FARMERS' REGISTER— GENERAL SYSTEM OF CULTIVATION, &c. 19 



pense of fuel, though without much trouble. Mr. 

 L. burns his shells in the following manner. A 

 pen of sixteen or seventeen feet square, is built of 

 round green pine logs, (notched where they lock, 

 so as to come as close together as their form will 

 allow,) and with a floor of similar logs, chinked 

 with smaller pieces, so as to prevent the shells 

 dropping through. The bottom logs of the kiln are 

 laid on four corner blocks, of tv,elve inches, so as 

 to leave a vacancy of twelve or fifteen inches be- 

 tv/een the earth and the bottom of the floor, whicli 

 is to be packed closely with dry wood. The walls 

 of the pen are raised about nine feet ; and about 

 one hundred logs of six to eight inches through 

 (which these now put up seemed to be,) usually 

 serve for the floor and side walls. The shells are 

 thrown in, and in layers of different degrees of 

 thickness, according to their order, and separated 

 by thin layers of pine wood, cut eight Icet long, 

 and split to the usual size for fuel. The size of the 

 last kiln burnt by Mr. L. according to his memo- 

 randum book, was as follows : 



Kiln 17 feet square and 9 feet high, inside mea- 

 sure. 



The lowest bed of shells 8 inches, (he thinks it 

 might as well liave been 12 inches.) 



The second bed of shells 12 inches. 



— third — — 16 — 



— fourth — — 20 — 



— fifth — — 15 — 



— sixth — — 6 — 



The layers of wood between were equal, and 

 about six inches. This kiln took one hundred 

 hogsheads of shells, and consumed ten cords of 

 wood in the layers, and three more of foundation 

 or kindling wood. The kiln should be fired in 

 calm weatiier ; and if the wind afterwards rises, 

 it should be kept off as much as possible by a 

 screen of brush, or whatever may be most conve- 

 nient. 



The burning (in preference) is done in March, 

 or as soon alter as may be. The newly burnt shells 

 are carted to the field as soon as they are cold 

 enougli, and deposited in small pai'cels of a mea- 

 sured heaped half bushel each, at distances of six 

 yards. The field is previously plouglied, and 

 marked off carefully in checks of six yards square. 

 These small heaps of shells are immediately covered 

 completely, but not heavily, by the surrounding- 

 earth being drawn over them with broad hoes. If 

 a heavy rain was to catch the lime before tliis 

 covering, much of it would become a wet sticky 

 mortar, difficult to manage, and impossible to dis- 

 tribute equally. When secured in the heaps, the 

 moisture absorbed from the earth will usually slake 

 the lime in forty-eight hours. The heaps are then 

 cut down and mixed with hoes, and carefully 

 spread so as to cover the field very equally. Tlie 

 land is then well harrowed, more effectually to 

 distribute and mix the lime with the soil. Tiie 

 quantity applied to the acre is aliout seventy bush- 

 els of the burnt and unslaked shells, which quan- 

 tity is produced by burning six hogslicads (108 

 bushels) of shells ; and the same, if well burnt, 

 ^vill swell in slakhig, to 125 or 130 bushels. The 

 lime is always put on a part of the field of the 

 fourth year, and is put under field peas the same 

 year. The red, or cow pea, is preferred, being 

 considered most profitable for live stock ; and as 

 that is a late kind, it should be planted as soon as 

 possible after the 20th of April, that the crop may 



mature. Two afler ploughings and one slight 

 hand weeding serve to cultivate the crop ; and its 

 product, Mr. L. thinks, though without having 

 made any experiment or careful estimate, usually 

 pays the whole expense of the liming. He has 

 the bulk of the peas gathered by hand, but not 

 closely ; and the remaining pods and vines are 

 eaten on the ground by cattle. The peas are partly 

 ground into meal and mixed with other food for 

 mules, for which use they are much valued. Mr. 

 L. has never compared the products of peas with 

 corn on equal land, but supposes that more bushels 

 per acre would be obtained from corn. 



Mr. L. does not think that a heavier cover of 

 lime would be much more effective. He showed 

 the ground where an experiment had been care- 

 fully made to test this question, and which is still 

 on trial. Three years ago a certain space marked 

 out through equal land, was limed with a second 

 cover equal to the first and usual quantity, which 

 had been applied to the field four years earlier, and 

 was followed by manure from the stable and farm 

 yard, the year after the first liming. The field is 

 now in wlieat, and the growth excellent through- 

 out, but unequal, and the part doubly limed is not 

 perceptibly superior to that on either side. Still 

 he expects a different result on a soil less light, 

 and applied liis last lime as a second and lighter 

 dressing to tlie stiffest loam, in preference to the 

 lighest land that had yet received none. He has 

 found that the lightest soils here, and the stiffest 

 among the clay soils of his farms in G-loucester, 

 are neither so much improved by liming as are 

 soils of medium texture. 



The whole expense of liming has not been esti- 

 mated by ]Mr. L. nor has the benefit from lime 

 alone been ascertained. He always covers with 

 putrescent manure the whole of the previous year's 

 limed land, and sows all in clover. The durable 

 benefit obtained from the manure in part, and the 

 whole value derived from the clover, are indirect- 

 ly the effects of the lime. The expense bears a 

 very small proportion to the profit. The only dif- 

 ficulty in liming, arises from the scantiness of the 

 supply of shells, and the fear that they will be still 

 more scarce, as their use extends. Small vessels 

 now bring cargoes of oyster shells and sell them 

 (on board) at 62| cents the hogshead. The labor 

 of landing them is an additional expense to the 

 farmer. 



Gypsum had been frequently tried on clover as 

 well as other crops before liming, and with little 

 or no benefit. It has not been tried since liming, 

 but he is now about to make the experiment again. 



No value is attached to the caustic quality of 

 the lime, and indeed it is supposed to have lost that 

 quality by exposure under the usual treatment, 

 before the succeeding crop of peas begins to grow. 

 Ten or twelve days are generally allowed to inter- 

 vene for this purpose, between the spreading and 

 harrowing in of the lime, and the planting of the 

 peas. . VVlien peas were planted immediately after 

 the spreading, tlieir growth was thought to show 

 some injury from the remaining causticity of the 

 lime. Still Mr. L. is not satisfied, that an equal 

 quantity of mild calcareous earth in any other 

 form, would serve as well as lime prepared by 

 burning. Without denying the correctness of that 

 deduction from his opinions and practice, he pre- 

 fers adhering to the practice which experience has 

 proved to be highly beaeficial and sufficiently 



