APPLICATION OF MANURES. (From the 'Agricultural Gazette,' August 18)

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XVII, Issue 1350, 16 November 1860, Page 4

APPLICATION OF MANURES. (From the ' Agricultural Gazette ,' August 18)

When the soil is adapted to the practice, the most complete mode of utilising all the elements of farmyard manure is to plough it into the ground in a recent or fresh state. In this way there is in loamy soils no loss by putrefaction ; but there may on light soils be a loss by rain washing out of the soil the elements of fertility as they are generated. On clay soils the practice seems safe, as the decomposition of the recent manure renders them more friable, while they absorb the ammonia, &c, produced. It is more desirable for some crops than others ; thus, for Carrots and Parsnips it has been often recommendeJ, as they do best when the manure is, at the time of sowing the seed, thoroughly incorporated w ith the soil. For light soils finely decomposed manure is best adapted Turnips also require well rotten manure, which has * forcing effect on the plants when young ; but a little artificial manure applied along with undecompoted farmyard manure would have the same effect. It appears, then, that for certain soils and certain crops we must have well-decomposed dung. The ploughing m of recent manure, too, could not, at all times, be conveniently attended to as it is produced, inasmuch as other occupations and operations may be too pressing. On the other hand, the occasional ploughing in of such manure economises labour by distributing it more evenly over a long period. But this object is, perhaps, on the whole, more satisfactorily secured by carting out the manure to three or four heaps situated in central points, or to the fields intended for green crops. The great advantage of this arrangement is, that the manure can be carted out in slack working seasons, and so in spring there is not that overwhelming throng of work which often compels the farmer to employ hired labour. There is against this a minor disadvantage, that in the double loading — viz., at the farmyard and at the field heap in spring — there is not only more manual labour required, but a waste of horse labour. Mr. Lawrence, of Cirencester, describes an excellent method of preparing these field heaps, which, with some modifications, is as follows : — The sites selected are excavated about 1 foot deep, and 5 or 6 inches of earth are laid on the bottom to absorb the moisture. The manure is evenly spread as it is deposited from the carts, which are made to go over the heap. This consolidates the manure. The heap is raised about a foot above the ground level, to allow for sinking ; and then it is gradually gathered in, until completed, in the form of an ordinary steep roof, slightly rounded at the top by the final treading. Within ft day or two after the heap, or * part of it, is finished, a coat of earth, say 4 inches thick, in a moist state, should be plastered over the entire smface ; and if you have sufficient earth at command a little should be occasionally spread among the dung as the heap is in process of formation. The width and height of such heaps should not, for convenience sake, exceed 10 feet and C feet lespectively. In the practice of applying farmyard manure great mistakes are frequently made. It is no uncommon thing to see it lying in'the drills in summer time for days before it is covered in ; the consequence is, that it is bleached and drenched by wind and rain. And sometimes it is allowed to lie bleaching in the sun for weeks. If the perpetrators of such blunders be right, science is at fault, analysis a delusion, and ammonia and all its kindred a host of impostors. The practice in Syria of making the dung of animals into cakes, and sticking them upon the walls of the houses to dry in the sun, pieparatory to their ultimate destination as fuel, is not much more wasteful than spreading out farm-yard manure to the wind and sun fqr months together during summer time.