. The Southern States. and facilitates ample drainage; it iswell watered by fast-flowing streams,many of which can be utilized withgreat profit for irrigation purposes. In addition to the usual well-known chemical constituents, sonecessary to the perfect growth of allplant life, this soil contains one ele-ment in more soluble form and ingreater quantity than is found in thesoil of any other State devoted to likepurposes, and which is absolutely es-sential to perfect growth and maturityand high quality of product; that ele-ment is silica. The cost of growing sugar-cane inthis section excels in
. The Southern States. and facilitates ample drainage; it iswell watered by fast-flowing streams,many of which can be utilized withgreat profit for irrigation purposes. In addition to the usual well-known chemical constituents, sonecessary to the perfect growth of allplant life, this soil contains one ele-ment in more soluble form and ingreater quantity than is found in thesoil of any other State devoted to likepurposes, and which is absolutely es-sential to perfect growth and maturityand high quality of product; that ele-ment is silica. The cost of growing sugar-cane inthis section excels in cheapness that ofany other section of country in theworld. It is authoritatively stated that ongood new lands in Cuba, and with suc-cessful cultivation, an average yield oftwenty-seven and one-half tons peracre can be had for five years. Onthe same authority it is said, that inLouisiana a good yield of plant istwenty-two tons. In .South Floridathe average is set down at twenty-fourtons per acre. Here a yield of twenty-. >C?^^^0<=0^0©°0«^rvooooc^^4y^ r THE HILL COUNTRY OF FLORIDA. 271 two tons per acre is considered smallfor ordinary land. As a matter of fact,first years cleared lands yielded fromthirty-five to forty tons per acre with-out fertilizer. In considering the question of fer-tilization and in noting the fact thatcrops are raised for so many successiveyears in this section without fertilizers,it is well enough to know that naturehas provided an ever-present annualrestorative to the soil in the shape of arankly-growing weed called desmo-dium, which springs up spontaneouslyin June of every year, wherever the sur-face of the ground has been stirred,and by the end of the year it leaves acrop of stems, leaves and roots weigh-ing an average of ten tons to the to Mr. Collier, of the Agri-cultural Department, there are eightpounds of potash, sixrteen pounds ofphosphoric acid and forty pounds ofammonia to each ton of this turning this crop under
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubj, booksubjectagriculture
