Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1886-11-11
RAW MANURE.
Experience Of a Farmer Who Applied n
to Fruit Trees In the Fab.


nure is caused by exposure to the rain;
that the loss from evaporation is COM
paratively small. However this may
be. it is certain tina. the loss eitherway
is heavy enough to justify the farmer
in resortin9 to some method for apply
ing manure in a raw state. unless he is
much more careful in outstanding it
than most men are The ground itself
will save the manure. in all its valuable
constituents, better than any thing else,
plaster. bedding, or what not
/ have an orchard of about three
acres, containing orange, peach and
pear trees. Aside from commercial
fertilizers, have only the manure from
one horse to apply to it; and of this l
seek TO make the utmost. In October,
1885, i. began to apply this manure to
the frees in perfectly fresh condition
had always before shared in the gem
eral belief that it was risky to use it so,
that it ought to be composted; ana
was led to make this experiment
simply by the circumstance that l had
neglected to provide manure shed in
which to carry on the composing pro-
cess. Candor also compels the admis-
sion that composing seemed likely to
.plication. l went cautiously to work
The stable was well Uttered every time
t was cleaned, which was two or three
times a week; dried grass, weeds, sods,
sand, banana and other leaves. every
lhing was brought into use to absorb
the liquid part.
When the orchard had been plowed
ihe last time in the fall, contrary to my
DrderA the earth had been thrown from
the trees instead of toward them. This
had left a furrow three ar four feet
from the trees. We arrived from the
North the last week in October. 1t
was and is yet the general belief that
10 stir the earth around trees so late in
the fall will start them on new
growth, so forming soft Syood to be
killed by the frost about Christmas. So
L RETAINED from filling up these fur
rows, and used them as receptacles for
the manure wheeled fresh from the
stable
To prevent fermentation it was scat
tered thinly along for six or eight feet
opposite the tree. and covered with an
inch or two of soil sprinkleds on. When
there was no furrow near the tree, the
manure was spread out twO inches or
SO in thickness and covered with earth.
At first the horse was fed on corn,
oats or ground feed: but the neighbors'
chickens. in searching for the grain. so
scattered. the manure and Cts covering
that some Of il never stopped until it
reached the dead-furrOw between the
rows. Thereupon the grain feed was
discontinued and wheat bran substi-
tuted, pound for pound, with results
entirely satisfactory so far as the horse
was concerned; and the Chickens find
ing nothing to reward their labor,
eventually ceased scratching altogeth-
er. The rains falling on it leached the
manure. and the discolored soil for sew
eral inches around showed what loss
would have taken place if this element
had been allowed to wash away.
just before the trees began TO grow
in the spring the soil and the manure
were thoroughly mixed together with n
prong by the way, is the
best implement for stirring the soil I'M
der fruit trees and the manure had by
this time become so rotted that there
was nothing to be feared from its con-
tact with the roots.
The manure was applied this way all
last spring and summer, until such
time as it is generally considered I'M
advisable to apply it any longer for
that season. During the cool. moist
weather of winter little injury was to
have been expected, but when hot
weather came on, it might be perhaps
looked for. / now cover the manure
with both earth and mulching to pre-
vent heating. There was some very
hot, dry weather in June, and some of
the trees were not large enough to
shade the ground much. If n tree had
ht1O NJ tr1
or two of water on the manure, and
perhaps repeated this operation n few
days later. AS soon as one or two
good rains had fallen on the manure L
did not hesitate to work it into the soil
with the prong-hOe.
Now for results. During the driest
weather of June the extreme tips of
few rank-growing shoots turned, vel
low and died down several inches. but
am satisfied now that this was from
another cause than the manure. The
growth of wood this summer has been
remarkable. The leaves had that lusty,
black-green color which one may see in
a river corn-field.
One of my neighbors just across the
street, who is a excellent gardener, had
also the manure of one horse, and
about one-half more trees than have.
But he added to his supply ton of cot
ton seed and about half a dozen bar
rels of COW chips. The cotton seed
meal is valuable. but the cow chips are
worth only about as much as manure
made from wheat straw and long
weathered would be. He composted
his manure and forked it into the
ground, My trees have made de-
heavier and richer growth than
his. His peach and pear trees are
older than mine, and bore more fruit,
but his orange trees are about the same
size as mine. and they form the true
test of the manure. / am thoroughly
satisfied with the result.-Stepte1s Poao-
eTS, in Ohio Farmer.