The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1888-02-09
THE N. C.. AGRICULTURAL EX-.
PERTINENT STATION WHAT.
1T HAS DONE IN THE PAST
WHAT 1T PROPOSES TO DO
IN THE FUTURE.

-
by an Act of General Assembly in
1877, just ten years ago, which Act
the same time established a Depart
ment of Agriculture and of Immigra-
ton and Statistics. .
The objects for which the establish
ment of the Experiment Station We're
desired were two-fold:
lst. To protect the farmers of the
State fran the fraudulent fertilizers
then flooding the market, to exercise
a general control of the trade by a
system of inspecting all brands legally
on sale in the State, and by a chemi-
cal analysis of these samples to ascer-
tain if their qualities were up to a
certain guaranteed standard.
End. To carry on experiments in
the field Gin the language of the Code)
"On the nutrition and growth Of
plants with d view to ascertain what
fertilizers are best suited to the vari-
Gus crops of this State, and whether
other crops may not be advantage
ously grown on its SOIL"
AS to whether the Station has full
filled the requirements in respect to
. the first, in the proper central of the
fertilizer trade, the following state
ment will show.
. /. Prior to 1887 no less than l25
brands of fertilizers were sold in the
State, and of such a character that no
confidence could be placed in them o r
their qualities. A good fertilizer pro-
ducing excellent crops the first year
might prove worthless the next. The
farmers had absolutely no redress. On
every hand fraudulent fertilizers were
sold and no farmer could by any pos
sible way tell whether t~hree-fourths
or nine-tenths was sand. The people
had lost all confidence in their sale and
at the time of the establishment of the
Experiment Station scarcely 0 1000
tons were sold annually, not from the
fact that all fertilizers were made at
home (would that it could be so y but
owing to the entire loss of confidence
everyone had in the trade. What
were the people to do-the use of fer
tilizers for plant food on most of our
lands is as necessary to the growth of
the crop as food is tt a baby.
They must be used, there is no help
for it, and yet the farmers of the year
1877 and before, were paying millions
of dollars annually for sand to haul
on the soil, in many instances already
too sandy.
In fact a certain manufacturer sold
many tons of a stuff containing COM
mon sand, which he claimed was as
good as ammonia, and the farmers paid
him 8 cents per pound for it, because
they had no e for proving that it
was valueless.
2. After the law went into force, 80
out of these l25 fertilizeos were
driven from the State, and the remain
der were greatly improved in quality
and have continued to improve ever
since. The following extract from the
Stations Report, for 1886, will give to
our farmers some idea of the improve
ment of the fertilizers sold.
The average percent Of available
phosphoric acid has increased from
$7.40 in 1880 to $500 in 1886 the
average per cent. of potash has in
creased from $1.3O in 1880 to $3.50
in 1886, while the per cent. of ammonia
remains remarkably neal one figure
for all the years except 1888, when
ammoniates were unusually scarce.
Thus the valuation of the average fer
~tilizer, using the prices of 1886 for all
analyses alike, has, with a few fiuctu-
%ations, steadily climbed up from
$2l.04 per ton in 1880. to S24.52 per
ton in 1885, and $23.44 in 1886. The
most remarkable thing is that during
this period, 1880 to 1886, the actual
cash prices paid by North Carolina
farmers for these fertilizers has le-
creased % per cent, while the quality
or grade has improved IA per cent.
This means that North Carolina farm
ers could get, in 1886, for three mill
ions of dollars what they had to pay
four millions for in lS9O-yes, and
get an article o~ne-seventh better than
the 1880 article was. M
3. The station has endeavored to ex-
tend information on all matters per-
tanning to scientific agriculture by
printing numerous publications-oyer
sixty separate reports, pamphlets,
formulas for composts, tables of anal.
Uses of fertilizers, &c. 10000 of
these publications have been distribu-
ted broadcast throughout the State,