The Story of the Soil; from the Basis of Absolute Science and Real LifeHopkins, Cyril G. (Cyril George)
Science
The Story of the Soil; from the Basis of Absolute Science and Real Life
Hopkins, Cyril G. (Cyril George)
Soils
Perhaps you have heard of Rothamsted. If not, your kindergarten
teacher is at fault. A four-year rotation of crops has been followed
on Agdell field for more than sixty years. An average of the crop
yields of the last twenty years reveals:
(1) That the yield of turnips has decreased from ten tons to
one-half ton per acre since 1848.
(2) That the yield of barley has decreased from forty-six bushels to
fourteen bushels since 1849.
(3) That the yield of clover has decreased from two and eight-tenth
tons to one-half ton since 1850.
(4) That the yield of wheat has decreased from thirty bushels to
twenty-four bushels since 1851, wheat, grown once in four years,
being the only crop worth raising as an average of the last twenty
years.
No, Sir. Neither optimism, nor ignorance, nor bigotry, nor deception
can controvert these facts.
Do you know that the people of India rotate their crops? They do;
and they use many legumes; and some of their soils now contain only
a trace of phosphorus, too small to be determined in figures by the
chemist. Do you know there are more of our own Aryan Race hungry in
India than live in the United States?
Do you know that Russia regularly practices a three-year rotation
and actually harvests only two crops in three years, with one year
of green manuring? Yes, and the average yield of wheat for twenty
years is only eight and one-quarter bushels per acre.
Think on these things.
Your _third principle _is, that "of all forage fed to live stock at
least one-third in cash value remains on the land in the form of
manure that soon restores worn-out soil to fertility and keeps good
land from deteriorating. By this system the farm may be made and
kept a source of perpetual wealth."
I grieve with you; pity 'tis, 'tis not true.
No, Sir. Neither crops nor animals can be made out of nothing, and
no independent system of livestock farming can add to the soil a
pound of any element of plant food, aside from nitrogen, and even
this addition is due to the legume crops grown and not to the live
stock.
Under the best system of live-stock farming about three-fourths of
the nitrogen, three-fourths of the phosphorus, and one-third of the
organic matter contained in the food consumed can be returned to the
land if the total excrements, both solid and liquid, are saved
without loss. Of course, the produce used for bedding can all be
returned, but it could also be returned without live stock.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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