CHAPTER IV 

 ORGANIC MATTER 



Office of Organic Matter. -- The restoration of 

 an impoverished soil to a productive state usually 

 is a simple matter so far as method is concerned. 

 It may be a difficult problem for the individual 

 owner on account of expense or time involved, 

 but he has only a few factors in his problem. 

 Assuming that there is good drainage, and that 

 the lime requirement has been met, the most im- 

 portant consideration is organic matter. A prof- 

 itable agriculture is dependent upon a high per- 

 centage of humus in the soil. Average yields of 

 crops are low in this country chiefly because the 

 humus-content has been greatly reduced by bad 

 farming methods. 



Nature uses organic matter in the following 

 ways : 



1. To give good physical condition to the soil. 

 The practical farmer appreciates the importance 

 of this quality in a soil. Clayey soils are composed 



[36] 



