I860.] 



THE SOUTHEKN PLANTER. 



407 



uncultivated, and not grazed; and the best 

 of all will be furnished in the whole pro- 

 duct of a broad-cast sown and entire crop 

 of your own most fertilizing and valuable 

 field peas. 



Thus, of each manuring crop, (as of all 

 others,) or of the fertilizing matter thus 

 given to the land, the cultivator has con- 

 tributed but five parts from the land, or 

 its previous manuring, and the atmosphere 

 has supplied fifteen parts. If, then, the 

 cultivator by still more increasing his own 

 contributions, will give ten parts of ali- 

 mentary matter to the land and crop, there 

 will be added thereto from the atmosphere 

 in the same two-fold proportion, or thirty 

 parts, and the whole new productive power 

 will be equal to forty. And if the soil is 

 fitted by its natural constitution, or the ar- 

 tificial change induced by calcareous appli- 

 cations, to fix and retain this double sup- 

 ply of organic matter, the land will not 

 only be made, but will remain, as of much 

 increased fertility, under the subsequent 

 like course of receiving one year's product 

 for manure, for every two other crops re- 

 moved. But, on the other hand, if more 

 exhausting culture had been allowed, in- 

 stead of either increased or maintained 

 production — or if the crops take away more 

 organic matter than nature's three-fold con- 

 tributions will replace — then a downward 

 progress must begin, and will proceed, 

 whether slowly or quickly, to extreme pov- 

 erty of the land, its profitless cultivation, 

 and final abandonment. In this, the more 

 usual case, the cultivator's contributions of 

 aliment, (obtained from the soil,) are re- 

 duced from the former value, designated as 

 five, first to four, and next successively to 

 three, two, and finally less than one; and 

 nature keeps equal pace in reducing her 

 proportional supplies, from fifteen, first to 

 twelve, and so on to nine and six, and less 

 than three parts. So the strongest induce- 

 ment is off"ered to enrich, rather than ex- 

 haust the soil. For whatever amount 

 of fertility the cultivator shall bestow, or 

 whatever abstraction from a previous rate 

 of supply he shall make, either the gain or 

 the loss will be tripled in the account of 

 supplies from the atmosphere, furnished or 

 withheld by nature. 



]n another and more practical point of 

 view, the loss incurred by exhausting cul- 

 ture^ may be plainly exhibited. According 



to my views, (elsewhere fully stated,*) soils 

 supposed to be properly constituted as to 

 mineral ingredients, do not demand for the 

 maintaining and increasing of their rate of 

 production, more than the resting or the 

 growth of two years in every five, mainly to 

 be left on the land as manure. These are 

 the proportions of the five-field rotation, 

 now extensively used on the most improv- 

 ing parts of Virginia. And one of these 

 two years the field is grazed, so that parts 

 of its growth of grass is consumed, instead 

 of remaining on the field for manure. To 

 meet the same demands, the more Southern 

 planter might leave his field to be covered 

 by its growth of weeds, or natural grasses, 

 one year, (and also to be grazed,) and a 

 broad-cast crop of pea-vines to be plowed 

 under in another for every three crops of 

 grain and cotton. But the ready answer to 

 this, (and I have heard it many times,) 

 is, " What ! lose two crops in every five 

 years ? I cannot afi"ord to lose even one.'' 

 It may be that the planter is so diligent 

 and careful in collecting materials for pre- 

 pared manure, that he can extend a thin 

 and poor application, and in the drills only, 

 over nearly half his cotton field ; and per- 

 haps he persuades himself that this appli- 

 cation will obviate the necessity for rest 

 and manuring crops to the land. The re- 

 sult will not fulfil this expectation. But 

 even if it could, the manuring thus given 

 dhectly by the labour of the planter, is 

 more costly than if he would allow time 

 and opportunity for nature to help to ma- 

 nure for him — whether alone, or still better 

 if aided by preparing for and sowing the 

 native pea, to the production of which 

 your climate is so eminently favourable. 

 All the accumulations of leaves raked from 

 the poor pine forest, with the slight addi- 

 tional value which may be derived from, 

 the otherwise profitless maintenance of poor 

 cattle, will supply less of food to plants, 

 and at greater cost, than would be furnish- 

 ed by an unmixed growth of peas, all left 

 to serve as manure. 



The native or Southern pea, (as it ought 



* In a recent communication to the Virginia 

 State Agricultural Society, entitled " New 

 Views of the Theory and Laws of Rotation of 

 Crops, and their practical application." These 

 views I deem especially applicable to the ag- 

 ricultural condition of South-Carolina, and of" 

 importance next to the main subject of the ])re- 

 sent address. 



