CHAPTER XVII. 
FARM-MADE MANURES: SAVING FERTILITY FOR THE 
SOIL 
There is an old saying that runs, 
“No grass, no cattle, 
No cattle, no manure, 
No manure, no grass,” 
which contains so much good sense in a few words 
that it should become a memory gem in every rural 
school in the land. And it is especially applicable 
to cotton growing, for cotton lands need manure 
even to a greater extent than grass does. Next to 
tillage and good seed, farm-made manures are the 
crying needs of the Cotton Belt. ‘These manures 
will do these things for the soil: 
(1) Add plant food 
(2) Unlock stored-up quantities of plant food 
(3) Increase the humus content 
(4) Improve the mechanical condition of the 
land. 
The importance of these factors in promoting the 
crop-producing efficiency of soils has been shown 
in previous chapters, and will be considered here 
only as they pertain to the production and use of 
farm-made manures, for we are concerned now 
with the use of additional plant food in potential 
and active forms. 
(134) 
