75
hold the roots of grass, is blown about by the winds, like thedust of a dry road, f
Stone marl and clay marl contain a greater proportion of ex-traneous matter. Their operation is slower, but very lasting.Land, 40 years after marling, has been found to bear a closerand better cover of grass than that which had been more recent-ly limed. Repetitions of this marl has had no good effect; norhas it succeeded well on land which had been limed before. Butthe application of lime has had sensible effects on land whichhad been marled. *
A new manure has been used by Mr Mitchell of Ayr, an ac-count of which is given in Mr Alton’s able report of that coun-ty. Sea water is evaporated by boiling, till there be no morewater left than can keep the salt in solution. With this, 32 Win-chester bushels of lime shells are slacked as manure for an acre,and moistened to the consistence of soaper ’s waste. This is ei-ther spread singly, or made into a compost with 40 cart loads ofpeatmoss; which last is reckoned preferable. It has been putin comparison with soaper’s. waste and dung, at the rate of 72cart loads per acre; and the former rather exceeded the latter.It has since stood the test of comparison with other dressings.Both the corn crops and succeeding hay crops were good. Ithas been found peculiarly favourable to the growth of wheat andbeans.
Gypsum has been little tried as a manure in Scotland , and ac-cording to the accounts given of the few trials which have beenmade, it has had little or no effect. The astonishing increase offertility, in Germany and North America , which this substanceis said to have produced, are certainly unaccountable. Yetthey are strongly supported by the experiments of Mr Smith ofTunstall in Kent, communicated to the Board of Agriculture.He states that from 3 to 6 bushels of this saline compound oflime, sparingly soluble in water, spread over an acre of differentspecies of herbage, had much more than doubled the produce,and left the soil in condition to yield a superior crop the follow-ing year. Unaccountable as this may be, there are other ope-rations of nature for which man is equallv unable to account.The well authenticated accounts of its efficacy should surelytherefore induce farther experiments. Should any of these provesuccessful, and the proper mode of application become betterknown, the great abundance of it which Mr Aiton reports is tobe had on the coast of Ayrshire near Balantrae, might be car-ried coastwise, and a great extent of country furnished with it,at a moderate rate.
' Soaper’s Waste is used as a manure in the neighbourhood of
f Perthshire Report.
Berwickslyre Repojt