Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1875-07-23
ASSIMILABLE NITROGEN As PLANT
FOOD.

The common agricultural mind needs
enlightenment IN regard to the uses
and nature Of nitrogen found in the or
gained parts Of all animals and all
plants without exception; and we deem
1t part Of our editorial duty to make
the subject as plain as possible. Let it
be understood that about % per cent.
or four-ffths Of the air that surrounds
the globe IS nitrogen. In this primary
conditioned pure gas it is not regarded
as IN q condition to serve as food for
plants; in other words 1t is not as SIM
liable in vegetable organisms. But an
electric spark passing through a thun-
der cloud seems to unite chemically at
mospheric nitrogen and oxygen gases
into nitric acid, which diluted in vapor
and falling in rain, is assimilable NJ
trogen in the cells Of any plant just as
water is assimilable oxygen and hydro
gen.
When plants decay IN a dung heap
or elsewhere liberated nitrogen COM
bines generally with hydrogen to form
amu1nia, which is an alkah, instead Of
oxygen 10 form nitric acid. As ammo
MA, nitrogen is soluble in water, and
assimilable in all plants. According to
Prof. Goessman, Of Massachusetts
State Agricultural College, nitrogen
available as manure Is worth IN Massa-
chusetts thirty cents a pound as a
standard price in Boston market.
This brings the most costly fertilizer up
10 $500 d ton. a homemade manure
developed by common thunder showers
and worth $500 a ton, should be
brought within the pale of good hus-
bandry, and the clear understanding Of
the good husbandman.
Mr.. J. B. Loves, of Rothamsted,
England, makes the following remarks
after thirty years experimenting:
Again. experiments at Rothamsted
.baye shown that there may be a con-
siderable loss Of nitrogen by drainage
IN the form Of nitrates; and such loss
Is likely to be much greater in light
than IN clayey soils. Lastly, the re-
suits obtained BY Reset, and at RO-
thamsted, on the decomposition Of or
ganic matter out of the soil, and more
recent results Of BOussingault and
Schlosing, on the decomposition which
takes place IN the soil itself, seem to
show that there may be an evolution Of
free nitrogen from the heterogeneous
matters of the manure even when
buried within the soil. On this latter
point 1t may be observed that, in the
experiments at Rothamsted, where
farmyard manure has been applied for
many years IN succession, the amounts
Of nitrogen recovered IN the increase
Of crop, together with those found to
be accumulated within the sOiltO a given
depth, are so far short Of the amounts
supplied IN the manure, that it is diff.
ficult to suppose that the whole Of the
efficiency Is to be accounted for by
drainage.
Finally, there remains the question
gen which really does reach the soil
and is not lost by drainage. The ex-
periments at ROthamsted have shown
that, where farmyard manure is annu-
ally employed, the percentage Of nitro
gen IN the upper layers Of the soil has
been more than doubled, compared with
that at an equal depthon the artifcially
MANFRED plots. Yet, notwithstanding
this great accumulation, and the appl-
cation OF fresh dung every year, the
annual use of very much less nitrogen
in the more active form of ammonia
salts, or nitrate of soda, yields as much
or more increase.
Plant food Of the same kind is far
more available IN one condition than IN
another. Thus, bones insoiuble IN
water nourish crops very slowly, but
ground and dissolved in acid, largely
diluted III water, they become assimil-
able at once. Quick acting. concen-
trated manure is what the farmer
wan:s-scmething easily transported
and cheaply applied Mr.. Loves ex-
pcriments prove that a farmer may
Icse four-ffths Of the most precious f.
ements in 4he manure either rIowad IN
or aruI:cd on the surface, by teaching
or in me other way. Weighing and
care(e. analyses show how much Of
costly nitrogen goes to the soil in fat
stable manure. and how much Is re-