VOli. SXI. NO. 39. 



AND HORTICULTURAL REGISTER. 



307 



from the Farmer's Monthly ViBltor. 



ON ASHES AND SILICATES. 

 Mr Him. — I havp read in several of the agricDl- 

 iral papers, wiihiii a few months past, varidus ac- 

 junts of the value of ashes in agriculture, both 

 aclicd and unle.iched ; and in most cases their 

 jplicatioii was attended with decidedly benclicial 

 suits. But there is a great diflerence in the val- 

 ofsoapers' k-ached ashes, and those from the 

 )t or pearl-.ish factory. Dr. Dana says, " the soap 

 landler, in leaching ashes, uses about one peel; 

 lime to each bu-ihcl of ashes." This is used 

 r the purpose of taking up the carbonic acid in 

 shes, which makes the lye caustic ; it then 

 adily combines with the oil or grease, and forms 

 ap. The lime used with the ashes is "quick 

 le," or in other words lime that has had its Car- 

 rie acid driven oCT by the process of burning, 

 fter being leached, it is carbonate of lime, from 

 e carbonic acid derived from the aslies, ond is 

 emically the same as before being burnt. Then 

 l'i5 bushels from the soapboiler's, we get 100 

 ishels of leached ashes, and 35 bushels of car- 

 nate of lime. The manufacturer of pot or pearl- 

 covers the bottom of his leach tubs with swin- 

 e tow or straw, and puts over it a bushel or two 

 slacked lime, and does not renew the lime again 

 iring the season of making ; consequently, there 

 no lime mi.Ked witl> the leaclied ashes from the 

 tasli. 



From the above facts, every one will see there 

 a material difference in the value and effects of 

 e two kind;-'. Therefore the farmer that uses 

 ached ashes from the potash, expecting to real- 

 thc same results as those do that make use of 

 ■aper's ashes, will be likely to meet with disap- 

 intmont. 



I have never seen Dr. Dana's "Muck Manual," 

 t have read a few extracts as published in the 

 ricultural papers. In one of them, the Doctor 

 es into a calculation to prove that soils are not 

 haustcd of their lime and ashes by cropping or 

 Itivation. For by his figures he makes out that 

 acre of soil to the depth of six inches, "contains 

 326 lbs. of liu-.e, and 7.3,.3I1 lbs. of potash, or 

 arly 1 3-4 Ion of lime, and .36 tons of potash." 

 'ell, every firmer must say there is enough in all 

 nscicnce of lime and potash in his soil ; — and 1 

 not at all dispute the Doctor; but if there is 

 et amount, I believe it is nearly insoluble, and 

 ■erefore of little use. Liebig says the lands in 

 rginia, by long cultivation, become entirely un- 

 oductive in wheat, for want of potash in the soil. 

 e says, (if I recollect right, it being more than a 

 ar since I have seen his book.) that there is 12 

 s. of pot.tsh annually carried off the soil, in the 

 lain and str.iw of an acre of wheat — 1200 lbs. 

 a hundred years. But according to Dr. Dana's 

 itemont, there would be left there, in the soil, 

 me 3.5 tons of potash per acre. Now, Mr Editor, 

 am a "plain, practical, every-day farmer," and 

 all not attempt to decide, where learned doctors 

 Bagrce. But being willing to contribute my mite 

 r the benefit of our crafl,l will state a few facts, 

 'd give my views, with the hope that they may 

 suit in further investigations ; but not having 

 e happy talent of saying much in a few words, 

 hope you and your readers will excuse the long 

 irn I am about spinning. 



I think I can furnish a few facts, to prove that 

 ■e application of ashes to the soil in addition to 

 le 36 tons, is attended with beneficial results. I 



believe also the part that ashes perform in agricul- 

 ture is nut fully understood. The general opinion 

 is, that it acts as a stimulant to the growing plants, 

 and a decomposer of vegetable matter in the soil, 

 and perhaps the above opinion is partially correct. 

 I apprehend the most important part ashes perforui 

 in agriculture, is in decomposing silica, and render- 

 ing it soluble, so as to be taken up by the rootlets 

 of plants, and by proper vessels carried to every 

 part, and there assimil.ated and aplied to the vari- 

 ous purposes fo» which nature intended it, viz: to 

 form the skeleton of the plant or tree, the glaze on 

 the cornstalk and kernel, the outer covering upon 

 wheat and other straw and grasses, &,c. &c. The 

 material of this glaze is derived from that kind of 

 rock called quartz, (sometimes called rock crystal, 

 or white flint stone;) it is di.ssnlved and rendered 

 soluble by an alkali. Some kinds of trees require 

 a much larger quantity in their structure than oth- 

 ers, and produce a much greater amount of ashes, 

 upon being burnt. The burning of wood converts 

 it again to silica; the insoluble part of ashes is 

 mostly silcx. Oak requires a much larger amount, 

 as it is much heavier than pine wood. To prove 

 the solubility of silica by potash, I will state a few 

 plain facts, because we common farmers want facts, 

 and illu.^^trated in a way that we can underslond 

 them. From the fact that lye di.^solves the silica 

 in wood, tubs for leaching ashes are usually made 

 of pine, as they are not so powerfully acted upon 

 by the lye as if they were made of oak. An oak 

 tub, after having been used a few times for a leach 

 tub, would have its silica dissolved, and a stave 4 

 inches in width, upon being dried, would shrink to 

 two inches, wholly in consequence of the dissolv- 

 ing of the silica (gritty part.) But the ashes do 

 not operate upon the vegetable tissue or fibre of 

 the wood. 



When it was the custom of farmers' wives and 

 daughters to spin their thread from flax, the next 

 process was to boil it out in lye, to soften and re- 

 move the harshness of the thread by dissolving the 

 minute particles of silex, but it did not destroy the 

 strength of the vegetable texture. Manufacturers 

 of paper from straw, go upon this principle : the 

 straw is boiled in lime-water or lye, the glaze upon 

 it is dissolved, and the vegetable fibre is unlmrmerl. 

 From these facts, then, it would seem the alkoli 

 acted upon the inorganic, rather than upon the or- 

 ganic or vegetable matter. 



Dr. Dana's statement of the amount of potash 

 in the soil, may be correct: but I will try to prove 

 that I am right in my conjecture as to its being in- 

 soluble, and therefore inert. Common granite is 

 the prevailing rock in New England, and is com- 

 posed of three different minerals — quartz, felspar 

 and mica. Quartz is supposed to be of an acid 

 nature — felspar contains 12 to 15 per cent, of pot- 

 ash — mica from 5 to 8 percent, of potash. Che- 

 mists tell us that the rootlets of living plants and 

 trees have the power of decomposing granite rock, 

 to obtain the potash we find in their ashes. 'T is 

 said, " the living plant is a consummate analist." 

 I will, though with much diffidence, give you my 

 theory of plants decomposing rocks. 



The decomposition of veget?.ble matter always 

 produces an acid — or in other words, the decaying 

 or rotting, or more properly, tlie slow combustion 

 of vegetable matter partially converts it into car- 

 bon. The oxygen of water combines with the car- 

 bon and produces carbonic acid. This acid in its 

 liquid and gaseous form, having an affinity for the 

 alkali in the rock, dissolves it; the alkali dissolves 



the silica, (quartz,) and by the endiiBinose princi- 

 ple of the living plant, the water holding these in 

 solution, is drawn up by the ro<illet!<, and these 

 salts disposed of and assituilated to the purposcn 

 designed by thy first great cause. In proof of 

 this position, I forward you a piece of rock, not 

 acted upon by the " living plant," but by decom- 

 [losing vegelnhle matter, and it will convey lo your 

 mind a better idea of my meaning than I can by 

 the pen. 



In some situations, there is a superabundance of 

 alkali and silica — in others just the quantum need, 

 ed ; and in others a deficiency. These propoei- 

 tions I think I can explain to the satisfaction of 

 you and your readers. Upon the banks of a small 

 river, running through this town, there is frequent- 

 ly a strip of land one or two rods in width, and 

 sometimes several rods in length, a few feet above 

 the bed of the river. Upon every overflow of the 

 banks by a freshet, there is left upon them a dcpo- 

 sito of gravel and fine sand ; yet every year these 

 strips produce a tolerably heavy crop of redtop 

 grass, generally free from any mixture. When 

 secured in good order for hay, it has every appear- 

 ance of first-rale winter fodder. Yet our cattle 

 will not eat it, unless driven to the borders of star- 

 vation. Again, there is a similar kind of grass, 

 only more wircy and jointed, growing upon our 

 gneiss and granite ledges, and frequently quite a 

 thick growth of it, where the soil is but two or 

 three inches in depth. It is redtop grass, but from 

 its small and narrow leaf and wirey appearance, 

 but few persons would suppose it was the same 

 kind of grass that was growing within six feet of 

 if, where the soil was deeper. The grass on the 

 river bank, from the comminuted and fine particles 

 of quartz, felspar and mica, takes on and in such a 

 quantity of silica, that it is hard and difficult to 

 masticate, and probably it is not so nutritious as if 

 grown where there was more vegetable matter in 

 the soil. That, upon the ledges, the roots of the 

 grass rest directly upon the rock, and decompose 

 it: this contains more silica, and is harder than 

 that upon the river bank. This establishes my 

 first proposition. 



There are other situations where all the neces- 

 sary constituents for a perfect developement appear 

 to be rightly balanced. With such spots all our 

 farmers are familiar. They are found wherever 

 the wash from rocky or gravelly roods is carried 

 over grass lands : the wheels of carriages and 

 travel on the road are continually grinding to pow- 

 der the component parts of stones and rocks in the 

 road, which renders their salts soluble. This 

 with the animal and vegetable matters, are sprayed 

 over the ground by every heavy shower ; the re- 

 sult is a heavy crop of grass. Herds-grass in such 

 places is frequently found four or five feet in height, 

 standing perfectly erect till mowing time, and af- 

 fording palatable and nutritious food for cattle. 

 This I offer to sustain my second proposition. 



My third was, that there were other spots where 

 there was an absolute deficiency of potash and 

 silica, but an abundance of nutritious matter. 

 Where a piece of land has the wash of a barn, the 

 grass starts early in the spring, and bids fair to 

 yield a great growth of grass ; but for want of 

 stamina it frequently falls or lodges before it beards 

 out, and when made into hoy it will weigh light 

 according to its bulk : much of this is occasioned 

 by a deficiency of silex. The same results are 

 frequently exhibited on reclaimed meadows, where 

 there is a great amount of decaying vegetable mat- 



