)I^. XVII. NO. :w. 



AND HORTICULTURAL REGISTER 



259 



la order to make rational experiments in farm- 

 |ig, it is essential that the composition of the soil 

 Idould be known, and then we can act understand 



Geology teaches us that such causes were for- 

 merly in more powerful operation, and that the 

 ancient world was, from its infancy, subject to vio 



;igly in our operations. In order to amend a soil, lent catastrophes accompanied by powerful inroads 

 aat'knowledse is absolutely necessary, otherwise ! of the sea ; oceanic currents and tumultuous waves 

 ^ • . . . j^^ j.^^ many successive periods rushed over the 



be estimated by tlie loss of weight which indicates 

 the proportion of carbonic acid, that has been ex- 

 pelled, and since tlie carbonic acid always occurs 

 in the ratio of nearly 44 per cent, to 50 per cent, 

 of lime, it is easy, by a proportional calculation, 

 to ascertain the quantity of that mineral in the- 



re mii-ht destroy its fertility, by the processes in , „ . . /. . . • v i i 



sndedforits ameUoration, and thus be subjected j land, and ^-^e" the lofti^^^^^ happens, that there is so ™i- 



disappointment and chagnn. mountams. We ^'''''^1/^*^" ";;'';" ["^^^^^^ „„te a quanti v of carbonate of lime in the soil, as 



oils 



or the amendment of those nhich are sterile, 



Agriculture is of so great importance to the 

 omnuinity, that we should not allow our knowledge 

 if it to rest upon mere empiricism. It ought to 

 le exalted to the rank of true science, and then it 

 vill become one of the most lionorable, as it is one 

 if the most useful of arts, and even the most highly 

 iducated men will then be proud to rank as scien- 

 ific farmers. 



Let us now examine the subject more in detail, 

 md ascertain how much light we may obtain from 

 he science of geology, that may servo to guide us 

 n our researches. 



We have first to consider the geological origin 

 )f soils. 



Every attentive person must have observed, that 

 lolid rocks, exposed to the combined action of air, 

 ivater, and different degrees of temperature, under- 

 go decomposition and disintegration, so that they 

 ;rumble into powder, and that some rocks decay 

 more rapidly than others, owing to their structure, 

 Dr minerological composition. If a rock is porous, 

 3r stratified in its structure, water infiltrates into it, 

 md on freezing, expands with such power, as to 

 ■.ear the surface of the rock to pieces, so that it 

 readily crumbles. When fire runs through the 

 forest, it heats tlie s-.irface of the rocks, and by 

 the irregular expansion produced, they are shiver- 

 ed into fragments. 



The action of running water and friction of 

 stones, also serve to grind the rocks into powder, 

 by attrition of tiicir surfeces, and the detritus is 

 borne along by the streams, and deposited in low 

 lands, or along their borders. 



When a rock contains iron pyrites, or sulphuret 

 of iron, that mineral, by the action of air and water, 

 decomposes, and forms copperas, or sulphate ot 

 iron, and the sulphuric acid of that substance acts 

 powerfully on some of the ingredients of the rock, 

 and causes its rapid decomposition. Any person, 

 who lias been on Iron Mine Hill, in Gardiner, will 

 fully understand how rapid is this operation, and 

 may there see its results. The oxidizing power of 

 the atmosphere, also, acts powerfully upon the sur- 

 face of those rocks, which have for one of their 

 components, the prot-oxides of the metals, iron and 

 manganese, and as those oxides take up another 

 portion of oxigen, thoy increase in bulk, become 

 brown or black, and the stone falls into frag- 

 ments. 



These are a few of the causes now in action, 

 which modify tlie solid crust of the globe, and it 

 appears that their effects are far more important, 

 than we might at first imagine. Whoever looks 

 upon the muddy waters of the Mississippi, Ganges, 

 Po, the Rhine, and the Rhone, or reads the calcu- 

 lations respecting the enormous quantity of matter 

 brought down from the mountains by those rivers, 

 will at once appreciate the modifying influence of 

 those causes which are continually wearing down 

 the solid matter that forms the mass of our moun- 

 tains. 



of aqueous action and mechanical abrasion. By 

 those ancient convulsions, the detritus of the solid 

 rocks was prepared, and forming the various soils, 

 which we observe, the earth was rendered capable 

 of yielding its rich stores of vegetation, on which 

 a large proportion of the animated creatures depend 

 for their food. From the foundation of the ever- 

 lasting liills, the Creator began to prepare the 



analyses will be presently laid before you. 



Talcose slate-rocks, when decomposed, form a 

 liglit brown soil, in which particles of the rock are 

 discoverable, and on analysis, a considerable quan- 

 tity of the silicate of magnesia is found, which is 

 one of the chief components of talc. 



Red sandstone, on disintegration, forms soil com- 

 posed almost entirely of grains of quartz, with 



world for the habitation of his noblest creature, I oxide of i.ron, and clay, with a few spangles of 

 man, and converted a portion of the solid rocks undecomposed mica. 



into soils, which were given as the field of human 

 labor, and to the progenitor of our race it was 

 commanded that he should till the soil. 



If we take up a handful of earth, and examine 

 it attentively, we shall readily discover such min- 

 eral ingredients, as denote the rocks from which it 

 orio-inated. Thus we discover in a soil numerous 

 spangles of mica, grains of quartz, and white or 

 brown earthy looking particles, which are felspar ; 

 besides which, we remark a considerable portion of 

 fine brown powder, which being examined with a 

 microscope is found to be composed of the same 

 minerals, more finely pulverised, and mLxed with 

 the brown oxide of iron. It will be at once under- 

 stood, that such a soil arises from the disintegra- 

 tion and decomposition of granite rocks, and that 

 the oxide of iron was derived from the pyrites, or 

 the prot-oxide of iron, contained in that rock. 



A soil arising from the decomposition of gneiss, 

 pos-esses simihr characters, only the mica is more 

 abundant. 



Soils from mica slate are made up of a large 

 proportion of mica, mixed with grains of quartz. 



Grau-wacke, or conglomerate, when disintegrated, 

 produces a light grey soil, full of smooth roun^d 

 pebbles, which originate from undecomposea com- 

 ponents of the rock. 



Red porphyry is very slow of decompostion, and 

 forms a bright and red fine powder, filled with an- 

 gular fragments of the rock. 



I have thus distingiiished and described the ap- 

 pearances ■which characterise those soils that arise 



immediately from the decay of solid rocks, and ^ 

 various characteristic specimens of each varietj^B 



ay be seen in the cabinet arranged for the use 

 the State. 



(To lie continued.) 



Ashes.— Of all things to i^ke grass grow, ash- 

 es beats ; this you may depend upon, fof'I have 

 tried it often, anil it has never failed yet. Just col- 

 lect as much of it together as you can, — the more 

 the better — and spread it over your grass grounds, 

 and see if I am not correct in my assertion, it is 

 said by some people, tliat it is the potash whicli is 

 duces the effect, and I strongly sws- 



Sienitp and hornblende rock, produce a dark , in it that prod 

 brown oli in wic there is bu little quartz, and poct they are right in thi. matter ; for two years 

 a .Tea del o 1>1 par, and decomposed horn- ago, suspecting that to be the case, I procured some 

 a giejt deal oi ujspar, d i 1 potash from an apothecary, which cost five ce nts a 



G^nstone trap-rocks form by their decomposi- | pound, and dissolved it with water, and put i'. over 

 tion a 1";"! whch contain! pieces of the un- the ground with a watering pot, just for aa exper-, 

 decompos d°;:i l^ut the component minerals in ! m.ent ; and you would have b.en surpnseM to see 

 thesoUitself are rarely so distinct as to be dis- how luxuriantly the grass gr'.w whei-e it was pot.. 

 coverable Thi soil iL warm kind of loam, soft Now, I should like some of the i«telUge»- 1 farmers 

 and oon^y, easily compressed into smaller danen- who take your paper to try an experr .nent with 

 sions'by ie pressure ot'lhe hand, but not adhesive ; potash this spring, and infoni. your rer.ders of the- 

 like clay. It is peculiarly adapted to the growth result through the Cabraet Some say it is ex- 

 of po Ut'oes, and is a luxuriant soil for most of our [ cellent for Indian corn. T^ai^^ight also be tried . 



,!^ ' I Mv obiect is to make plen'a- of grass grow ; for I 



ordinary produce. L. % c j lU . -, r i 



Slate-rocks form a soil of a blue color, in which find, if we can do ihat, ^ .e c^ accomplish every- 



numerous undecomposed fragments of the rock 

 may be discovered. When transported by water, 

 it is deposited in the state of tough blue clay. 



Limestone forms various colored soils, according 

 to the nature of the impurities it contains. They 

 are generally of a light yellowish brown color, 

 from admixture of a certain proportion of oxide of 

 This IS especially the case with those 



soils 

 stone. 



Calcareous soils, if they are rich in carbonate of 

 lime, may be distinguished by their effervescence 

 with acids, and the quantity of this substance may 



thing we desire in agriculture, because with that 

 we can feed stock, a nd by that means make ma- 

 nure. What cann'it be done by industriaus and. 

 intelligent farmers ? I say industrious and intel- 

 ligent, because without these two qualities, a man 

 had better quit farming at once, and try to find out 

 some business soon, that can be carried on to 

 profit without these indispensable qualifications 



derived from the argiUo-ferruginous lime- to a farmer ; and « hen the discovery is made, I 



'hope it will be communicated through your paper; 



pe 



for I should like to embark in such business, as 

 I am well adapted to it by nature. — Farfnfr'* C(i6, 



{net. 



