The patron of husbandry. (Columbus, Miss.) 1875-1883, 1881-04-16

Master of the State Grange.
Fresh Points About Fertilizers.
Charles w. Dabney, Jr., Director
of the North Carolina Agricultural
Experiment Station, sends to the
New York Cotton" the following
information, which he has issued in
the form of a circular to planters:
''Just at this time the i'm portant
question with farmers is: How can
the best manure be made at the least
cost? Ali will find it necessary to
supplement their natural home ma
nures with fertilizers or with chem
icals. In answer to this question, |
must say, first, a good manure can
only be made out of good materials,
and good materials cost something.
The recipes which are hawked about
the country for making manure out
of worthless materials are humbugs.
The farmer aims to supply the
four great elements of plant food,
phosphoric acid, ammonia, potash
and lime-all, or in part, according
to the demand eff his soil or crop.
If be does not get these already
mixed for him in fertilizer he
must buy chemicals and mix them
for himself; using at the same time
all the home materials he has. The
question is, in what form can he buy
these things cheapest? The best
and cheapest source of these sub
stances now iwithin reach of our
farmers are, for available phospho-
rio acid, dissolve S. c.. phosphate;
for ammonia, sulphate of ammonia
or potential ammonia in fish scraps,
slaughter.house offal, ETC.; for pot
ash muriate of potash, for fine to-
bacco, sulphate of potash); for lime,
ground plaster. Where dissolved
bones or S. c. phosphate are used
it is generally not necessary to buy
pull phate of lime in addition, as these
contain it. Some of the costly
chemicals called for by formulas
supplied farmers by the dealers are
comparatively unneeded. The mon
ey often put in sulphate of magne-
STA and sui phate of soda, for exam
pie, had better be put in more of
the more valuable ingredients. I
do not recommend buying nitrate
of soda ordinarily now, neither. At
present prices sulphate of ammonia
affords nitrogen cheaper. Nitrate
of soda, at six cents per pound, sup
plies nitrogen equivalent TO only
seventeen per cent. of ammonia,
while sulphate of ammonia, at five
and half cents per pound, sup
plies twenty-five cents of ammonia.
The nitrate has further, advantage,
too, of being SO very soluble in wa
ter that it is in large part washed
our of the soil and thus lost to the
plants. Lawes and Gilbert establish
ed, this for their clay soils at Rotn-
amstead by careful experiments. 1t
must be much truer of our soils.
Similarly | recommend muriate of
potash Except for fine tobacco) in
preference to the sulphate. High
grade sulphate OF potash, at two
and a half cents a pound, contains
only about twentyseven per cent.
of potash while the muriate, as
three cents per pound, contains fifty
per cant.
Farmers should write to me and
tell me what materials they have at
their disposal or can get, and | will
make up formulas for them suited
to the crops they want 10 cultivate
| have recommended the following
formulas frequently this season:
"For corn dissolve bone contain
ing Is per cent. available phos. acid,
500 pounds; muriate of potash, con-
tanning SO per cent of potash. 100
pounds, mould, LOO pounds; total,
1000 pounds; 400 pounds per acre in
the hill. This would cost per ton
| 600 pounds dissolved bone $1,000,
400 pounds muriate of potash So .oo)
$1,000.
For cotton-Acid phosphate, II
per cent. available phos acid, 600
pounds; sulphate of ammonia p per
cent. ammonia; 100 pounds; muri-
| ate OF potash, SO per cent. of pot
ash, 100 pounds; twenty-five bush
els cotton seed, or about 600 pounds
rotted stable manure, muck or mould
600 pounds; total, 1000 pounds.
The sulphate of ammonia and mu-
rate of potash to be dissolved in
water and sprinkled on the heap.
This will cost: 600 pounds acid phos-
phate, 5000; 100 pounds of sulphate
OF ammonia, S. SO; 100 pounds of
muriate OF potash, $500; 22 bushels
of cotton seed about $275-$2o.25
per ton. Three hundred pounds per
acre. Directions for composing
will be gladly supplied on applica-
| ton"