No. Id. 



AND GARDEiNEK'S JOURNAL. 



185 



alreuJy publisUei'., but ehall Ii..: .- iX-.iuci a BeiUcino 

 or two from each, by way ol' eirengtliening our poei. 

 tion : 



Wm. 31. Peyton, Esq., after enumerating scvcrnl 

 BS9igned cnuses, snys : 



" But if on lbs L-ontrory, it resulta from Plethora, 

 induced by excessive vegeiQiion, llien 1 nm learful it 

 13 an evil beyond remedy." 



" That the List is the true cimrncter o( the disease 

 I Qni convinced, tliougU 1 express llie opinion wiin 

 some diffidence, ns 1 kt.ow it is opposed to ilie viewa 

 of ninny agricultural writers of distinguished repu- 

 to'.ion. »»•••♦ • 



"1 have heretofore supposed that the exudntiou 

 proceeded from tUo bursting of the minute surfncc 

 vessels, whose rupture not being visible to the linked 

 eye, had discredited the theory which taught the exis- 

 tence of what could nol be seen. But in a conversa- 

 tion a few dayssiiwo with a sensible and observing 

 farmer of a neig':b»iring county, ho told mc that the 

 ruptures were distinctly visible, when the rust was re- 

 moved with care. On the same day he illustrated the 

 correctness of his statement by producing several 

 stalks of rusted wheat, upon which longi:udinal nip- 

 turcE were very distinct under every blotch of rust ex 

 amined. 



C G. Green, E^q., the President of the New Jer. 

 soy Agricultural S.^cicly, in his loie repoit, gives the 

 following cases, tending ta the same point us the one 

 given above : 



" One rf our far.mers had an extraordinary piece of 

 wheat, which he thought out o( danger, it was bo 

 nearly ripe. On a very hot day, between the hours oi 

 one and three o'clock, there came a small cloud over, 

 wio'ch eompletcly drenched the field of wheat. A 

 deathlike stillness encceedod ; the cloud passed away ; 

 (be eun shone extensively hot. The owner in tnis 

 state of the case, went to exsmine the wheat, as it 

 was much pressed doimby the shower; he imme- 

 diately observed a continual ticking, or snapping noise 

 in every direction in the wheat. The straw was line 

 and bright, but upon examination he perceived it 

 bursting in short shta of a fourth of an inch long, and 

 the sap exuding in thousands of places. A say or 

 two after, the whole Held was darkened with rust and 

 the wheat of little value. It does nol oppeai that 

 these circumstances take place while the wheat is 

 growing, but only at the ciitical stale of ripening. 



On my neighbor White's farm some years since, 

 was one of the heaviest pieces of wheal straw I ever 

 Eaw, remarknbij- line, and nearly ripe. I bad also a 

 good piece advancing fast to maturity ; on a close 

 warm morning, a small eland of fug arose from the 

 meadow and gradually covered the two fields, bet was 

 nol a general fog ; being very still, it remained hov- 

 ering over the fields until the hot sun di.ssipaled the 

 vipor. Being a'_-4uainied with the above icase, 1 was 

 alarmed for the wheat and watched ovsr it wiili deep 

 interest. When the sun had somewhat dried the 

 straw, and warmed it, the straw began to burst with 

 a continual ticking noise, the sap exuding at all these 

 little split". In a day or two the fields were black 

 with rust expepi some small spots, which are v.'orthy 

 of notice. .\n acre or two of mine was so nearly ripe 

 that the wheat was tolerably good, and the rust on 

 the spot of a reddish broA-n. In iVlr. White's field 

 there were sniic trees wh.cli kept the intense heat of 

 the sun from the straw ; tticre was tolerable wheat, 

 also. The rest of the fields would scarcely pay for 

 gathering and thrashing. 



iV question of importance arose in tliose two cases. 

 AVasthis injurya fungus, the very fine scedsof which 

 float about and attach themselves to the straw, as some 

 of our learned agricultural writers tell ue, or is it the 

 sap of the straw that ran out and was dried on the 

 straw, and was .'■cildishor black according to its state 

 ot ripeness or fulness of sap \ 



Your comniiit-e are decidedly of the opinion that 

 the sap being Inst at this critical time of ripening is 

 the true cause of the shrinking of the grain." 



It must, we think, strike the reader very obviously, 

 that the rust is not occasioned by parasitical plants, or 

 iungtis ; that if the discolored matter on the e-tternal 

 surface of the wheat plants be, or present the appear- 

 ance of, parasitical plants, that it is produced by the 

 rapture of the overcharged vessels of ihe plants, and 

 is in fact osydiz'jd sap which had thus escaped and 

 formed a species of paste or jelly on the outside. Wc 

 d.> ml pretend to deny that in the interval between 

 the exudation and the drying of the sap, that living 

 fungus bodies had not t.ikr-n up iheir abode therein, 

 for such is one of the consequences of pntrefaction — 

 it is suiB lent for us, to endeavor to show that the 

 bursting of the vessels of the wheat plant, is the 

 cause ot the rust. 



it may now be cekcd, are there any preventive 



means to be used ? Wc answer that wo ,L.iiik then 

 arc^aiid amon:^ tliciii these : 



1. Deep Pluvgliivg. By this, the roots vill be 

 peniiiited to extend themselves so deep as to be with, 

 out the immediate range of sudden atmospheric action 

 — all fermentable niauuie, apidicd to previous crops, 

 will also be deposited too deep to do harm lioin 

 similar causes. 



2. Application of saline manures, ns lime, marl, 

 plaster, salt, &<:., and the avoidance olall u.~o of any 

 strong manures, which are liable to active fcrnicnta. 

 tion. 



3. Any soil whereon wheal is grown-^if not nat- 

 urally dry, to be made ho by draining 



4. Increased quantity of seed to be sown. 



5. Earlier sowini;, so as to enable the wheat to 

 ripen at lead two weeks earlier than at present, and 

 thus avoid the evil cll'ects of the unfavorable weather 

 which prevails at the particular period on which its 

 ripening is now tliriiwn. 



0. Sowing an earlier vnriely of wheat, with the 

 objects above stated in view. 



7. Rolling the ground immediately after plough- 

 ing in the seed in the fall, and again in the spring. 



Thus far of preventive means, now a word or two 

 about remedial ones, sh 'Uld the &bove fail to keep off 

 the rust. 



If after using the precautionary means recommend. 

 ed above, your wheat should become rusted, cut it as 

 soon as the grains may be ihoroutihly formed ; never 

 niiud if they should be still in the milk, they will get 

 nourishment enough from the stalk to ripen them. By 

 cutting before the straw is literally destroyed, yon not 

 only save the straw, but v/iU get more grain, and bet- 

 ter flour than if you wait for it to mature standing in 

 the field tn rusted stalks. 



SOILS, 



We eilract the foUowing simple account of soils 

 from a recent Farmers' Journal, Eng. 



Mr. W. M. Ciiatterlcy delivered hie eleventh lec- 

 ture at Hiivenng Uower, near Kuinford, on Monday, 

 October 3d, on Soii-s. 



Soils may readily be supposed to partake of the geo- 

 logical character of the formation on which they rest, 

 and such in truth is the case. The time to which the 

 present lectures were limited would not permit the 

 subject of geology, even the geology of Britain, to be 

 discussed ; it would, therefore, be euflicietil lor the 

 purpose 10 state that the three moat generally diffused 

 minerals, viz., clay, li)»csto7'.c umisanJ, were all ne- 

 cessary constuueutsof a fertile soil, but that the pro- 

 portions in which they occurred in differcnl soils va- 

 ried, and that too in accordance with the geological 

 character of the subsoil. As cither clmj, lime or sund 

 was the piednminant ingredient, soils wtru classifit-d 

 accordingly into olumnious, calcareous or siliceous 

 soils. Either of these earths alone form a barren soil: 

 and, as ench may be in greater proportion, it imparts 

 to the soil its peculiar character ; s-iffncss, attraction 

 and letentiou of moisture, hardening into a brick-like 

 conoistcnce, and cracking during dry weather, the 

 characteristics of soils on the clay; great friability, 

 speedy fiitratien of water, and general dryness, are 

 the opposite characteii^tics of sandy soils, plain y in- 

 dicating their mutual admixture as a meansof lenie- 

 dyiiig some of the defects of cither ; the rubbly or 

 m,irly character of calcareous soils, allows of speedy 

 tittration, and causes too great dryiie.=s, indicating the 

 benefits to he derived linm the addition cf either clay 

 or sauii. An excess of sand is much less injurious 

 than an excess uf clay ; indeed, all the most fertile 

 soils ontain a larger proportion of sand than any oth- 

 er mineral ingredient. Tiie different natural mix- 

 tures of these earths iiave given rise to the diflerent 

 terms by which peculiar soils are distinguished, as 

 loams where clay and sand form the chief eoustitu 

 e!its,or?narZs, where clay and limestones mcst abound. 

 The purest clay toils, hosveycr, do not contain less 

 than 60 percent, of silica, while many siliceous soils 

 contain from 90 to 95 per cent of sand. 



Vegetable matter in soils is also necessary to their 

 fertility ; and the varying quantity of this niaierial, 

 from ncont 10, os in garden mould, to 70 per cent., as 

 in peats, gives to these soils the churacierislic whence 

 tbey derive their names 



But, as has been said before, neither the purer forms 

 of clay, sand, or limestone alone form fertile soils, but 

 the contrary ; so it is to a yiro^Dc;' admixture ol these 

 that we must look for iha tittest condition of a soil. 

 It generally happens most happily that sand, clay, or 

 lime are found within reach of one another, and read)' 

 to be used miituolly for the amelioration of the soils, 

 in which they hurtfnliy piedominate ; and it should 

 be reinernbered that such amerdtnert is permniifnt. 



The rthcr c";i5';'ii, .u;- f feitilo s-i::,- nr- vmi.-iis ; 

 hut, in order Unit tbey shonhl retain ilieif feriil.iy, 

 they must constantly contain the alkalies, putssb oiid 

 soda, and lbs alkaline earth mngnceiii, with the siiU 

 pluiric, muriatic, and phosphoric ncidg, tlir peroxides 

 of iron and nianganiise — these suliGiaiiccs serving as 

 tho food of plants, while tl'c sand, clay, and liniemonc 

 Ibrm the body of the soil, amongst the pnrticlts of 

 which the loots penetrate, and support the plants by 

 their inechauie-al action. 



The chemical properties, however, of the ibrco 

 chief constituents ol soils should be attentively con- 

 sidered also, as tending to elucidate many anomalonn 

 instances of unproductiveness in particular soils. The 

 atiiaction of clay for water renders it highly useful in 

 siliceous soiU, which hayo no such property ; its ad- 

 hesiveness tends to hind together the loose foiling par- 

 ticles ol the sand ; while these very propeniee, when 

 inoxci-'s?, tend to render tho Boil unlruiilul, and are 

 then to be remedied by nii,xturo with Baud or lime, lo 

 increooo the friubjliiy end filtration, and thus, in cith- 

 er cat", to permit the passage of air and ivater amongst 

 the particles «f the soil in such a nianuer as to pre- 

 serve a flue but ii..i(X'-essi\edegrec ol'nioistuie in the 

 soil, BO that it is neither retained loo long, nor re- 

 moyed mo sjon. These three, ihc chief constituents 

 of the soil, though they may either of them be requi- 

 site in slight degree as the food of plants, are not 

 to be considered in this lit^hl merely, hut rather as 

 having for their chief uso the mechanical duty of af- 

 fording support lor the roots of crops. 



The stale cf chemical combination, in which the 

 vaiioua ingredients of Ihe soil are found, also innlrri- 

 aliy influences its fertility, though such combination 

 should differ somewhat for purtieiihir crops ; for in- 

 stance, wneat requires that a portion of sdica should 

 be in union with potash, and lor clover, that sulphur 

 should exist in the soil in the condition i.f a s.iii b'e 

 sulphate; should the soil, however, contnin sulphate 

 of the protoxide of iron, as is the caseso.'uetiines in 

 the London clay i,iul in peat soils, it is aliogcthrr in- 

 jurious, and should immediately be cuiivcrted iiuo 

 peroxide hy ex|iosuru to the atmosphere, by frequent 

 and deep ploughing, harrowing, and disintegrating. 



iVluch practical matter, os to the mechanical action 

 of the various farming operaiMus, and on the chenii. 

 cal constituents of soils, wjs added, but it is to the 

 chemist that the farmer must apply for a knowledge 

 of the minor, but still, ilefiriences of his soil, and for 

 the easiest and cheopesl mode of remedying them. 

 There was no reason why a I'aimer should hot be ac- 

 quainted with chemistry ; but if not so himself, there 

 were many of the latter class who now were turning 

 their attention to agriculture as connected with the 

 science, and with whom there would be no difficulty 

 for the farmer to put himfelf in communication. 



The proportions ol the chief constitiieuis of toil, 

 best suited for oil crops, were ihen shown to be from 

 50 to 70 per cent, ol silica, from 20 to 40 of alumina, 

 and from 10 toliOor calcareous matter. 



The mode of arriving at a proximsie determination 

 of the relative qualities of each of them was ihfii 

 shown. The q-.ianiiiy ol 7nuist7/re was found by diy- 

 ing a given v.cight in an oven, and find ng the loi.a 

 of weight ; the quantity of resctahlc matttr. ty beat- 

 ing a given weight ol the dried toil to redness, and es- 

 .tiniating the lose ; the quaniity d! soluble salts, by 

 washing a given weight with water, filtering and 

 evaporating the filiered liquor to dryness; the quan- 

 tity of carbonic acid, by throwing a given weight of 

 dry soil into a given weight of diluted hydrochloric 

 acid, and estimating the less of weight after cfTcrveSr 

 cencc bad ceased ; the quantity of livic, by filter. ng 

 the solution in hydrochloric acidlhus made, and pie- 

 cipitating by oxalate of ammonia ; the quantities of 

 elau and sand, by rtpeatcfliy was-hing n given weight 

 of the soil with water, and pouring oil' after alhiwing 

 it to settle for a minute or two until the two were en- 

 tirely separated, then drying and weighing tach. 



Tobacco. — So sensible is every brute creature of 

 the poisonous and deleterious quality of this plant, 

 that not one of all the various tribes of beasts, birds, 

 or reptiles, has ever been known to taste of it. I' 

 has been reserved to man alone to make of this 

 poisonous plant an nrtie'e of daily titcesnily lor ihc 

 gratification of his depraved appetite. — The Mirror, 



Sound mid Light — Sir John Hershell says that 

 thunder can scarcely be heard more than 20 or 'M 

 miles from the flash, but that lightning may be seen 

 at a distance of 200 mileg. 



