AfRit 23 



1898 



GA RDENERS* MA GA ZINE. 



269 



HUMUS IN 



ITS RELATION TO SO 



(Concluded from page 2$l.) 



d the Water Supply of 



F 



. „>h in humus not only absorbs more water, but holds it more 

 A 21S£ tie ofdrought than a soil poor in humus. In fact, this is one of 



moo unt differences between soils rich in humus and those poor in 

 ** m FEawhiS by long cultivation has lost half of its total humus will 

 buOUS ' i„« S ten to twenty five per cent, ot its water-holding power. These 

 £LL» *tt well illustrated in the following table, compiled from data 



J2ed «n the examination of two typical Minnesota soils :— 



Water Capacity of Soils Containing Different Amounts of Humus. 



Water. 



In 



or! ;inal 

 soil. 



After 10 



hours' 

 ex posure 

 to the sun 



Soil richer in humus (3.75 per cent.) 

 Soil poorer in humus (2.50 per cent.) 



Per cent, 



16.48 

 12.14 



Per cent, 

 6.12 



3 94 



Loss 



Per cent 

 10.26 

 8.20 



Humus is also an important factor, especially in sandy soils, in assisting the 

 capillary rise of subsoil water to the roots of crops. In a mixture of sand and 

 hamus, water will rise to the surface by capillarity much more rapidly than in 

 pare sand. As is well known, soils which are properly manured and thus 

 supplied with abundant humus retain more water and yield it up more slowly 

 and evenly to growing crops than unmanured soils. The part which the humus 

 takes in the water supply of crops is sufficient in itself for placing a high value 

 upon the humus of the soil. 



Humus and the Heat of Soil. 



Humus soils are generally considered cold or sour, but this is not always true 

 of them. In humus soils decomposition or oxidation of the organic materials i^ 

 constantly taking place, and this oxidation is accompanied by the evolution of a 

 certain amount of heat. A portion of this heat is used up in warming and 

 evaporating the additional water stored up in the soil on account of the humus, 

 but even after this is provided for there is still some heat left from the oxidation 

 of the humus to aid in warming up the soil. It should be observed also that 

 humus, as a rule, imparts a darker colour to the soil, and thus causes it to absorb 

 more of the heat of the sun. In autumn humus soils are not affected by sudden 



• I'll 



^ges of temperature to the same extent as soils poor in humus, the difference 

 fcquently being sufficient to ward off an early frost and to enable corn in the 

 .Northern States to reach its full maturity Applications of humus-forming 

 mitenals, such as manure, have frequently been observed to raise the temperature 

 irly a degree, and this in colder climates is often sufficient to prevent the growth 

 of 1 crop from being checked. In the colder regions soils which are poor in 

 homus freere much deeper than soils which are richer in humus. So far the 

 •ttempt has been made- to demonstrate that the chemical action of humus in 

 providing available plant food in the soil makes it of the greatest value as a 

 ,^T»L. •' t J COns, f tS in materia »y bringing about the physical conditions in 

 «S^L* - - t0 l £ e SroWth of P lants ! that U ^rnishes a medium peculiarly 

 fSi 1 a f c ' ,v,ties 1 0f i such organisms as those of nitrification, which are useful 



m\ plant k'r.Mh; and that loss of humus from the soil is always attended by a 



SJhlhlriM Pn ? uctlven f ess -., 11 is n«w important to discuss the means by 

 wnich this valuable constituent of soils may be conserved and increased. 



Means of Maintaining the Humus of the Soil. 



defota amount wLvtV^ 6 " m P 03i . tion f of h»Hms it is difficult to state the 



^S^cfSL^^^i^ 1 ' 0 ' 1 ' approaching in many cases the 

 ■SEeof readKSfi^- aluabl ? as a sma,,er amount of humus » which is 



"fin the absence or T dec f °TP , " lt,on - With an ^essive amount of water, 



^m^S^StSJS^, ° f A he proper s f t lements « ,ike lime ' P° tash . 



with HmeXrVifb Mi,rH Pr UC r C S °, lU ' b T Ut in S ood soils we 11 st ^ked 



** «ils as a rule will S^T'fl £ ^ U t0 Condude » therefore » 



conserve or 



"during, and a SdS? rn J?* ^ °' * e,, P re P ared farm manures, green 



portant means of 



^ons, the wSn^^ J^ the and reglODS ' and in ma ny of the prairie 

 J« heen satisfactor u/SS O VrT" ?%T*** 2 * pr ° blem which has not ™ 

 "»w in the manuemanvl- ^ • WnCSS ° f decom P°3Won of the 



■«« as a deSnUaThS S^^ T^u "f™? haVe to look upon 



the soil is in heater ne Vd of I In these re g ions » how- 



S5 and it is o S SeTt ILliS^f ^ the regions of uniform s « mmer 

 Produced manure on thetrm To K ^ M^S SyStem of P^paring the 

 materials of the Tod mav SJ ^nl ^ k Utlllsed to ^ ""est extent. The 

 ^ to draw the mu^ du rin^£f mCreased ^ f the u f of well-prepared muck. It is 

 •^hent in stab™^ f Ql ?"£ £, the sum ™5 r : Aft « drying, it^can be used as an 



of al>sorbing ™ n an tK^f. 86 * I!S ^ Uable ' man y mucks ha ving the 

 J* «K it warily undereoe ^ 7^ £ S -1 When muck is m «ed 



«« brown mucks ^3^^' which increases its fertilising value. 



W ft Plaster mixed JSi the the,r a , ctlon /han the black. A little marl 



Clover wd pEtT rtL "2* *f pB fern,il « «W *»oid. 



purpose 

 5Jy«l an abun. 



' m,, «ms O nit 



rreen 



nlnabl 



(mil 



good 



«*u'uen and 



ndy coast soiU nf IT c ' a cnmson clover has proved 

 are expen v/ Slf^l^. ^ » cheap and 



^ntng the humus of the St?2S. gF , • Another means of 

 SSd J,k C l eneral laws which itiSf praC u lCC ° f P . ro ^ s y st «ns of rotation of 

 «a^ n th ,he conservaT on 0 \ apP y J° the l rota "° c n ° f cro P s » are in P"** 

 2aH^ ^ ^ ^2!2&-j!&!* «*? *«»* ^given 



C0,tc ". conPor" "?PP in g >thoa7 "minerey 



are 



the growing of grass crops and dairy and stock farming, which result in the 

 production of large quantities of manure. These statements are by no means 

 intended to discourage certain cultures, but to encourage a definite course of 

 rotation in culture, and the use of more well -prepared farm manures, so as to keep 

 up the humus of the soil. 



Summary* 



1. The decline in the crop-producing power of many soils is due to a loss of 

 the partially decomposed animal and vegetable matters known as humus. 



2. The humus of the soil is decreased by the continuous cultivation of grain, 

 cotton, potatos, or any crop with which the land is kept constantly under the 

 plough without the addition of any humus-forming materials. 



3. The loss of humus involves a loss of the nitrogen, which is one of the 

 elements composing humus. The loss of nitrogen from the soil is not always due 

 simply to the nitrogen removed by the crop, but is frequently caused by waste of 

 the humus by improper methods and systems of cultivation. 



4. The humus of the soil is increased by the use of well-prepared farm 

 manures, green manures, and by a systematic rotation of crops in which grasses, or 

 preferably clover, form an important part. 



5. The loss of humus from the soil results in decreasing its power of storing 

 up and properly supplying crops with water. Soils with a liberal amount of humus 

 are capable of more effectually withstanding drought than similar soils with less 

 humus. In arid regions the loss of humus from the soil is more serious than in the 

 regions of continuous summer rains. 



^ 6. In sandy soils the loss of humus is most severely felt. In poorly drained 

 soils, where there is a deficiency of lime, potash, and other similar materials, the 

 humus may form sour mould, but this can usually be corrected by a dressing of 

 lime, marl, or wood ashes. 



7. Humus-forming materials, like the decaying animal and vegetable matters 

 in farm manures, have the power of combining with the potash and phosphoric 

 acid of the soil to form humates which are readily assimilated by plants when acted 

 upon by the proper soil organism. These humates thus increase to a marked 

 extent the available plant food of the soil. 



S. Farm manures and other humus-forming materials are not only valuable 

 for the elements of fertility which they contain, but also for the power of making 

 the inert material of the soil more available to plants. 



9. In soils where there is a good stock of reserve materials it is cheaper to 

 cultivate fertility through the agency of humus than it is to purchase it in the form 

 of commercial fertilisers. 



Milk Preservation. 



The British Consul at Cherbourg devotes a long section of his last report to a new 

 form of competition by French agriculturists with the British dairy industry. This is 

 the growing export of milk from Normandy to this country. It appears that a 

 wild herb which is very common in France proves an effective and harmless anti- 

 septic, the discovery having been made by observing that the milk of cows which 

 had eaten of the herb did not turn'sour so rapidly as other milk. A single drop of 

 a tincture obtained from the plant was found to stop all fermentation in a quart of 

 milk for six days, while the butter made from milk so treated kept better than any 

 other. The secret has been purchased by a French firm, which has fitted up a 

 dairy and factory close to the docks at Cherbourg, and arrangements have been 

 made to collect milk on all the roads leading out of the town. A detailed account 

 of the working of the factory is given in the report, but certain disadvantages are 

 pointed out. The tincture seems to disappear by evaporation after having sterilised 

 the milk ; at all events chemical analyses have failed to trace it. " What will be 

 the effect of the prolonged consumption of this milk by children or invalids cannot 

 yet be determined. The analysis is, of course, only negative, and medical opinion 

 might not be favourable to the constant absorption of an unknown substance, 

 however small the proportion.' 1 Further, there is no guarantee that the milk 

 exported from Cherbourg has come from dairies where the inmates are free from 

 infectious disease ; it is certain that no diseased cow contributes to the supply, but 

 there the guarantee ceases Nor does the company's veterinary adviser inquire 

 into the water supply of the farm. " It may be taken for granted, therefore, that 

 the exported Cherbourg milk is safe only so far as the health of the cows producing 

 it can affect it. It is the rich milk of healthy cows, at pasture all the year round, 

 and milked in the open air." The early operations of the company during the 

 closing months of last year were not as large as was anticipated, but over 76,000 

 gallons were despatched to England in October, November, and December last, 

 and reached an average of 1,200 gallons a day during December. " If Normandy 

 milk ever becomes a danger to our home dairy industry, it will be due to the inter- 

 vention and assistance of British firms, doubtless greatly to the advantage of the 

 British consumer, just as some years ago London firms went to the rescue of 

 Normandy butter vendors when the Paris market was closed to them, an interven- 

 tion so fruitful in consequences to the Norman farmer on account of the enormous 

 extension thereby given to the Normandy butter export trade. Normandy, even 

 more than Denmark, finds the butter export trade hampered bv the competition 

 of Australasia. No further expansion of the Normandy butter export trade is 

 likely, but England will be deluged with foreign milk if Messrs. Lepont s attempt 

 to form a limited liability company with the help of English dairymen is successful. 

 The Consul points out that there are other preservatives besides this new secret 

 antiseptic, and concludes :-" What is it then that stands m the way of West- 

 country and Irish farmers doing by concerted action what Cherbourg proposes to 

 accomplish with the assistance of British purveyors for the teeming millions of our 

 metropolis ? Surely some means might b; ; found to remove that which blocks the 

 way to a very effective means of relieving distressed agriculture. 



Mr. Geor<;e A. Bishop, steward to Sir Humphrey F. de Trafford, Bart., 

 Hill Crest, Market Harborough, has been appointed by the Secretary of State for 

 the Colonies to the position of superintendent of the Botanic Station, Bermuda— 

 a position worth nearly ^5 00 P er annum - Mr - Bisho P win remembered as the 

 originator and chairman of the Wolverhampton Chrysanthemum Society, and as an 

 active member of the executive of the Wolverhampton Horticultural Club, and 

 the Wolverhampton branch of the Gardeners' Royal Benevolent Institution. His 

 brother, Mr. Alfred Bishop, head gardener at Westley Hall, Bury St. Edmunds, 

 will succeed Mr. G. A. Bishop at Hill Crest. 



(I 



'EM. 



fa mi 



pology 



introducing 



increase 



has now become a saying so 

 _^.Jly as it is intimately associated ....... , . > . , „ . - , - . r r 



Holloway's Pills and Ointment. " Tne chief that had been takin notes for the past fifty years of 

 the cures effected by these wonderful remedies, has frequently informed the public that they have 

 no equal. He has noted where they have been successful when other medicines failed, and he 

 has been" particular in stating that at this period of the y ear they are especially useful, as they cure 



