MME AS A MANri:K. ~~' 



which the natural soils ahsorlx-il ammonia— oqual, in No. o, to 

 about 7U0() ll>s. of ammonia per aero, cMiuivuknt to the quantily 

 conUiino.l in 700 tons of barn-yard manure— shows this to have 

 been the ease. 



The liiiuslibeniUd oiif-hilf the ammonia ronUiined tn (he foil. 

 "This resu t," says Prof. Way. "is so nearly the same in all 

 cases, that we are justitie I in b.lievin- it to be due to some special 

 cause, and probably it arises from the existence of some compound 

 silicates contiinin? ammonia, of which lime under the circum- 

 stances can r. i.lace onc-half-formimr, for instance, a double sdi- 

 a;te of alumina, with half lime and half ammonia—such com- 

 pounds arc not unusual or new to the chemist." 



This loss of ammonia from a heavy drcssin- of lime is very 

 CTeat A soil five in»hes deep, w.iirhs. in n.und numlxrs, 500 tons, 

 or 1 000 000 lbs. The soil. No. I, <ontaiiu- 1 .0293 per cent of am- 

 monia, or in an acre, five inches deep, -.):} lbs. After limin..', it 

 contained .OIGK per cent, or in an acre, five inches deep, lOJ lbs 

 The loss bv liming is 124 lbs. of ammonia per acre. This is equal 

 to the quantity contained in 1200 lbs. of good Peruvian guano, or 

 12i tons of barn var 1 manure. , 



In commenting on this great lo^s of ammonia from limin-. 

 Prof. Wav observes : 



" Is it not possible, that for the profiUible agricultural use, the 

 ammonia of the soil is t<iO ti-htly locked up in it? Can we sup- 

 pose that the verv powers of the soil U> unite with and preserve 

 the Clements of manure are, however excellent a provision of 

 nature, yet in some de-ree opposed to the growth of tlic abnormal 

 crops which it is the business of the farmer to cultivate ? There 

 is no absolute reason why such should not be the c ise. A provision 

 of nature must relate to natural circumstances; f.)r instance, con? 

 pounds of ammonia mivhe found in the soil, capable of giving out 

 to the a-encies of water and air quite enou-h of ammonia for the 

 growth of ordinarv plant-s and the preservation of their species ; 

 but this supply mav be totally ina.l.quatc to the necessities of man. 

 • ♦ * Now it is not impossible that the laws which preserve the 

 supply of ve-etable nutrition in the soil, are too stringent for the 

 requirements of an unusual and excessive vegetation, such as the 

 cultivator must promote. 



" In the case of ammonia locked up in the soil, lime may be the 

 remedy at the command of t'.ie farraer-his means of rendering 

 immediately available stores of wealth, waich can otherwise only 

 slowly be brou<_'lit into use. 



" In this view, lime would well deserve the somewhat vague 



