PROFIT AND HONOR IN FARMING. 
437 
For instance,— 'phosphorus is much more scarce than potash; 
and sulphurous properties much less prevalent than silica ; and 
magnesia scarcer still than lime—and so on. 
And again,— wheat abstracts from the soil the earthy phos¬ 
phates to a much greater extent than corn does ; while corn 
takes more silica than wheat does ; and so on. 
Now, we are prepared to speak intelligently of the beneficial 
effects of Rotation , or alternation of crops. 
Wheat requires larger quantities of phosphates , (chiefly 
bone-dust ), potash and magnesia , than any other grain ; they 
constituting nearly one-half of its ash. 
This phosphorous, in some of its forms is derived from most 
decomposed animal and woody substances, though in very 
small quantities ; but it is most abundant in the bones of ani¬ 
mals (phosphate of lime) of anything to be found on the farm ; 
and wheat requires—in its growth—vastly more of these pre¬ 
cious elements than any other plant which we raise. There is 
a good deal of this ingredient, in the shape of phosphoric acid, 
in new, rank manure ; (particularly in the urine of animals) 
but then, wheat does not do well, with too much fresh, rank 
manure ; but, after a year or two, w T hen it is well composted 
and thoroughly mixed with the soil, then wheat will make a 
handsome product, on such kind of rich land ; after one crop 
of oats, or corn, or roots, has been grown and taken off—all 
of which like this rank, rich soil—and then leave it in friend¬ 
ly condition for wheat. Wheat likes a rich, tenacious, loamy 
soil—but requires all of the ingredients to be thoroughly dis¬ 
tributed and incorporated in the soil. In addition to the other 
crops named, clover and peas are good crops to prepare rankly 
manured land for wheat ; while they like the rich doses of the 
richest manure, as well as corn and potatoes. 
The luxuriant amount of haulm and leaves of peas, clover, 
and roots, much of which fall and are plowed into the ground, 
supplying much that wheat wants, while their moisture and de¬ 
cay, in the soil, forms a light quantity of humus which is use¬ 
ful ; and leaves the ground loose and porous, so that the air and 
