Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1880-06-02
The Atwater Fertilizer Experiments.


OF elegance and taste, by grace refined.
The Atwater Fertilizer Experiments.
Mr. Tobey, in his remarks upon the fail
ure of his anticipations, no less in the use
of chemical fertilizers than with barn ma
nure last season, says al believe the ex-
periments prove little, except how great diff
ference in the productive capacity of our
soils exists in comparatively small areas"
This alone is paying knowledge. These ex-
periments have brought il strongly home to
to the minds of many who, perhaps, ought
to have learned it sufficiently by observa-
ton of the land when under grass No man
who walks over his mowings spring and fall
can fail to notice the rapid alienation of
good and poor spots. spotty moving field
is the rule rather than the exception on
New England farms. The causes of these
poor spots are various, and it is not always
due to poverty of the soil. Bad seed, bad
sowing and bad catch have much to do
with their existence. STILL on rich ground
in right order grass soon comes in on spots
missed in sowing, or where bad seed or ac-
cident has made a vacancy. careful far
mer with a bright eye to profit will go over
his seedlings the first year, and see that ex-
ira seed is scratched in on bare spots, and
some fine manure spread there and on thin
places to encourage growth and equaize the
yield. Much can be done in this way to
make land even not less for succeeding
crops than for the grass. With all this care
we shall still find grass thick in the says
and thin on the ridges, which will teach us
the wisdom of thorough preparation of
the land and the use of eveling tools to get
as even a surface as possible. When we see,
by the absence Of good grass and the pres
ence of sedges, that drainage is lacking here
and there, it will often pay to dig out holes
in the center of such spots, four or five feet
deep, fill them up to within sixteen inches
of the top with small stones, and then level
hard pan spots are only two or three rods
across this treatment will cure them cheaply.
If more extensive, we must resort to tiles.
A good soil doctor is worth more to land
that horse doctor is to horses. The pa
tient does not die so easy, and if one remedy
fails we may yet try another. One thing is
certan-the coming farmer is not going to
be content with stumpy, rocky, rough UNI
even, spotty land. He is going to do his
best to make it as tillable, smooth, even, and
uniform as possible. If you have an acre
of ill-ftted land scattered about in two or
three rod patches on ten acre field, it is
much more important to reclaim that scat
tered acre than any compact acre on the
farm. The compact acre can be left alone,
but this scattered acre must be cultivated,
MANFRED and seeded with the rest, the
work, manure and seed being often total
loss, year after year.
Mr.. Tobey continues "While / do not
consider the experiments as proving any
thing, they may tend to show that l could
proftably use potash with some superphos-
phate for corn, and perhaps get fair crop
on good sod with no other fertilizer, saw
ing the stable manure for the grass crop. If
can do this it is point gained, but the
chemicals cost us too high here" Mr..
Toboy'o conclusions hero oApressed are
substantially the same as those ventured by
us last week. AS to the too high cost of
fertilizers, all farmers who keep accounts are
agreed in regard to that. Even with good
crop there is little profit left at the usual
price of farm products, while we must bear
all losses from bad seasons and other acct
dents. Farming is very close business at
best. With his land paid for and fair
cash capital to work it, there has to be bust
ness" in man before he can bring out sat
isfactory profits from his Investments and
labor, on an average American farm. Be-
sides good health, industry and skill in buy
ing and selling and in the mechanical work
of his profession, farmer needs to know all
that observation, reflection and science can
teach him, in order to make his business
really satisfactory. As to fertilizers, the
majority of our Vermont farmers have no
business with them at any price, and GER
tainly not at the going prices. The decline
of five or ten dollars ton from the rate of
standard superphosphates since the flush
times bears no fair proportion to the de.
cline in the price of the products which we
expect to make with them. And the old
price was too high, to begin with. The
manufacturers think they cannot sell cheaper,
and with the agency and credit system it is
probable that firstclass, highly manufac-
tured superphosphate with two or three per
cent OF nitrogen cannot be delivered on the
railroads in Vermont at much less than $40
per ton. If our farmers would club together
and buy direct in carloads for cash, prob
ably it could be delivered at $35. In our
wooden country it is absurd to import pot.
ash from Germany. The wood wasted and
decaying on all our farms, if gathered and
carefully burned, would furnish large guam
titles OF ashes, while the clearing of the
poor, dead and decaying wood from our
woodlands for this purpose would be ben
eft to the rest. Many of our soils require
very little potash. Ga all the stronger ones
the use of plaster would develop all of that
substance needed for an indefinite period
Under drainage has the same effect on wet
lands. As to phosphoric acid, as long as
thousands of tons of bones are kicking
about on our farms aud around our vii
lagos, we have no right to send to South
America or South Carolina for it, And
when we come to nitrogen, the most costly
OF all, man may almost be called insane
who will let the liquids from his stables 90
to waste and send to Peru for the very ma
terial that is soaking into the ground under
his tie-up and washing into the brooks and
hollows from his barn.yard. This liquid
manure is rich, not only in nitrogen worth
twenty-five cents pound, or costing that
when purchased but it is also rich in
potash and phosphoric acid Ten dollars
per COW is very moderate estimate for the
loss where all is wasted. We see that the
fancy farmers are making another raid on
muck. and denouncing it as worthless.
There are beds of poor muck, we know, but
Vermont is full of deposits that, properly
utilized in connection with ashes on light
soils and lime on strong ones, will Of any
thing wilD enable us to raise potatoes at
thirty-fve cents and corn at fifty cents and