196 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



FOR THE NEW ENGLAN'D FARMEB. 



REMARKS ON SEVERAL SUBJECTS RELATING 

 TO RURAL ECONOMY. 



[Cenlinued from page IBS-] 

 ON BARN-YAIID MANURE. 



4. You know Mr. Editor, there arc nostrums, 

 besides the metalic points, which are recom- 

 menden as saving remedies for diseases, as dif- 

 ferent in their nature, as it is possible the liu- 

 man system can be visited with. Yet the set- 

 tings forth of these Empyrics arecrechtod, their 

 preparations purchased, and their directions fol- 

 lowed by multitudes, who are wise and careful 

 in many respects — by persons loo, who will, not 

 without o^reat tremblinsr, trust themselves to the 

 directions of a physician who, in livingf amons: 

 them has recommended himself by his nnoral and 

 wise conilucl. The prescriptions of a wise and 

 discriminating: physician are refused, and those 

 patent pills and lotions are bouu^ht. taken and 

 recommended as the means of health and com- 

 fort ; thoiifi-h it is doubtful whether a consider- 

 ate and well instructed person can be found, who 

 does not suppose the agafreafate evil derived 

 from them is manifold sfreater than the ijood. 

 But the whole catalogue of the diseases, which 

 the most adventurous of those men have named 

 as cured or helped by their calholicons, will not 

 equal the diversified and contradictory ends, 

 which are expected to be obtained from barn- 

 yard manure ; let the land be hill or plain; let 

 the soil be wet or dry ; let its constituent parts 

 be clay, sand, travel or silex ; let the crop be 

 corn, beans, wheat or flax ; let what will be the 

 chang-es desired, it matters not ; the same nos- 

 trum patented, not by Act of Congress but by 

 the law of universal custom, is resorted to, and 

 the same agent is considered as altogether suflfi- 

 cient and operative. The same happy effects 

 are expected, and generally believed to be deriv- 

 ed in all cases, however ditferent in their nature. 

 And, if at any time the ajiplication fails, the fail- 

 ure is imputed to the moon, or the planetary 

 powers. The disappointed cultivator resolves, 

 instead of changing his application, to i)ay great- 

 er regard in future to the signs of the times. But 

 you, Sir, will not believe the reason why manure 

 does tint taf.e., is to be found in the silver beams 

 of that lovely light, whose beautiful changes are 

 well calculated to please and delight, but which 

 was never set in the heavens to hurt or destroy. 

 The truth is that barn-yard manure, though of 

 great and extensive use is not good for all soils, 

 nor for all cro|)s; nor in many crops, where it 

 does some good, is it by any means the best and 

 cheapest application that can be made. Appli- 

 cations should be made according to the altera- 

 tions and changes to be produced. Cold soils 

 want to be warmed, hoi soils want to be cooled, 

 hard soils want to be mellowed, open soils to be 

 stilfened — some want heat, some moisture, some, 

 more of both than are alTorded by the common 

 gifts of nature. And in all soils regard is to be 

 had to the changes and alterations, which it is 

 wished to produce, and to the wants and habits 

 of the crop to be cultivated. Now can all this 

 he done by one agent ? certainly it cannot. But 

 it can he done by a proper application of agents 

 placed within our power, if used in a proper 

 way- To discover these agents and a|)ply them, 

 necessarily requires knowledge and discrimina- 

 tion. A farm then gives employment to the 

 head as well as to the hands ; and he only will 



be found ultimately to succeed well in the busi- 

 ness, who gives his attention to understand the 

 nature of things. The first object to be gained, 

 however, is to convince our agriculturists that 

 the produce of the barn-yard is not, as has alrea- 

 dy been observed, the only thing, which can 

 make the earth more productive. And that in 

 a very large number of cases it is not the best 

 material which can be applied. And this is a 

 point of a more difficult acquisition than would 

 at first be supposed; or, at least, it is not easy 

 to produce such a kind of conviction as will he 

 followed by a change of practice. 



It is not the object of these remarks to descend 

 into particulars relative to the improvement of 

 land. As a general observation the following 

 will hold true. For land very dry, or very wet, 

 pure barn-yard manure is not the best applica- 

 tion, which can be made. Common dry, subsoil, 

 and silicious [sandy] earth are better for wet 

 lands.* Meadow earth, and clay are better for 

 Randy and dry land, especially if grass is the crop 

 raised. And I had rather, in many instances 

 that earth should be supplied than an equal quan- 

 tity of the best manure from the barn-yard. The 

 effect, the first j'ear, in most instances might 

 not be so great ; but it would be mure lasting, 

 and in all greater. Land between the extremes 

 of wet and dry should be the repository to which 

 the yard must send its treasures. But it must 

 not, if the greatest good is wished to be accom- 

 plished, be used alone on grass land. It should 

 be mixed with loam, or covered over after it is 

 spread. The heap should be spread after the 

 grass has started, so that it will soon be shaded. 

 If spr&ad earlier it will often become dry, and 

 lose by evaporation most of its fertilizing qual- 

 ities. And it sometimes forms a crust, through 

 which the grass cannot penetrate. Compost, 

 brought to a very mellow state is the best for 

 grass. And I am very much of the opinion 

 that clear yard manure should never be used, 

 except when it can be immediately and entirely 

 covered. 



hand, or indeed before he had made any o: 

 that subject, I had discovered that the Sun, thi 

 Leviaiban, that drinketh the rivers, also too] 

 away much of the enriching quality of manun 

 used in my garden. — That it was much betfe 

 to cover green manure in the garden than ti 

 suffer it to grow old in the heap; and tha 

 crops that covered the ground the greater par 

 of the year impoverish the earth much les 

 than those which were of short continuance.— 

 Yet, such was my deference to the opinions o 

 those, whose business was in the field, am 

 where wealth and substance was drawn there 

 from, supposing they must knosv the better way 

 I hardly ventured to suggest that an alteralioi 

 from the common practice was necessary. Nei 

 ther do I believe, I should have thought of giv 

 ing the public any intimations on the subject.— 

 Yet it is true a change was necessary as tha 

 gentleman has told us, and has prevailed on ma 

 ny to their own profit to make ; and such, cei 

 tainly, are the advantages resulting from it 

 that should any man, who cultivates land, pa 

 yearly to this great benefactor a sum equal t 

 his usual town faxes, they, and not he woul 

 be the persons obliged. 



FURTHER HINTS ON THE MAN'.\.GEMENT OF MANURE. 



5. I admire such men as Col. Pickering, who, 

 when they discover any thing uset'ul, have be- 

 nevolence, and also courage enough to disclose 

 it to the world. Although the}' may not be 

 the first and only persons, who have thought of 

 such things, they deserve all the honor due to 

 the original discoverers. But such is not the 

 boldness, and, therefore not the usefulness of 

 all. Some years before Col. Pickering's publica- 

 tions on the subject of agricallure came to my 



To the Editor of the JVew England Farmer, 



Dear Sib, — I am induced to liand you the ei 

 closed extract for publication, from an impression th: 

 some of the remarlis are so apposite to the present jum 

 ture, tliat they ought to be in possession of the pubiii 

 And this motive I trust, will secure a pardon from m 

 friend for the liberty tlius taken. — It may be though 

 Sir, that the time has arrived for the farmers ar 

 PLANTERS of the Union, to begin to ask the Gover 

 ment for a share of protection so strenuously demandt 

 by a portion of their fellow citizens ene^aged in oth 

 pursuits. 



Should your publication of the letter, meet the e- 

 of the estimable gentleman at the head of the Agricr 

 tural Committee of the House of Representatives 

 Congress, he will recognize the writer as one of tl 

 most systematic and efficient farmers, upon a very e 

 tensive scale, in the United States. 



Yours trulj', 



S. W. POMEROY. 

 Brighton, Jan. 8, 1824. 



" Gencseo, Livingston Co., jY. Y. Sth Dec. 1823. 



" Dear Sir, — I receiveil a few days since, 



"New Englanil Farmer." Judging from or 



number, 1 should think it a well selected and ji 



dicious paper. 



1 doubt whether I should agree with the Ed | 

 tor in recommending the cultivation of roots f< ' 

 *This however, depends in some measure on the ^.^^^^^ ^ou know my axiom is that the procc 

 cause or loo mucli moisture. A soil may superabound j ,, ,. . ^i ■ ■_ . . . ■ ,, , "^ 



in sand, and still be too wet for cultivation. " Sandy I "' f''i-m'ng (1 Wish I had a better word at con 

 soils," says Sir John Sinclair, " on a retentive bottom, , inand) must be regulated by the price of pr. J 

 rc(iuires draining." Some swamps, altogether too wet { duce. The same paper which recommends tli [1 

 for cultivation, are composed of sand, with perhaps, a | culture of mangel wurlzel, quotes the price 

 slight cover of surlace mould. In snch case adding ^ ,jjg (j^g^ ^^^^^^ of beef at eight cents: reducir 



the average probably to four cents. I am d< 

 ceived if it is possible to feed cattle with roo 



d to sand would produce but little advantage, as 

 respects the superfluous moisture, unless the addition 

 was in such quantity as to elevate the plane of the 

 surface a considerable height above the " retentive 

 bottom" which caused tlie mischief. And even then 

 the soil will not be valuable in consequence of the 

 prudomiuance of sand. V\'c have known a sharp sand 

 applied to a sandy swamp, to remedy its wetness till a 

 soil was manufactured sufficiently dry but almost en- 

 tirely barren. If, however, the cause of too much wet- 

 ness is found in the absorbent quality of the soil which 

 induces it to take in water freely, and retain it in too 

 great quantity for the uses of vegetation, sand is a 

 proper application. — Editor JV". E. Farmer. 



rnd sell the beef at four or five cents, without 

 loss: — if so, I believe Say would pronounce th 

 root culture an unproductive operation. 1 ai 

 not insensible to the fascinating appearance 

 any section of our country, cultivated nearly 

 the style of horliculture ; but its counterpart 

 am afraid ever must be pauperism in most 

 its painful Ibrnis. Farmers |iur~ue their int< 

 rest — not always — but more generally than yc 



