VOL,. XVIII. NO. 53. 



AND HORTICULTURAL REGISTER 



in 



convertible first into gum and then into sugar by 

 the action of azotizcd vegetable principles, especial- 

 ly gluten. Pure sugar never ferments. 'I'he vi- 

 nous fermentation must be excited by some sub- 

 stance containing nitriioen. There are three things 

 essential to vinous fermentation — air or oxygen 

 gas, moisture in due proportion, and a temperature 

 never below ^0° F., nor above 80° F. Tlie pro- 

 ducts of this process are gases, ferment, or ye;\st, 

 and vinous liquor. The gases are carbonic acid 

 and hydrogen : the yeast proceeds from a change in 

 the organization of the glutan and albumen : some 

 late French experimenters think it proceeds from a 

 continued evolution of infusorial plants; hence 

 yeast begets yeast, like sowing crops of seed. How- 

 ever, let us leave speculation. The main facts are 

 as above stated. If, then, we plough in green 

 plants, we put them in a temperature favorable to 

 the commencement of vinous fermentation ; we 

 bury them full of sap — the requisite moisture for 

 vinous fermentation, — we cover them whilst their 

 saccharine principle is in its perfection. Every 

 thing favors vinous fermentation. The sugar and 

 starch of the plant fermented by its gluten and al- 

 bumen, are converted into gasei and alcohol; the 

 former are lost in air, the last washes away or is 

 changed to vinegar. All that remains for the far- 

 mer is the altered gluten and albumen, which soon 

 putrefy and form geine. .All the starch and sugar I 

 of the plant are thus lost. 



2d. What vegetable substances arc susceptible 

 of the acid fermentation, and whatareils products? 



The substances are, first, sugar, which in certain 

 cases becomes acid, without undergoing vinous fer- 

 mentation; second, gum. The circumstances es- 

 sential to acid fermentation are air, moisture, and a 

 temperature from (35° to 70° F. ; acetic acid is it- 

 self the proper ferment of acid fermentation. Vin- 

 egar, as is well known, singularly promotes the for- 

 mation of vinegar in vinous liquors. The products 

 are, carbonic acid, acetic acid or vinegar, and some 

 other acids, especially that called nanceic or zumic 

 acid, which if not lactic, is perhaps only acetic acid, 

 holding in combination some azotized substance. 

 This acid combines with the alkaline and earthy 

 ingredients of plants and soils, and forms very sol- 

 uble salts. Green plants, ploughed in, are at once 

 placed in a situation most favorable for undergoing 

 acid fermentation. We suffer a loss of a part of 

 the carbon, and in addition to the sugar and starch 

 wo now lose the gum of the plants. All these are 

 capable of producing geine, and hence in plough- 

 ing in green crops, we lose a portion of manure. 



3d. What are the vegetable substances suscep- 

 tible of putrefaction, and what are its products? 



With the exception of oils, resins, &c., every or- 

 ganized part of every vegetable may putrefy. The 

 circumstances essential to this process, are air, a 

 temperature not below 4.5°, and moisture. No per- 

 fectly dry plant every putrefies, nor will a moist 

 one, if air is excluded. I have had a capital ex- 

 ample of the last, in a piece of a white birch tree, 

 dug up from a depth of twentyfive feet below the 

 surface in Lowell, this winter. It must have been 

 inhumed there probably before the creation of man, 

 at least at a time " whereof the memory of man 

 runneth not to the contrary," yet this most perisha- 

 ble of all wood is nearly as sound as if cut from the 

 forest last fall. A dried plant has parted with 

 most pf its sap, that mois'ure essential to the c m- 

 njencement of vinous and acetous fermentation. 

 During the very act of decay, from the moment 

 wlieQ its living Junctions have ceased, new combi- 



nations of its elements begin. It has already be- various changes, a variety of substances must, of 

 gun to be destroyed by the very agents which gave course, be formed. As the elements of living, so 

 it life. This is the beginning of piitr( faction. Let tlio elements of dead plants, ore continually chang- 

 us not be deceived by a name. Putrefaction we ing into new forms. 



always associate with disgusting clHuvia. But in ' Nature is admirably simple, and never so learn- 

 the wide sense we have defined it, it includes also ed as our books. We ought not to dignilV with a 

 (he fragrance of new hay. Whenever bmlies con- 1 new name, every new product of pulrefaction, which 

 sist only of oxygen, hydrogen, carbon, and a trace | we may fortunately arrest, lluwcvor various these 

 of azote, their putrefiction is fragrant or inodorous ; j products may be, whether products oreducta of put- 

 when, in addition to these, bodies contain largo por- • refaction, or of our analytical moihods of separa- 

 tions of azotised matter, gluten, albumen, or sul- | ting them, all putrefaction at the surface of the 

 phur, and phosphorus, putrefiction evolves abomi- earth, ends by forming a brownish, black, powdery 

 nable odors. To the agriculturist, putrefaction is j mass, which combines with the alkaline, earthy 

 always a wholesome process, beneficial to his best and metalic basis in the pl.int. This substance 

 interests when pro. noted and controlled. There is ' has been called "Geimk" As I have elsewhere 

 only one case where this process produces loss : — I defined it, it is decomposed organic matter of soil, 

 this may be termed (/e«()-i(c/nie putrefaction: it is 'it is the product of putrefaction — continually sub- 

 produced by heaping together green plants, or | jecled to air and moisture, it is finally wholly dissi- 

 somotimes by moistening dry vegetable substances, j pated in air, leaving only the inorganic bases of 



Here oxygen is rapidly absorbed, and finally the 

 mass takes fire and burns. Up to the moment of 

 inflammation this is putrefaction. New hay, stack- 

 ed too green, is a familiar example. Volumes of 

 steam are evolved, which proceed partly from the 

 decomposition of the plant; decompositions and re- 

 compositions rapidly ensue; these are the ferment, 

 which keeps up the action till the plants burn. — 

 Doubtless all green plants ploughed in, undergo to 

 a greater or less extent destructive putrefaction, 

 which succeeds tl.e vinous and acid fermt^ntations, 

 perhaps caused by the very rapidity of these pro- 

 cesses. Hence, in addition to the sugar, starch, 

 and gum of the plant, we lose a large portion of 

 its other sutvstances, by turning it in green. The 

 products of this rapid fermentation have been but 

 little studied. Happy the farmer who never wit- 

 nesses the process. He should never induce it, 

 and may generally prevent its extension when once 

 begun. It is a dead loss to him ; but in all other 

 cases of putrefaction the products are valuable: — 

 these vary according as the process takes place : 

 1st, in air ; '2d, at the surface of the ground ; or, 

 .3d, deep in the interior of the earth. The last 

 need not detain us — it produces all the varieties of 

 coal. 



1st. In the free air, having access to all parts of 

 a plant, putrefaction produces carb(mic acid, nitric 

 acid, and water. Hut ordinarily, in the air, as oxy- 

 gen does not find ready access to all parts, a por- 

 tion of the hydrogen of the plant combines then 

 with the carbon, sulphur, phosphorus and azote of 

 the plant, and we have carburetted, sulphuretted, 

 and phosphuretted hydrogen, and ammonia produc- 

 ed. Now, as these exist but in small quantity in 

 vegetables, the loss of hydrogen will not be very 

 great by drying the plants, and it is possible that 

 the removal of these may cause the otiier elements 

 to enter into more stable combinations, better fitted 

 to produce geine. 



In all cases of putrefaction in the open air, oxy- 

 gen is absorbed, and an equal bulk of carbonic acid 

 given out, while, at the .-ame time, the oxygen and 

 hydrogen of the plant escape as water. The result 

 is, th^(t in the substance left, carbon exists in a 

 greater portion, than in an equal weight of fresli 

 vegetables. In all cases of putrefaction, new pro- 

 ducts are formed; these again resolve into others ; 

 and this action goes on till we have no longer any 

 organic products ; we have only binary or inorgan- 

 ic substances left. .Ml our researches into the 

 philosophy of the changes in fermentation, termi- 

 nate in these binary products, that is, in compounds 

 consiting of only two elements. During all these 



the plant, with which it once combined. 



No^v, whether we consider this as a simple sub- 

 stance, or composed of several others, called cre- 

 nic, apocrenic, puteanic, uliuic acids, glairin, apo- 

 theme, extract, humus, or mould, agriculture ever 

 has, and probably ever will consider it one and the 

 same thing requiring always similar treatment to 

 produce it ; similar treatment to render it soluble 

 when produced ; similar treatment to render it an 

 efffctiial manure. It is the end of all compost 

 heaps to produce soluble geine, no matter how 

 compound our chemistry may teach this substance 

 to be. 



Among the many economical modes of produc- 

 ing geine, the ploughing in of vegetable matter, 

 has held a high rank. Nature teaches us to turn 

 in the dried plant. Dried leaves are her favorite 

 morsels, and the very fact, that Nature always 

 takes! the dried plant, from which to prepare the 

 food of growing vegetables, should have taught us 

 long ago, the wisdom of ploughing in dry crops. 

 I he careful collecting and husbanding of dried 

 leaves, their superior efficacy in forming compost, 

 bears witness to the facts stated in your letter. 

 That the use of dried leaves for compost, has not 

 led to the turning in of dry crops, has probably 

 arisen from the consideration, that a greater quan- 

 tity of geine may be produced, by turning in two 

 or three green crops in a season, than by one crop 

 of dry. This needs experimental confirmation. 

 The very act of tillage, on Mr Keely's plan, by 

 exposing the insoluble geine of one crop to air, 

 renders it soluble, while at the same time, two or 

 three green crops must form a greater quantity of 

 salts. If only one crop can be turned in, let it be 

 dry. All our philosophy, and the late experiments 

 of your agricultural friend, confirm this view. 

 With great respect, 



I am very truly yours, 



SAM'L L. DANA. 



Rev. H. Colman, 



Agiicullural Commissioner. 



Weeds. — Some persons pretend to believe that 

 weeds are an advantage as a shade to young crops 

 in dry weather ; but this is a great error and only 

 a subterfuge for indolence. It is well known that 

 weeds rapidly absoib the moisture and nutriment 

 from the soil; and on examining beneath the sur- 

 face in dry weather it will be found that the ground 

 is much dryer where covered with weeds than 

 where kept clean. They deserve no protection 

 from the farmer, and should be destroyed while 

 young. — Genesee Far. 



