FACTS FOR FARMERS. TILLAGE OF THE SOIL.

Waikato Times, Volume IV, Issue 227, 23 October 1873, Page 2

FACTS FOR FARMERS. TILLAGE OF THE SOIL.

In giving instruction to the farmer on this most important work it will be necessary to introduce tome science, in orderto make him understand fully the importance of the variousqualities required in a soil properly prepared for the reception and growth of the different seed*. The pulverising of the soil, I hare already shown, is necessary for thoroughly mixing its own component parts! so as toenable it to act more efficiently by bringing all its parts into more intimate relation to one another. The plough, and the harrow, and the roller perform this operation sufficiently insome soils, but in others more mechanical power is required,, in which case the Grubble and Croskift harrow, lo ? *n» indispensable ; when a soil requires deepening, the subsoil plough is necessary. The practical farmer knows all theseto be necessary, because his experience has taught him that,, with the most thorough tillage, be has got the most produce from the soil. The farmer also knows that the roots of the various plants are so minute that th«y cannot be seen with the naked eye ; therefore, the more he pulverises the soil,, these tender fibres, whose part is to search through the soil for the particular ingredients wanted for the nourishment of the plant, can only be done when the soils are softened sufficiently for their power of penetration. The oxperieneed farmer also knows that the finer he gats the tilth, the better the land is adapted to absorb and retairfmoistur»;>tbat if" the surface of the land is fine, it will attract moisture from the air ; that the deeper the soil is, the roots of the plantshave the greater facility of getting out of the reach of drying winds and a scorching sun, and that where the greatest body of soil is, there will be greatest quantity of air, moisture, and/ heat, — all indispensable to the thorough vigorous growth of all plants. The health, seed ef a plant is a living object. Though apparently lifeless to- the sight and the touch, it has life ; and; its vitality is capable of exerting great power when excited into action. What the agent island bow it acts, whiah excites the vitality of seeds-,, we do not know, and perhaps never shall know ; but we- do know the circumstances in* which, when seeds are placed, vitality is invariably excited*, and the proof of this excitement ii furnished. by their germination, which is the first movement towards the productions of a plant. Now the circumstances which excit* germination are a combination of air, beat, and moisture. These must be afforded' in the most favorable conditions before the plant will grow.. They may be applied to the seed, and its germination secured' in the air, as certainly as in the ground, but on the development of the root, the Iprovince of which is to penetrate into* the soil, the young germ, instead of growing- upwards, woulddie were it kept constantly in the air. The earth supplies, all the requisites of air, heat, and moisture to.the plant in aa much better state than the air can of itself, and the. soil continues to TuppPTfEem, notlraly^Olre period of its germination, but during its after life. A vital seed placed in tber ground, must be affected by tree agencies before it can produes a plant — viz., physical, chemical, and physiological.. The first of these agencies claim most of our attention. When a vital seed is placed in pulverised ground, it is surrounded with air ; for although the particles of the soil may seem to be close together, on examination it is found that theinterstices (or the spaces between these particles) occupy onefourth of a giten quantity of soil. Hence 100 cubio inches ■ of pulverised soil contains no Ins than 25 cubic- inches-of air. Therefore, in a field, the soil of which has been pulverisod tothe depth of eight inches, every acre of it will contain i 12,545,280 cubic inches of air; and hence, alto, as every additional inch of depth pulverised calls into activity 259* tons of soil, at I*4B of specific gravity, so the ploughing of" the soil deeper every inch introduces into it aa additional) 1,568,160 cubic inches of air. Thus, by increasing the depth* of pulverised' soil, we- can provide a quantity of air to any; extent for the use of seeds. Thia air must then be above a- ceraia temperature before r the seed will germinate Lt must be above the freezing point, else the vitality of the seed will remain dormant. A pulverised state of the soil affords protection to theseed from a considerable depression of temperature, and the more firmly it is pulverised, the more it will*r#sist the cold from without, and the less will it radiate* the beat .from within, The less finely the soil is pulverised, and the shallower the soils, therefore, it may be dearly seen, the less probabilty there will be of a plant germinatine; and progressing to maturity. When a leed is placed among nard clods of earth, or come* in contact with, stones, and little of the fine- particles of the pulverised, ■nil about it, thore can be littl* moisture foe- its support. The air, again, may be excluded by water, and qeaides. the direct exclusion of the air, th*waten, on evaporation, renders the earth around each seed much colder than it. would otherwise be ; hence the- necessity of drainage. Total want of moisture prevents- germination, hut that isi seldom the case when husd is- thoroughly pulverised. The chemical agency will here be almost out of plaoe : the farmer, or pupil farmer, will take little interest in it* andjtsdiscussion will afford little real insight into the duties oi the agriculturist. I may say that the chemical' ooraposition of* seeds consists of organic and inorganic substances. That when consigned to the ground, the first change which taken place in it is its increase in size, on account of its taking in. moisture. If the moisture is presented to it in' dtae form, i.e. from every particle of soil, but not from water between theparticles, excluding the air, it is in the most favourable circumstances for germination, and only requires the necessary degree of temperature to excite its vitality into action. If it wants moisture, it will remain dormant till moisture arrive ; if it is placed in excess of moisture, its germination is pre^ vented by the exclusion of the air, and its tissues are destroyed by maceration in the water. In favourable circumstances, besides the direct effeot of the absorption of moisture in increasing the size of the seed, it softens- and expands all its parts, many of the dry and soluble parts become fluid, sap or vegetable food is formed, and a sort of circulation is formed, which communicates between the more remote parts of the embryo. ' v ' If heat now is present, rt assists the air and moisture to excite the vital principle into action. It expands the air contained in the numerous cavities of the seed, produces the distension of all the organic parts, and their irritability being thus excited, the seed cannot be destroyed' but by death. The physiological agency in the production of plants from seed will not bo treated of in this case,, as it does, not come within the intended use of this essay. I have beqr more* particular with the first, as I consider it quite necessary tbaif. a farmer should know as much of his calling as possible, and above all, have his mind well stored with that part which gives information of the treatment of seeds in connection with the soil. The prosperity of the farmer depends, in a great measure, on starting the seed, and the proper treat* ment of the young animals on his farm. — Trom W. Johnson's Art of Farming.

Wordi are only valuable when they «xpms something, and silly poefcry is even moro worthless than silly prose, inasmuch as it aims At a higher and more regular form of ex* pression, therefore its future is more of a disappointment ; and also for the reason that beautiful form comes by labour, and it is a pity to see labour bestowed on what is worthless when finished. You expect a drink of rich and generous wine, and you are offered sopie tepid sugar and water — not even rose-water. These eau sticree verses are often graceful, delicate, pretty, and this may seem praise enough j but when, you remember that the same praise can be justly bestowed on a mould of blunoinongo, it can Lardly seem sufficient. Blancmonge is a concoction made up by the confectioner, which a spoon breaks into a shapeless mass ; and these mixed und slowed concocl ions, boneless, without tipe'fibre of flesh or the pulp or juice or iruit, when seasoned and poured into a mould of inutt&ro fruit or flowers, can never bear the critic's knife. There^ln^hjfcbe structure, cren in s> poem, to have it worth anytb'infei^aot bony, protruding structure, but something that holds the' parts in coherency—Gahcay. \