^^m 



Vol. XV., Second Series. 



ROCHESTER, N. Y., DECEMBER, 1854. 



Ko. 12. 



THE GENESEE FARMER, 



A MOXTHLT JOl'RXAL OK 



AGRICULTURE & HORTICULTURE. 



VOLUME XV., SECOXD SERIES. 183*. 



BACH Xl'>rBER COXTAIX.S 32 ROYAL OCTAVO PAGES, TS 



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THE STUDY OF MANURES. 



LoxG winter evenings have returned ; and farmers 

 »jKi their sons can hardly do better than to devote a 

 part of their leisure hours during the winter months 

 to the ciitical study of Manures. For this purpose, 

 there is no work that combines so much reliable 

 practice with science as Boussiniraidt's R^ii-al Econo- 

 my ; and it is commended to the reader for the valu- 

 able instruction which it contains. His farm was 

 long devoted to experimental purposes ; and for 

 aught we know to the contrary, it is still managed 

 with reference to the development of new truths in 

 agriculture. 



The experiments of this distinguished chemist and 

 fiU'mer extended through five periods of successive 

 rotation of crops, manuring each crop, and twenty- 

 one years in all. One hectare (about two and a half 

 aa'es) was the area experimented upon. In the first 

 period, embracing five years, the total weight of the 

 crops was 80,83G pounds, consisting of potatoes, 

 wheat, clover, wheat, oats, in the order of rotation 

 named. The total weight of the manure used was 

 98,172 pounds. This reckoning includes the mois- 

 ture of both the crops and the manures. In order 

 to arrive at the most accurate results, the manuies 

 and crops were dried at the same temperature, and 

 m the same manner; and then it became manifest 

 that the weight of the crops exceeded that of the 

 manures employed. The dry crops weiglied 35,.')82 

 pounds; the dry manures weighed only 20 322 pounds; 

 giving an excess in the crops of 15,2(i0 pounds. By 



careful analysis it was found that the crops ;od- 

 tained — 



16,766 pounds of carbon. 



1,946 " hydrogen. 



14,346 " oxygen. 



602 " niirogen. 



2,023 « salts and eartha. 



35,582 



The manure used to produce these crops con- 

 tained — 



7,275 pounds of carbon only. 



8.03 " h\ J'-o^en. 



5,244 " oxygf-n. 



606 " nilnigen. 



6,844 " salts and e&rths. 



20,322 



Tlius it will be seen that the crops contained 9,491 

 pounds of carbon, and 1)6 pounds of nitrogen, more 

 than the manure ; and on the other hand, they con- 

 tained 4,522 pounds of salts and earths less than the 

 manure. 



In the second period, embracing also five years, the 

 same results were obtained. The rotation followed 

 was beets, wheat, clover, wheat, turnips, oats. The 

 total weight of the crops in a dry state amounted to 

 34.9.56 pounds, while the dry manure employed 

 amounted only to 20.322 pounds. 



In the third period, embracing six years, the sum 

 total of the crops was 46,660 pounds, the maiuire 

 employed 24,384 pounds. The rotation followed was 

 potatoes, wheat, clover, Swedish turnips, peas, rye. 



In the fourth period, of three year.«, the field was 

 left fallow the first year, and the two following ^ears 

 sown with wheat. The weight of the two wheat 

 crops was 16.772 pounds, while the weight of the 

 manure employed was only 8,280 pounds. 



Finally, in the fifth and last period, the Jerusalem 

 artichoke (Httiunihus tuherosus) was cultivated for 

 two consecutive years, and the weight of the roots 

 and stalks, when diied, was 71,124 pounds. The 

 manure employed was 18,816 pounds. 



Placing all the results together in a table, we find 

 the following: 



Crops. Manure. Surplua. 



In the first period, 35,582 20,322 15,260 



In the second period, 34,956 20,322 14,634 



In the third period 46,n60 24,584 22,278 



In the fourth period," 16,772 8,280 8,492 



In the efthpeiiod, 71,124 18,816 62,308 



Thus we see that there was in none of those pe- 

 riods a sufiicient amount of carbon, hydrogen, oxy- 

 gen and niti-ogen contained in the manure to supplj 



