No. 3. 



Improving the Soil. 



91 



Improving the Soil. 



As a convenient and economical plan of 

 saving - manure, we extract the following 

 from a correspondent of the Carolina Planter, 

 as affording many most excellent sugges- 

 tions, which are strictly applicable in all 

 parts of the country. The practice of ga- 

 thering and hauling oak leaves and other 

 litter to the cow yard, is certainly good ; but 

 we remark, that there are many other kinds 

 of litter, such as corn-stalks, straw, &c, that 

 might be thrown on the barn, cow, or stable 

 yard, and when the cattle are plenty, an im- 

 mense quantity of manure might be made. 

 But to hear the correspondent speak for him- 

 self, we give place. He says: "I have a 

 parallelogram, 150 feet by 50, enclosed by a 

 straight fence, in the midst of which is a 

 low house 96 feet by 24. A part of this is 

 divided oft" into stalls for milch cows, in 

 which they may be fed separately from the 

 herd.. The balance is open, with a rack 

 running through its length and dividing it ; 

 and the whole is surrounded with unshelter- 

 ed margin, which prevents the stock from 

 being necessarily confined within the limits 

 of the building. 



"As soon as I lay by my crop, I haul out 

 my bulk of manure, and deposit it in heaps 

 around the field, or fields, for which it is 

 designed ; and then having my laboratory 

 empty and ready for operations, I commence 

 the preparation of another supply. 



" First ; — I cover the whole area, in and 

 out of the house, 18 inches thick with oak 

 leaves and pine straw — the common litter 

 of the woods — which it takes me, with two 

 horse carts, at 15 loads a piece a day, four 

 weeks to accomplish. My first deposit, then, 

 is 720 loads, gathered into heaps and con- 

 veyed to the pen, in the following manner: 

 As soon as I cease to work my crop, I put 

 all my women and boys to 'raking trash,' 

 by way of getting a start. In a few days I 

 discontinue this operation, only keeping two 

 elderly women to prepare for, and load the 

 carts, which have been running from the 

 commencement of the ' trash rakinsr.' These 

 carts are driven by boys, as experience proves 

 that they will perform more, at that particu- 

 lar kind of business, than the primest men. 

 To ascertain that their task (with men 15 

 loads — but dependent, of course, upon cir- 

 cumstances,) is given me honestly, I make 

 the drivers empty the loads touching, but in 

 distinct and undisturbed heaps, which re- 

 main so until I or my agent counts them, 

 and inspects their size. The carts are not 

 stopped for four weeks; and consequently 

 the two old women and the two boys take 

 no share in stripping and curing fodder. 



" When I have my deposit complete, I ad- 

 just and level the whole, which will give a 

 coating of not less than 18 inches deep. 

 This I cover with the offal of my stables, 

 which I have purposely delayed to cleanse. 

 And this operation of cleansing my stables, 

 and spreading their contents in a layer over 

 the area of my cow-pen, is performed month- 

 ly. In the mean time my pen receives nightly 

 additions from my stock of cattle, which are 

 penned regularly throughout the year. Thus 

 1 make a compost which is stronger than 

 cow-pen manure, and not so heating as sta- 

 ble. Directly after the Christmas holidays, 

 and before I commence to plough in my oats, 

 I devote a fortnight to the same operation, 

 that I described as occupying the two carts 

 and their four attendants, during the month 

 of August. And after this I continue the 

 process of strengthening the compost with 

 the cleansing of the stables. As I have sides, 

 a front and back, made of light laths, tem- 

 porarily attached to my carts, while I am 

 hauling trash — each load, light and dry as it 

 is, and trampled down into the frame, will 

 give a load of manure; and therefore, on the 

 1st of each August, I have 720— 360— 220 

 — (the monthly cleansing of the stalls of 20 

 horses,) thirteen hundred loads of com- 

 post to haul out. Of this I find that 16 loads 

 to the acre are sufficient, not only to keep 

 up, but to improve my clay lands. Thus 

 the reward of my labour and trouble, is the 

 ability to plant every year, and yet improve 

 80 acres of land. 



" Suppose I did not pursue this system, and 

 what would be the consequence? I must 

 either till that area to less and less profit 

 every year, until I destroy its value entire- 

 ly; or I must have an equal, additional area, 

 with which, to alternate it, and so be enabled 

 to keep up both by resting. Eighty acres of 

 land in my neighbourhood, at fifteen dollars 

 per acre, will cost twelve hundred dollars; 

 and thus, besides the gain of an annual in- 

 creased product, the saving of an investment 

 of twelve hundred dollars is made. And at 

 what expense? Some trouble I confess, but 

 no loss; for no labour, human or brute, is 

 subtracted from the preparation for the plant- 

 ing, working, or harvest of the crop. 



"It would be very easy to increase the 

 quantity of manure made in this manner, if 

 my means were more ample ; but I am lim- 

 ited, both in the quantity of my available 

 trash, and in the number of my cattle." — Se- 

 lected. 



Evil may spring unchecked, 

 Within the human soul; 



But if such spot be not removed, 

 It must corrupt the whole. 



