Vermont farmer. [volume] (Newport, Orleans County, Vt.) 1870-1877, 1874-02-13

port my own experiments in the use Of COM
mercial fertilizers will commence with
Plaster,
which is used great deal in this vicinity.
When sown on grass land have seen no
benefit from its use, even when heavy coat
ing was applied. Spots Of ground were
thickly covered, and others left without any
plaster. At haying time no one could tell
where it had or had not been used. The
same trial was made in low land pasture
with the same result Do not think Il pays
to buy it to put on corn. To SOW on grass
land Immediately after spreading on green
stable manure l consider it very useful Al.
so to use on squash aud potato vines. am
aware that many farmers would report diff
ferently, but l am not now giviog their opin.
ion but my own.
have used but little, and with no apparent
benefit. Consider it worth something to
keep down weeds in gardens, but have not
found it profitable as a field manure But
the
Potato Mixture,
which l saw very highly recommended in
some horticultural publication was one Of the
most useless preparations which l ever heard
Of 1t consisted of lime, ashes and salt, in
certain proportions, (which do not now
remember) all to be carefully mixed. fol-
lowed the directions closely, and planted my
potatoes. The seed was apparently as good
as any ever planted, but about a quarter of
it failed to grow. My father said the mix
ture which put in the hills killed tn, seed,
aud am inclined to think he was right
When we dug the potatoes we found very
few tubers, and at the bottom Of the hills
that mixture lay as hard as junk of old
mortar. The next year chose tfor spec.
ial reasou) to deviate from my usual course
and plant the same land to potatoes again.
manred it with material from the barn
yard, but as the season was unfavorable did
not get many potatoes. The old mixture
was there that fall and apparently unchanged.
| then powed and seeded down the land
| Have TO idea that | ever received one cents s
worth of benefit from that miserable mix
ture Rain, and snow, aud frost, ploughing,
aud narrowing, and hoeing seemed TO have
no influence on it whatever Either the ash
es or the lime, alone. would have been use
full, the salt might have been worth little,
but the mixture was as worthless aud inert
stuff as ever saw.
COe's Superph Osphate Of Lime,
also gave trial, and from it received some
benefit, but not enough to pay its cost.
am aware that there are two men by the
name of Coe who manufactured this article.
Have forgotten which ones purchased but
in his circular he claimed that his was a
great deal better than that made by the 9TH
er Coe. made up my mind decidedly that
1t would not pay me to buy it and did not
preserve the circular. Some of my neigh.
bors were extensively using
Fish GuAno,
and not wishing to fall behind in the march
of improvement, bought half ton to use
on my corn land mixed it with an equal
quantity of rich loan and put it in the hills
covered it when planting. Corn came up
well but looked very yellow. 1t did moi
grow we'll for long time, and although il
was on very good land, the crop was very
light. The next year used barnyard ma.
nure and no guano, and had heavy yield o.
corn. Think received some benefit from il
the second year and if, instead Of putting it
in the hills, had scattered it broadcast and
narrowed it in, should have had fair croT
the first year. Have no doubt that it is th'
cheapest and best commercial fertilizer ev
er used, but am convinced that it must b,
properly and carefully used in order to give
good results. Last year tried
stevens Mineral Fertilizer,
which cost me s25 per ton, aud doubt if i
was worth So. | admit that it was baC
year to test anything of the kind, but if ha(
put my money into fish guano | think
should have been great deal better of.
would not give five dollars for ton Of th'
Mineral " if it could be delivered here io
that price. have no confidence in it.
also gave the celebrated dried seH weed fer
tilizer called
KsIp,
a trial last year, price forty dollars per ton
Used it both on dry and wet land, and Cal
see no benefit in either place. Whethe
another and more favorable season will shoy
, any Improvement do not know. Have Ii
, idea that it is worth one-half what it cost
and should not be surprised it the cost of ap
= plying it were about all it would be worth
Until see more evidences of its value tha
l have yet, l shall buy no more Of it at an
price.
So much for my own experiments wit
, commercial fertilizers. On some soils an
. in some climates the results Of such expert
$ ments might be very different. Fertilizer
+ which seem of no value here may, in som
other localities, prove of great benefit, Will
those which are useful here may be WORTHLESS
elsewhere. Every farmer who is obliged
I buy should experiment carefully, and on
!. small scale, with the leading articles in maj
ket. He can thus decide whioh it will bsi
h pay him to obtain.
A But in closing this article wish to declar
$ my emphatic and unqualified belief that ms