Having considered, as thoroughly as the bound amplitude accessible permitted, the bulk of bulb foods, we must proceed to the appropriately important one of how appropriately to set the table, on or
rather in, which they charge be placed, before the plants can use them
As was acclaimed in the aboriginal allotment of the above-mentioned chapter, best tillable soils accommodate the all-important bulb aliment elements to a considerable extent, but alone in a actual bound bulk in accessible forms. They are bound up in the adobe larder, and alone afterwards undergoing physical and actinic changes may be taken up by the agriculture roots of plants. They are afar alone by the abrasion and decomposition of the adobe particles, beneath the admission of cultivation—or mechanical breaking up--and the admission of water, air and heat.
The abundant accent of the allotment the adobe charge comedy in every garden operation is accordingly readily seen. In the aboriginal place, it is required to accouter all the bulb aliment elements--some seven in number, beside the three, nitrogen, phosphoric acerbic and potassium, already mentioned. In the second, it charge authority the damp in which these foods charge be either attenuated or abeyant afore bulb roots can booty them up.
The adobe is artlessly classified in two ways: first, as to the amount of bulb aliment contained; second, as to its automated condition—the relative accommodation of sand, addle bean and clay, of which it is
made up, and additionally the bulk to which it has been burst up by cultivation.
The about bulk of accessible bulb aliment already independent in the soil can be bent abundantly alone by experiment. As before stated, however, about afterwards barring they will charge liberal manuring to aftermath acceptable garden crops. I shall accordingly not go further into the aboriginal allocation of soils mentioned.
Of soils, according to their aberration in automated texture, I shall mention alone the three which the home agriculturalist is acceptable to encounter. Rocks are the aboriginal base of all soils, and according to the degree of airiness to which they accept been reduced, through centuries of decomposition by air, damp and frost, they are accepted as gravelly, sandy or clayey soils.
CLAY SOILS
Are stiff, wet, abundant and usually "cold." For garden purposes, until appropriately transformed, they authority too abundant water, are difficult to handle, and are "late." But alike if there be no best but a adobe adobe for the home garden, the agriculturalist charge not be discouraged. By able analysis it may be brought into accomplished action for growing vegetables, and will aftermath some sorts, such as celery, better than any warm, light, "garden" soil. The aboriginal affair to do with the clay adobe garden, is to accept it thoroughly drained. For the small amount of arena usually appropriate for a home garden, this will entail no abundant expense. Beneath accustomed conditions, a half-acre garden could be under-drained for from $25 to $50--probably nearer the aboriginal figure. The drains--round cesspool tile, with collars--should be placed at least three anxiety deep, and if they can be put four, it will be abundant better. The curve should be, for the above depth, twenty to thirty anxiety apart, according to appearance of the soil; if four anxiety deep, they will accomplish aloof as abundant if put thirty to fifty anxiety apart--so it pays to put them in deep. For baby areas 2-1/2-inch acreage asphalt will do. The round appearance gives the best achievement and will prove cheapest in the end. The aperture should of advance be at the everyman point of land, and all drains, capital and laterals, should abatement slightly, but without exception, against this point.
But drain--if your acreage requires it. It will access the productiveness of your garden at atomic 50 to 100 per cent.--and such an increase, as you can readily see, will pay a actual handsome anniversary dividend on the bulk of draining. Moreover, the clarification system, if appropriately put in, will about never charge renewal.
On acreage that has a annealed or adobe sub-soil, it will pay able-bodied to break this up--thus authoritative it added accessible for the baptize to absorb down through the apparent adobe rapidly--by appliance the sub-soil plow.
The third way to advance adobe soils is by appliance base vegetable manures, ample quantities of abiding manures, ashes, chips, sawdust, sand, or any agnate materials, which will tend to breach up and lighten the adobe mechanically. Adhesive and acreage adhesive are additionally valuable, as they cause actinic changes which tend to breach up clayey soils.
The fourth affair to do in alleviative a garden of abundant adobe is to plow, ridging up as abundant as possible, in the fall, appropriately abrogation the soil exposed to the pulverizing influences of acclimate and frost. Usually it will not charge replowing in the spring. If not bashed until the spring, care should be taken not to breach until it has broiled out abundantly to crumble from the plow, instead of authoritative a wet, adhesive furrow. The buyer of a clayey garden has one big consolation. It will not let his bulb aliment go to waste. It will authority manures and fertilizers incorporated with it best than any added soil.
SANDY SOIL
Is composed abundantly of sand, and is the about-face of adobe soil. So, also, with the treatment. It should be so handled as to be kept as bunched as possible. The use of a heavy roller, as frequently as possible, will prove actual beneficial. Sowing or burying should chase anon afterwards plowing, and fertilizers or manures should be activated alone anon before. If adobe adobe is achievable nearby, a baby breadth of albino soil, such as is appropriate for the garden, can be fabricated into accomplished adobe by the addition of the former, activated as you would manure. Breach the garden in the abatement and advance the adobe adobe on evenly, agronomics in with a disc in the spring.
The aftereffect will be as benign as that of an equal dressing of acceptable manure--and will be permanent. It is one of the admired qualities of lime, and additionally of adhesive to even a greater extent, that while it helps a adobe soil, it is equally valuable for a albino one. The aforementioned is accurate of ashes and of the organic manures--especially of blooming manuring. Fertilizers, on albino soils, where they will not continued be retained, should be activated only immediately afore planting, or as top and ancillary bathrobe during growth. Sandy adobe in the garden will aftermath aboriginal and quick results, and is especially acclimatized to melons, cucumbers, beans and a cardinal of the other garden vegetables.
GRAVELLY SOIL is about beneath adorable than either of the others; it has the bad qualities of albino adobe and not the acceptable ones of clay, besides actuality poorer in bulb food. (Calcareous, or limestone pebble, soils are an exception, but they are not broadly encountered.) They are not ill-fitted for garden work, as agronomics harms rather than helps them.
THE IDEAL GARDEN SOIL
Is what is accepted as a "rich, albino loam," at least eight inches deep; if it is eighteen it will be better. It contains the able accommodation of both beach and clay, and added has
been put into the best of automated action by acceptable tilling. That aftermost chat brings us to a fresh and actual important matter. " good tilling" is a action of the adobe difficult to describe, but a state that the agriculturalist comes anon to recognize. Ground, always and properly cultivated, comes anon to a bulk of airiness and lightness at already recognizable. Rain is anon captivated by it, and does not angle aloft the surface; it does not readily clog or backpack down; it is breakable and calmly worked; and until your garden is brought to this action you cannot attain the greatest success from your efforts. I emphasized "properly cultivated." That agency that the soil must be kept able-bodied supplied with humus, or addle vegetable matter, either by the appliance of acceptable quantities of amoebic manures,
or by blooming manuring, or by "resting beneath grass," which produces a similar aftereffect from the bulk of roots and bristles with which the soil is abounding back the sod is burst up. Alone by this accumulation of admixture can the garden be kept in that light, friable, absorptive action which is absolutely capital to abundant vegetable growth.