SOIL. 



And it has been remarked by the late Mr. Somerville, 

 that, in Eaft Lothian, the whole of the fandy foil is evi- 

 dently fuperinduced, or placed upon the land ; the bottom 

 upon which it is laid being uniformly of the fame quality 

 with the circumjacent grounds. The origin of this fand, 

 which is accumulated upon feveral pai'ts of the coaft, is 

 owing, it is fuppofed, to two caufcs : the firft, and that 

 •which no doubt has produced the greateft part of it, has 

 been the wafhing away of many points of land by the fea, 

 by which the coatt, formerly very much indented, is now 

 rendered pretty uniform, and brought nearer to a regular 

 figure : the fecond caufe of its formation has arifen from 

 the wafting of the foil in the interior, during heavy falls of 

 rain, by which great quantities have been brought from the 

 higher grounds, and either depofited in places where the 

 current has been lefs rapid, or carried along with the flream 

 to the fea. The lafl;, however, is a rare occurrence, unlefs 

 in fituations where the land declines very rapidly towards 

 the fhore. In that county, however, it is evident that the 

 whole of the land upon the coalt has arifen from the waiting 

 and wafhing away of different points of land, while that in 

 the interior has been produced by the wafhing of the rivers. 

 It is remarked by a writer mentioned above, that in cafes 

 where the proportions of clayey, loamy, or other earthy 

 fubftances with which they are mixed, approach nearly to 

 that of the fand, the heavier forts of fandy foils are formed ; 

 but that where thefe enter only in very fmall quantities, the 

 light fandy foils are formed ; and where they are hardly met 

 with at all, tii ' foil is a loofe blowing fand, mod commonly 

 of a white or brownifh appearance. And it is added, that 

 the portions of vegetable matters, that are intermixed with 

 different foils of the fandy kind, are not lets various than 

 thofe of the clayey and loamy, from which confiderable dif- 

 ferences of quality are produced. Thefe differences in their 

 textures and compofitions alfo introduce others, which 

 refpeft their powers of admitting and retaining heat and 

 moilture. The opennefs and want of adherence in fuch 

 foils, while they allow of the admiflion of heat and water 

 more readily, permit them to be carried off with greater eafe 

 and expedition : they are, therefore, lefs permanently bene- 

 fited by their influence than many of the clofer and more 

 adhefive foils. 



But as thefe forts of foils are chiefly deficient in the cal- 

 careous, clayey, loamy, and vegetable materials, the aim of 

 the farmer mull be the augmentation of their cohefive pro- 

 perty, and the fupplying the calcareous and decayed animal 

 and vegetable materials. They cannot, of courfe, be cul- 

 tivated with advantage, without the aid of other foffile ma- 

 nures to counteraft their poverty, and prevent the continual 

 evaporation of moillure. For this purpofe, clay and loam 

 may be beneficially fpread on fandy foils, which may like- 

 wife be improved by the ufe of compofts of animal and ve- 

 getable manure : though, where thefe cannot be obtained, 

 good mould or earth may be employed with advantage, as 

 alfo may peaty earth, either alone, or in combination with 

 other matters. It has been obferved by Dr. Fordyce, that 

 a lefs quantity of clay is required in the improvement of 

 light fandy foils, than of fand in the clayey ones ; but 

 whether this be a praftical rule or not, the thinner and 

 poorer forts of fandy foils moftly ftand in need of a large 

 quantity of clayey matter. And when the calcareous pro- 

 perty prevails, clayey marles and clayey loams are moft 

 proper ; but in cafes of its being deficient, calcareous marie 

 and loams may be ufed with more advantage. This has 

 been fufficiently proved by their apphcation in different dif- 

 trifts. A degree of tenacity or firmnefs may alfo be im- 

 parted to fandy foils, by the treading of (heep, folded upon 



them ; while they receive much benefit from the dung and 



urine depofited by thofe animals. 



And it may be noticed, that thefe different materials are 

 proper for being laid on either alone, or in the itate of com- 

 pofts ; but marles and clayey fubftances are moftly applied 

 in the ftates in which they are found in nature ; but the 

 farm-yard dung, and peaty fubftances, in mixture with 

 other matters. 



Further, it has alfo been ftated by the author of " Prac- 

 tical Agriculture," that the light, open, and porous texture 

 of fandy foils renders them much more eafily cultivated, and 

 kept in order, than thofe of the ftrong and clofe kinds ; 

 and, confequently, the farms where they prevail are gene- 

 rally large : but that, when properly prepared, they are 

 better adapted for the growth of many forts of crops, fuch 

 as thofe of the bulbous and tap-rooted forts. And they 

 have alfo another advantage, which is that of pufhing for- 

 ward the crops with more expedition. Whatever incon- 

 veniencies attend them are moftly fuch as proceed from the 

 want of a fufficient degree of cohefion among their contti- 

 tuent particles, and folidity of texture. On thefe accounts, 

 they often counteraft the beft and moft judicious manage- 

 ment. The roots of the crops are liable to become naked 

 and expofed, from itorms and various other caufes ; and if 

 grain, to fall down and be lodged fo early in the feafon as 

 to render them of little value. 



It has likewife been remarked by the writer of the Eaft 

 Lothian Agricultural Report, that there, within thefe fewr 

 years, confiderable trafts of this kind of foil, formerly of 

 little value, have been brought under the plough, and made 

 to produce excellent crops of turnips, clover, barley, rye, 

 &c. as may be feen in different parts of the Survey ; but 

 the moil valuable improvement upon this defcription of foil 

 has been made by laying it into grafs, and treating it with 

 top-drefTings of different kinds of foils, which, when libe- 

 rally apphed, have, in not a few inftancef, changed the ap- 

 pearance, and fo much altered its nature, as to render it 

 capable of bearing a fucceffion of valuable crops of grain. 



Some think lime the beft of all drefiings for fandy lands. 

 This is the cafe, in particular inftances, in the county of 

 Oxford. On the fine red fandy foils there, fome lay from 

 ten to twenty quarters on the acre ; the former quantity 

 very common in mixture with earth and fome dung. The 

 benefit thus produced is generally great, latting many 

 years. 



Befides thefe, vaft improvements have been made in a 

 variety of other cafes on thefe foils, by the ufe of the above 

 methods. Their textures, compofitions, and properties, 

 have been fo amended and improved, as to make them ca- 

 pable of producing crops of moft forts with advantage. 



6. Peaty or Mojfy Soils. — Thefe kinds of foils are more 

 common in the northern diftrifts and in Ireland, than in 

 the fouthern parts of the kingdom, though in thefe latter 

 they occur in a fmall extent. And they, like other forts 

 of foils, var\' from the nature and proportions of the ingre- 

 dients of which they are compofed. It has been obferved, 

 that where the vegetable or peaty material predominates 

 but little over the other fubftances with which it is mixed 

 and incorporated, the lighter forts of peaty or moffy foils 

 are formed ; but where the other matters bear only a 

 flight proportion to it, the deep and heavy peaty or moffy 

 foils prefent themfelves. In different diftrifts the peaty 

 matter is found of different depths, and of various degrees of 

 denfity or clofenefs of texture, probably proceeding from 

 fome original differences in the vegetable fubftances from 

 which it was formed, or the greater advances which it has 

 made to the ftate of perfect decompofition. The fub-foil 



