining manure, as I had a quantity of earth of 

 the top stratum, taken up on building a wall, I 

 forthwith procured a quantity of lime and mhlBd 

 it in the manner before mentioned. About the 

 middle of .Tune I had the grass mowed and the 

 land ploughed. The lime compost was tfeep 

 spread and lightly harrowed in. An early sort of 

 yellow corn, Avhich when ripe husked itself was 

 procured. And my neighbors, who knew th 

 process, werp, in the fall of the year, much sitr- 

 prised by the stout ears of golden grain thus unfold- 

 ed to view ! ! ! 



I trust enough has been said to show the bene- 

 ficial use of lime. Whether it acts on the atmos- 

 phere only, or a.s a stimulant to the soil, or actual- 

 ly contains (as is strongly maintained by some) 



within itself the food for plants is well worthy of 

 discussion. 



Btit whether cither of these causes separately or 

 they altogether condtice to the nutrition of plants, 

 an advautageou.s eftiict of the use of lime on soil 

 seems conclusively to follow. I have endeavored 

 to avoid nice discritniuations and have stated my 

 practice plainly, not from its novelty to many of 

 your readers, but because not only a great wa.ste 

 is made of this article but it is believed that at its 

 average price in good condition, about ten cts. it 

 may be used to good advantage. So also it is with 

 mortar, rubbish of walls and chimneys, plaster, &c. 

 from old buildings. These, (and it is somewhat 

 relative to this discussion) I have made u.se of as 

 a top-dressing to low soil to %'ery good effect. 



It has been observed that if lime is a fertilizer* 

 of soil why is it that where it abounds and often 

 forms ajB^ under stratum a greater fertility does not 

 prevail?' To this it may be answered that lime is 

 a constituent principle, it is believed in all soil, aud 

 ftiy be supplied, where from experience a defi- 

 ciency is Ipund. But when it superabounds as in 



_.^ most 4||^f things excess may be iujurious. In all 



In this' "bis more experience is wished for as the only 

 safe aniprofitable guide. , 



* Yours, &c. JOHN WELLES. 



The following able dissertation, on an obscure 

 but important stibject, will be read with pleasure 

 by every person, who can realize the truth that 

 improvements effected witli regard to cultivated 

 vegetables m^ of still more consequence to the 

 cultivator than introducing improved breeds of 



animals. 



For the New England Farmer. 

 POMOLOGICAL. 



I accept, Mr. Editor, the invitation of your 

 correspondent, M, S. and send you my opinions 

 and observatio^fcfs to the cause of the variation 

 of fruits, &c. pPduced from seeds. 



I consider t]£t plants are governed by as fi.xed 

 laws in rcg^K to propagation, as animals are ; 

 that the charter of the progeny, in both, partake 

 oftlii^ qualities of the parents, and of these alone; 

 and that a cross of two varieties of fruits, of like 

 specie?^, may be obtained with as much certainty, 

 as a rnjss from two varieties of the satne species 

 of animal. There is this difference — though the 

 progeny of the aliimal can have but one father, 

 tliat ot' the vegetable may have a phtrality of 

 fatbits. Henee the uncertainty of seeds, of which 

 different va^@ties of the same species flower at the 

 same time in the yicinitj of each other, producing 

 like the female pai»ut. The female organ of an 

 ajtple blossom may be fecundated with the pollen 

 of fifty different kinds, iu the space of half an 

 hour. The seeds of all plants where but a single 

 variety is cultivated or grows in the neighborhood, 

 as the butternut, chesimt, wheat, corn, &c. will 

 uniformly produce their kind. An isolated tree, 

 far removed from all others of its species, say of 

 the apple or pear, will do the like; and the peach 

 prodtices its kind with more certainty than the 

 apple, from the fact, that a siuglo variety, or 

 single tree, is more frequently grown at a distance 

 froiiJi other varieties than is the apple. We see 



