294 ANIMAL MANURES. 



as little as possible to escape, and be lost. It is pro- 

 bable that the best method of preserving the greater 

 part of such manure, is to dissolve it in water. The 

 employment of liquid manure is gradually coming 

 more and more into use, and the prejudices against 

 its application are vanishing, as the beneficial results 

 produced by its use become known. 



779. Organic manure is of comparatively little 

 value in a chemical point of view, until it has under- 

 gone decomposition; plants do not seem able to ab- 

 sorb and appropriate organic matter; hence, in all 

 cases, whether applied fresh or decomposed, it must 

 undergo decay or putrefaction, before it can consti- 

 tute food for plants. It appears further, that plants 

 cannot absorb solid matter ; it is, consequently, also 

 requisite that these matters should be soluble in 

 water, or capable of entering into the organs of 

 plants in a fluid state. When water is added to 

 organic manure in a state of decomposition, putre- 

 faction is assisted, the escape of gases is diminished, 

 and the useful part of the manure obtained in that 

 form best suited to the wants of growing plants. 



780. When plants are growing very vigorously, 

 and are abundantly supplied with manure, it appears 

 that they sometimes do absorb a small quantity of 

 organic matter together with the inorganic pro- 

 ducts of putrefraction. Vegetables forced with 

 abundance of strong animal manure, such as pig's 

 dung, are frequently found to have acquired a bad 

 taste, from the presence of a minute quantity of some 



