Marl As A Fertilizer

Marl is the naine givwi to a natural mixture of carbonaté ut lime, clay,Hnd siliciotH smul. According is the linie, elay, or s.ind prefkiininatM Uie marl is classed as calcareoilt, cluyey, or sandy. The carbonate of II. pis l often In the lnrm ni minute shells wlmsc Blructure m.iy be olenrly een by tbe akl of Qiitjrnifyliig K A very vlnable niarl, knowii hs 'irreea Mtndv'it found in nianv partooi New Jersey, li is (he resnlt cif a deooitl' ( ¦- it i ii ct rocka conlainijuc Hmo '" atfr Icate. In portions of Canad'i a whitisli clay marl is foiind wliioh producá excellent lesults wlien applie I to laad devoted io graat and graia. The vaiue ot marl as afeitiliri vukonwn to t he micieiit Uornitos, [tiMlIUB n.sril by tliu ancient Uaui ami ïiritons, tiioujrh thi-y praetloed a very rudesuitot husbandry and made very little use ot r.oinmoii nmnuie. In Germany, Fr. mee, an Creal Bril iím nnnli attent ion has been given to mnrl. Specimens from all the large deponltg li.ive bren iiialyzed in order to m-cerluin their commercial value. In mmiy places win Te Uure arn goud lucilities for transportation t is au arricie ol commeroe, and many marl-beds are soureev of wealth to tlie owoera, That vast quantitie8 of excellent marl exisl ii various puts ot tbe west is altogethr likeiv tboaxb few attemptt have been made to discover or utilize them .Marl is ol'ten tound at the bottom of pe it or miick iwampa, and in ravincs and olber low places. It Is penerally fouud quite iienr the suitace, belng eovered by Bome vegetable toi inalions. Sometlmet there is notliinir bilt a turf or grass over it. It is onlinarily of a tlatt or blutth-wMte color, heavy, wet, and gomewhat sponj;y. lis ttrfaoe is touitUmet Maekened by tlie dark soil that rBfts upon it or the humus tbitt lias been depoilted on it. On exposure to the air on a dry spot of laad it parts wiih its molslure and becomes a white crumbly mass, and quite liyht in weifiht. [il ihis condition it is easily spread over the land. It is a commoii practlce to dit; marl in tlie lal], to draw it to the placel where it is wauted, and allow it to remain in heaps like manure till the followlog spring, wnen it is ipread over the green sward or plóugbed 'and. If the land is hilly or slopin;;, most of the marl is applied to the burher portion, froni which it will graduallv tind its way to those that are lower On level land it should be gproad iiniformly over all tlie surf'ace. To dlltingalah marl fraffi whitish clay or sandy loam it isoulv necessary to ponr any kind of acid on a sample of it placed In a cup. If it is marl it will efiervesce like ordinary limestone or carbonate of soda. This ellervesence is caused by the escape of carbonic acid trom the carbonate ot lime, of which the marl is largelycomposed. If there is mucli eft'ervesencü the marl is considered ricli ; if there id bilt little it is regarded as poor. The vulue of marl is generally rated by the amount of linie it contains. Shell marl generally contains a small quantity of pbosphoric acid, which is very valuable for produclng all kinds of erops, but is espeeially valuable for increasing the yield of giain. Marl pioduces excellent results when applied as a top dressing to grau laiuls, either pasture or meadow. It Miniulates the irowth of jtrassand cloverawd causes them tokill out weedaand mtntT Itdoes nol cause ;;rass and dover to grow rank as they do wlitu fresh dung is applied to the Boil, neither does it inipart 'i disareeable llavor to them. Like other forms of linie, it correéis the aeidity of soils and improves the QuaDtlty of the most valuable planta. Grass on land that has received 0116 appliraiion of marl is generally of a rlcll green color, sweet and thiek. Marl should not be mi.ed with ordinary manure, as it Is likely to drive oft' the aiiimonia it contaius. If mixed with peat or muck, however, it produces a good effect. Applied to land under eultivation, it benelits tlie soil in two ways. It is of physical advantage in rendering hard, clayey soils more loóse, so they can be more readily worked. Chemioally it aflords lood to most plants, as the ;rain8, (Cmiinn. and clovers wlii'e it peffOflSI an Important office It) haetenlng the decay of vegetublu matter on which plants feed. Cold and damp soils are jiieatly benetited by an BDpfloallOil of marl. It neutrali.es the aeids (blind in humus and cnables itto produce valuable erop, An applieatinn ot marl to land produces an inimediate effect on the erop growinji on it. lts benelieial inlliieme also continúes for many years. Tlie more often it Is disturbed hy the plow, cultivator, or harrow tbe taster will it ilisintegiale and the more etl'uetual will be its resulta. lts temleney is to sink Ou light soils, espeeially wben they are under eultivation, but the plow will serve to bring it to the surfaee iigam any time it is u-èd. Marl Is the clemirit fertili.er, except irvpsum, that can be applied to tbe land. It is alto very easy to handle.