204 



THE GENESEE FARMER. 



Sept. 



man and boftst is thus thrown into the atmosphere by 

 a slow, continuous combustion, which generates ani- 

 mal heat. These elements of the I'armer's crops fall 

 upon his cultivated fields in rain and dew. Hence, 

 when a pi<j, or any other animal, eats 100 pounds of 

 corn, and voids by the bowels and kidneys 40 pounds 

 of tiie matter consumed, these 40 pounds will repro- 

 duce, and generally more than reproduce, 100 pounds 

 of "sorn again. Even this 40 per cent, of tlie ele- 

 ments of corn may be reduced one-half by skillful 

 fermentation, by which carbon and the elements of 

 water are still further removed, and then reproduce 

 an amount of grain equal to the original. The art 

 and science of feeding cultivated plants being dis- 

 cussed at length in another place, the subject will 

 not be pursued in this connexion. 



I am indebted to the valuable work of Professor 

 Emmons, published in two quarto volumes, entitled 

 '■Agriculture of New York," for the following and 

 many other analyses contained in this report. The 

 researches into the cliemical composition of maize 

 were performed by Mr. J. H. Sausbuky, in the 

 laboratory of Professor E., and were so thorough and 

 extensive as to induce the New York State Agricul- 

 tural Society to award a premium of $300 to Sir. S. 

 His investigations fill two hundred pages in the 

 transactions of that society for the year 1848. 



A corn plant fifteen days after the seed was planted, 

 cut on the 3d of June, close to the ground, gave of 



Water, S&.625 



Dry matter, 10.374 



Ash, 1.354 



Ash calculated dry, 13.053 



By the above figures it will bo seen that nearly 90 

 per cent, of the young plant is water ; and that, in 

 proportion to the dry matter, the amount of earthy 

 minerals wliich remain as ash when the plant is 

 burnt, is large. This excess of water continues for 

 many w^eeke. Tlius, on the 5th of July, thirty-three 

 days from planting, the relations stood thus : 



Water, - 90.513 



Dry matter, 9A8'2 



Aali, 1.333 



Ash calculated dry, - 14.101 



(.\sh very saline.) 

 Before green, succulent fcx>d of this character is fit 

 to give to cows, oxen, mules, or horses, it should be 

 partly dried. Plants that contain from 70 to 7.5 per 

 cent, of water need no curing before eaten. The 

 young stalk, cut July 12, gave over 94 per cent, of 

 water. Such food used for soiling without drying, 

 would be likely to scour an animal, and give it the 

 cholic. The root at this time (nly 12) gajve of 



Water, .\. 81.026 



Dry matter, 18.974 



Ash, 2.22-2 



Ash calculated dry 11.711 



(Ash tastes of caustic potash.) 

 Ash of the whole plant above ground, 6.77 grains. Amount 

 of ash in all below ground, 3.93 grains. 



So late as July 2f), the proportion of water in the 

 stalk was ninety -four per cent.; and the ash calcu- 

 lated dry, 17.66 pcrcqnt. The plant gained 2136.98 

 grains in weight in a week preceding the 6th of 

 September. This was equal to a gain of 12.72 

 grains per hour. 



The rapid growth of corn i)Iants, when the heat, 

 light, and moisture, as well as the soil, are favorable, 

 is truly wonderful. A deep, rich, mellow soil, in 

 which the roots can freely extend to a great distance 

 in depth and laterally, is what the corn-grower sliould 



provide for this crop. The perviousness of river 

 bottoms contributes largely to their productiveness 

 of this cereal. A compact clay, which excludes 

 alike air, water, and roots — forbidding all chemical 

 changes — is not the soil for corn. 



When fanners sell corn soon after it is ripe, tliere 

 is considerable gain in not keeping it long to dry and 

 shrink in weight. Corn grown by Mr. Salisbury, 

 which was ripe by the 18th of October, then con- 

 tained 37 per ceat. of water, which is 25 per cent, 

 more than old corn from the crib will yield. The 

 mean of mTiny experiments tried by the writer has 

 been a loss of twenty per cent, in moisture between 

 new and old corn. The butts of cornstalks contain 

 the mopt water, and husks or shucks the least, when 

 fully matured and not dried. The latter hETfe about 

 thirty per cent, of dry matter when chemically desic- 

 cated. 



COMPOSITION OF THL ASH OK THE LEAVES AT WFFEBENT 

 STAGES. 



July 19. Ji^S-i. .il«e.23. .%ig.30. Ocl.W. 



Carbonic acid, 5.40 2.850 0.65 3.50 4.050 



Silica,. 13.50 19.850 34.90 36.27 58.650 



Sulphuricacid 2.16 1.995 4.92 5.84 4.881 



Phosphates,.- 21.60 16.250 17.00 13.50 5.850 



Lime, 69 4.035 2.00 .3.38 4.510 



Magnesia, 37 2.980 1.59 2.30 0.865 



Potash, 9.98 11.675 10.85 9.15 7.333 



Soda 34.39 29.590 21.23 22.13 8.520 



Chlorine,.... 4.55 6.020 3.06 J.63 2.664 



Organic acids, 5.50 2.400 3.38 2.05 2.200 



98.14 97.750 98.187 99.33 99.334 



The above figures disclose several interesting fact?. 

 It will be seen that the increase of silica or flint in 

 the leaf is steadily progro^ive from l.^.SO per cent, 

 at July 19th, to 68.65 at October 18th. 



Flint is substantially the bone-earth of all grasses. 

 If one were to analyze the bonev of a calf when a 

 day old, again when thirty days of age, and when a 

 year old, the increase of phosphate of lime in its skel- 

 eton would be similar to that witnessed in the leaves 

 and stems of maize. In the early stages of the 

 growth of corn, its leaves abound in phosphates ; but 

 after the seeds begin to form, the phosphates leave 

 the tissues of the plant in other parts, and concen- 

 trate in and around the germs in the seeds. On the 

 23d of August, the ash of the whole stalk contained 

 19.60 per cent, of phosphates; and on the 18th of 

 October, only 16.15 percent. In forming the cobs 

 of this plant, considerable potash is drawn from the 

 stalk ; as it decreases from 35.54 per cent. August 

 16, to 34.69 October 18. When the plant is grow- 

 ing fastest, its roots yield an ash which contains less 

 than one per cent, of lin>e ; but after this develop- 

 ment is nearly completed, the roots retain, or perhaps 

 regain from the plant above, over 4 J per cent, of this 

 mineral. S(>da figures as high as from 20 to 31 per 

 cent, ip the! ash obtained from corn roots. Ripe 

 seeds gave the following results on the analysis of 

 their ash : 



Silica, 0.850 



Phosphoric acid, .' 49.210 



Lime, '..^ 0.075 



Magnesia, 17.600 



Potash, , 23.175 



Soda ■... 3.605 



.Sodium, 0.160 



Chlorine, 0.295 



.Sulphnric acid, 1 0.515 



Organic acids, 5.700 



99.175 

 The above table shows a smaller quantity of lime 



