The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1870-05-10
Fertilizers,

GeTtlIlZeGss
In the Mirror of April ID L find
something in regard to the use of concen-
trated fertilizers, in the report of the
meeting of the Chester Agricultural So
ciety. 1t seems that they were divided
in their opinions as to the use Of them.
Some approve of, others condemn, their
use, and say they will have nothing to do
with them. This is the case not only
among the farmers in Chester, but in
other towns, some declaring they pay a
large per cent. on the money invested in
them, while others argue that money is
expended foolishly in buying them, and
seem to scout the idea that such homeo-
pathic doses of tcrtilizing material should
tend to the increase Of crops. One old
farmer remarked the other day that " if
he only had enough of bone manure he
could raise crops" That we do not have
enough of it is one Of the reasons why
we have to resort to the use of concen-
trated manures. By using the different
kinds, and comparing the results with
those of good barn-yard manure (Which
one writer calls the d" backbone Of good
agriculture, we can arrive at some con-
clusion as to their real value, and not
condemn all of them because of some
worthless brands in the market. have
been experimenting with phosphates for
two years past, and think that it pays to
buy them. But, after all, the main de-
pendence for fertilizers should be that
manufactured on the farm. But few
have true idea of the enormous waste Of
tertilizing material which can be seen
on every hand. Almost every farmer is
guilty of it. IF anyone doubts the truth
Of the statement, let him look around and
figure up the amount, and l think it will
not be long before their doubts will be
removed, and they will acknowledge that
the half had never been told them. For
instance, look at the large number of
barns that have no cellar, no shed, nor
any other place where the manure can be
slowed away and be kept under cover
away from snow and rain, which teaches
and damages it. 1t is estimated that I'M
sheltered manure contains of potash and
soda 0S per cent, while sheltered manure
contains 2 per cent, which makes quite
a difference in the value of it when ap-
piled to the soil. 1t is estimated that a
cord of loan saturated with urine is equal
to cord of the best rotted dung. We
can therefore see that the farmer who
suffers the liquid portion of the excre-
ments of his stock to soak into the ground
under the stables, sustains a great loss.
This is but one of the ways in which fer
tilizing material is wasted on the farm.
We might enumerate the yarding of cat
tie in summer without having anything to
absorb the liquid droppings of the stock
placed in the yard. The water from the
sink, if mixed with dry muck or loan,
would make good fertilizer, and is
thought by some to be worth on an aver
age IS per annum, or one hundred dol.
lars every twenty years. Yet how few
save it There are other ways in which
this wretched waste of fertilizers is still
going on, but 1 will speak of but one more
at the present time, and that is the privy.
1t seems to be the rule, and not the ex.
ception, that the contents of the privy are
not properly taken care of as they should
be, and instead of enriching the soil as
they should, they are deemed loath-
some nuisance, Let us look for mo.
ment at their value. NJ. Baussingault
an eminent agriculturist and chemist
says that I" the solid and liquid excre
ment of man was on the average 61s
pounds per annum, containing eighteen
pounds of nitrogen,-a quantity sufficient
to grow $50 pounds of wheat" or l4i
bushels. One writer, in remarking OF
this subject, says, " Suppose We estimate
the forty millions Of men, women ant
children which are now thought to be il
the United States and Territories, equa
to twenty millions of men. Suppose al
the nitrogen from this source applied tt
the wheat crop; the product would be
according to M. Baussingault, tvo hun
bred and minety5fre million bushels
worth at the lowest average price of tn,
country, three hundred millions of dol
lars quite an item" Some enterpris
ing statistician says that ten or tifteel
years of well directed economy in saving
the fertilizing elements now suffered to b,
lost in this country, would pay the entir'
national debt. Let every farmer see t,
it that he is not guilty of this waste.
But to the experiment with phosphat,
which had in view. | planted som,
potatoes in drills. l selected three row
on one part of the piece, and planted
them as follows one row nothing bu
phosphate second, manure; third, ma
nure and phosphate. The phosphate wa
put in at the rate of half spoonful l.
every piece Of potatoe. The manure wa
strewed along the drill, one shovelfu
reaching about twice the length of tn
shovel blade. Phosphate row, little shor
Of Ia bushels; row with manure, littl
more than bushels; manure and phos
phate, two bushels /; cultivation the same
kind of potatoes planted, Early Rose
This was in 1869. In 1868, on the sam
piece, planted two rows, one with phos
phate and one with manure; result
phosphate row, three bushels; manur
row, 81 bushels. 1t is usual in expert
ments to be exact and give the number @
pounds, but in this case what | wished +
find out was whether or not it paid Il
buy phosphate. strewed some phos
phate along the drills of fodder corn afte
it came up, putting it on one or tw
rows and then skipping the same mum
Der, and l asked persons who passed tn
piece Of corn during the season to selec
the rows where the phosphate had bee
applied, and in every case they coul
easily do it. A man could tell with hi
eyes half shut, so marked was the differ
enee.
Farmers must feed the soil in order
have it feed them, and to do this the
must have fertilizers of some kind, and
has been we'll said that manure is tn
foundation and capstone Of farming.