76 TALKS OS MANUKES. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

 HOW JOHN JOHNSTON MANAGES HIS MANURR 



One of the oldest and most successful farmers, in the State of 

 New York, is John Johnston, of Geneva. He has a farm on the 

 borders of Seneca Lake. It is high, rolling laud, but needed under 

 draining. This has been thoroughly done — and done with great 

 profit and advantage. The soil is a heavy clay loam. Mr. John- 

 ston has been in the habit of summer-fallowing largely for wheat, 

 generally plowing three, and sometimes four times. He has been 

 a very successful wheat-grower, almost invariably obtaining large 

 crops of wheat, both of grain and straw. The straw he feeds to 

 sheep in winter, putting more straw in the racks than the sheep 

 can eat up clean, and using what they leave for bedding. The 

 sheep run in yards enclosed with tight board fences, and have 

 sheds under the barn to lie in at pleasure. 



Although the soil is rather heavy for Indian corn, Mr. Johnston 

 succeeds iu growing largo crops of this great American cereal. 

 Com and stalks are both fed out on the farm. Mr. J. has not yet 

 practised cutting up his straw ard stalks into chaff. 



The land is admirably adapted to the growth of red clover, and 

 great crops of clover and timothy-hay are raised, and fed out on 

 the farm. Gypsum, or plaster, is sown quite freely on the clover 

 la the sjiring. Comparatively few roots are raised — not to exceed 

 an acre — and these only quite recently. The main crops are winter 

 wheat, spring barley, Indian corn, clover, and timothy-hay, and 

 clover-seed, 



Tlie materials for making manure, then, are wheat and barley 

 straw, Indian corn, corn-stalks, clover, and timothy-hay. These 

 are all raised on the farm. But Mr. Johnston has for many years 

 purchased linsecd-ci] cake, to feed to his sheep and cattle. 



Tliis last fact must not be overlooked. Mr. J. commenced to 

 feed oil-cake when its value was little known here, and when he 

 bought it for, I think, seven or eight dollars a ton. He continued 

 to use it even when he had to pay fifty dollars per ton Mr. J. 

 has great faith in manure — and it U a faith resting on good evidence 

 and long experience. If he had not fed out so much oil-cake and 

 clover-hay, he would not have found his manure so valuable. 



" How much oil-cake does he use ? " asked the Deacon. 



" He gives his sheep, on the average, about 1 lb. each per day." 



