182 



THE SOUTHERN PLANTER. 



ther farmers, never use guano any other way than 

 broadcast, except for vegetables. The time of ap- 

 plication, from experiment, is the first weeding of 

 the corn. Sow two rows at a time, just ahead of 

 the ploughs. When sown broadcast it improves 

 the land more generally, and prepares it for small 

 grain. I am now using from 200 to 300 lbs. to 

 the acre. I prefer 300 lbs., because you will be 

 enabled to get two crops from the same manuring. 

 I would say more about the mode of culture, but 

 deem it unnecessary. In conclusion, I would re- 

 mark for the benefit of practical men, that if there 

 is any merit in my suggestions, the plan is easy 

 and can be adopted by the great body of planters. 



Edwin J. Redd. 

 Prince Edward, May 16, 1854. 



For the Southern Planter. 

 SALTPETRE AS A MANURE. 



Mr. Editor, — On reading in the last number of 

 the "Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society" 

 the experiments of the president on cubic saltpetre 

 as a manure, I was struck with the unsatisfactory 

 nature of a portion of them, and of the conclusions 

 derived from them. In the "American Agricul- 

 turist" of May 16th, in an extract from an address 

 before the Highland Agricultural Society, Dr. An- 

 derson, though differing from Mr. Pusey in some 

 respects, repeats one of his conclusions in still 

 stronger terms : " that the effect of nitrate of soda 

 is unequivocally due to the nitric acid and not to 

 the soda." This conclusion seems to me to be 

 forced, and leads me to make the following re- 

 marks, to be inserted if you think proper, or, what 

 would be much more agreeable to me, to draw 

 from an abler source some opinion or information 

 with regard to the subject. 



Very respectfully, A Subscriber. 



May mh, 1854. 



In the experiments made by Dr. Pusey on the 

 source of the manuring value of saltpetre, his con- 

 clusion that its virtue is proportionate to the amount 

 of nitrogen rather than to the quantity of soda, 

 may be w 7 ell founded. But these experiments, so 

 far from proving that the virtue is ascribable en- 

 tirely to the acid, seem to prove that its effect is 

 enhanced by the presence of the alkali. 



In the tables given by Mr. Pusej^, 6 drachms of 

 nitrate of soda produce a result superior to any 

 quantity of nitric acid used : from 2 to 8 drachms. 

 Now, in 6 drachms of the nitrate we have 3.82 

 drachms of the acid, and this quantity in combina- 

 tion with the soda surpassing in effect any quantity 

 used of the acid uncombined. 



Does this show, to use the words of Dr. Ander- 

 son, quoted in the "American Agriculturist" of 

 May 10th, that the beneficial action is "most une- 

 quivocally due to the nitric acid, and not to the 

 soda]" Does it not prove, on the contrary, that 

 the presence of the soda produces an effect which 

 the acid alone cannot produce ? And is there any 

 thing remarkable in this 1 



Putting out of view the tendency of the pure 

 acid to form nitrates with other bodies not neces- 

 sary to the plants and not taken up by them, is 

 it strange that two substances, when combined, 

 should exert an influence which neither of them 

 is separately capable of exerting 1 



Mr. P. has not even given experiments to test 



the power of soda. According to his statements, 

 there is a point below which nitric acid itself is 

 powerless, and a point at which that power is at 

 its maximum. 



Now in the nitrate the quantity of soda is equal 

 to 2.18 drachms, but Mr. Pusey has made only one 

 experiment with If drachms of soda. Why may 

 not soda have its limit of manuring virtue, and 

 why may not this quantity be below the limit 1 



A series of experiments would have been much 

 more satisfactory — and when we see as we often 

 do, the different effects produced by the same ma- 

 nure under apparently similar circumstances, it 

 seems hasty to draw from so small range of expe- 

 riments the positive conclusion that the manuring 

 virtue of nitrates is not at all owing to the alkalies 

 with which they are combined; especially, when 

 in the very statements given, we find the acid and 

 alkali when combined, possessing greater fertilizing 

 properties than either when used alone. 



GUANO DEPOSITS ON THE CHINCHA ISLANDS. 



We cull from the London Chronicle, the follow- 

 ing valuable abstract of the official report, made 

 on a careful examination of the actual amount of 

 guano remaining in the Chincha Islands. It has 

 evidently been compiled after a careful scrutiny, 

 and a minimum estimate is the result; It exceeds 

 in reality double the quantity roughly obtained by 

 Admiral Morsby, but is below that bf private per- 

 sons engaged in the trade. 



Peruvian Legation, 4 Albemarle st., ) 

 Piccadilly, February 7,1854. } 

 A note has been received at the above Legation, 

 from the Minister of Finance of the Republic, 

 bearing date of the 24th of December, in which 

 the undermentioned is communicated to the Charge 

 d'Affairs : 



The government nominated a deputation, com- 

 posed of Mr. Chas. Faraguet, a French engineer, in 

 the service of Peru, and many other engineers and 

 professors of Chemistry, native as well as foreign, 

 in order that they might undertake the measure- 

 ment of the guano of the Chincha Islands. 



This, therefore, has been effected by men best 

 qualified for the purpose, with as much accuracy 

 as could possibly be obtained, adopting the latest 

 improvements in the scientific proceedings, and 

 the following has been given in conformity : 



Tons. 



That the island situated at the North 



contains 4,189,477 

 That the centre island contains 2,505,948 

 That the South island contains 5,630,675 



Or a total of 12,376,100 

 The computation is for tons measurement, which, 

 when reduced to ions weight — the standard used in 

 the sale — will increase the quantity to 16,501,466 

 tons weight of saleable guano. Besides the Chin- 

 cha Islands, it is well known that Peru possesses 

 many other guano deposits, containing a very con- 

 siderable quantity, the measurement of which has 

 also been ordered by the government, and will be 

 published in due course. 



It will be seen that the estimate is about double 

 that made by Admiral Morsby, of the British Na- 

 vy, and heretofore published in the Farm Journal. 



Penn. Farm Journal for April. 



f 



