298 



CULINARY OR KITCHEN GARDEN. 



well as in the destruction of numerous insects. 

 Notwithstanding, Mr Solly remarks of saline 

 matter, " Nearly all that can at present be said 

 respecting saline manure is, that the addition to 

 the soil, in moderate quantity, of those sub- 

 stances which plants are found to contain, is 

 always good. The mode in which they act, and 

 the office they perform in the nutrition of plants, 

 is as yet but very imperfectly understood." 



Ashes constitute an important class in manures, 

 differing, however, in their effects, according to 

 the substance which has undergone the process 

 of burning, and the manner in which the process 

 has been accomplished. The ashes of all vege- 

 table substances consist principally of those sub- 

 stances which plants require, as charcoal, lime, 

 phosphoric acid, and alkaline salts. Of these, 

 charcoal or carbon is the most valuable ; and 

 hence, to secure it in the greatest quantity, the 

 process of burning should be carried on as slowly 

 as possible ; and this is best effected by covering 

 up the mass while burning, and admitting no 

 more air than just sufficient to keep up a smoul- 

 dering fire. The ashes of all vegetables contain 

 almost the same constituent parts, and are found 

 useful in all soils, and to the majority of crops. 

 They should always be applied while newly 

 burned, as they lose much of their value by 

 keeping, even although kept under cover. A 

 medium quantity of vegetable ashes may be 

 taken at 1 lb. weight to the square yard. Coal- 

 ashes are less valuable as a manure ; but as they 

 are to be had in much greater abundance than 

 any other, their use should not be disregarded. 

 The finer parts only should be employed, as the 

 half-consumed coal and the vitrified cinder can 

 be of little use. The finer parts, separated by 

 sifting, contain alumina, carbon, silica, carbonate 

 of lime, oxide of iron, sulphate of lime, and 

 potash. Their chief value appears to consist in 

 the carbon and lime they contain. 



Soot consists principally of carbon, with a con- 

 siderable portion of salts of ammonia, which it 

 obtains during the combustion of the coal : 

 these are, however, extremely volatile, and hence 

 much of them is lost. Soot is one of the best of 

 all manures for garden ground ; its effects, how- 

 ever, last only during one crop, and its application 

 should coincide with the time of sowing or plant- 



ing. It is beneficial also as being destructive to 

 insects : the quantity applied may be from 40 

 to 50 bushels per acre. 



It is not from any want of manures that any 

 land need be left in a state of comparative steril- 

 ity, their value depends on their proper accumu- 

 lation, preservation, and application ; yet, for 

 all that has been written upon the subject, we 

 see in all directions the very essence of fertility 

 allowed to run to unprofitable waste. The 

 following paragraph from " Donaldson on Soils 

 and Manures," p. 110, is deserving the especial 

 attention of cultivators : " The effects of ma- 

 nures of all sorts depend much on the quality 

 of the land to which they are applied, and also 

 to the state of preparation of the soil, at the 

 time when the substances come in contact with 

 each other. Finely reduced and pulverised 

 bodies cannot mix with those of a grosser 

 form. Masses, clods, and lumps, either of 

 homogeneous or heterogeneous substances, will 

 lie together, and remain in the original state of 

 cohesion or aggregation ; but no affinity or com- 

 position takes place at sensible distances, and 

 consequently no results follow from the com- 

 bined influences of the bodies in union. The 

 contact of a pulverised substance with a mass of 

 gross formation cannot produce the effects of 

 combination ; the finer particles of the former 

 touch only the external surface of the latter, the 

 interior parts remaining unaffected and unavail- 

 able for the purposes and effects of alteration." 

 The profitable application, therefore, of manures, 

 depends on deeply working the soil, reducing it, 

 during the operation of turning, to a pulverised 

 state, blending the manurial application tho- 

 roughly with it, and never allowing it to lie long 

 undisturbed, or to become exhausted by heavy 

 cropping and scanty applications of manure. 

 The land must be kept in constant possession 

 of decomposing animal and vegetable substances, 

 by the frequent application of putrescent ma- 

 nures ; and if so done, the mineraling redients 

 we have referred to may then be applied with a 

 certainty of remunerating the cultivator for his 

 expense and labour, but no direct dependence 

 should be placed on mineral manures alone, and 

 far less on the compounds sold as artificial fer- 

 tilisers. 



