The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-03-09
The Manure Heap.

NO question is discussed, says the An1ert-
can CWltiUGtor, so often as the manure
heap, and yet there is so much to be learned
from exchanging opinions and relating ex-
periences that one ventures to tackle it I'M
hesitatingly. A farmer friend of mine has
been experimenting with the doubtful pro-
cess of reducing unground bones by using
diluted suIphuric acid. The result has not
been satisfactory, although he was given to
understand that this was the way factories
obtained some of the strongest constituents
of their fertilizers. The acid he found was
an unhandy thing to use, and was very de-
structive to the flesh and clothes, and that it
seemed to require wasteful amount of it
to have any quick effect on the bones
When the labor was finally completed he
had large, sticky, unpleasant mass, which
need great deal Of working over with
other manures before it was fit for use.
AS bones are too valuable to the farmer to
waste when they are to be had for nothing,
some other method will hereafter be adopted
by my friend to reduce the bones to some
available condition. This can be done in
several ways, and the work be clean, I'M
wasteful and profitable. They may be re-
duced by the action of ashes in a very easy
and simple way. The bones should be
coarsely broken with an ak, and then laid
on loan bed while they are sprinkled
plentifully with water. Then cover them
with layer of wood ashes, followed by a
layer of wood ashes, followed by a layer
of land plaster. This operation is repeated
until large pile is formed, care being
taken to wet the heap continually as the
work proceeds. 1t Will require several
weeks before the bones will be softened, but
at that time the whole mass can be worked
over. Such a mass of fertilizing material
will be Of the greatest value to the land,
and wherever the ingredients can be OBJ
tanned without much cost the farmer should
construct his own commercial fertilizer
heap.
Another process of reducing the bones is
to make layers of fermenGing horse manure
and cracked bones, keeping the whole pile
moist with manure liquid. This process
will be even longer than tbs first, but not so
expensive. Potash can be used in the place
of ashes in the first instance, provided that
| 1t has been dissolved in water before appli-
cation.
| In England and France another element,
| not used much in this country, is employed
for certain crops, but chiefly in the form of
a top dressing. Copperas, or iron sulphate,
is highly valuable on many soils, and when
used in proper quantities it benefits the
4
on potatoes, but no one should attempt to
use it unless he is willing to measure it ex-
actly and apply it according to some rule.
| IL is one of those elements which, while
beneficial when used in proper quantities, Is
highly injurious when applied In large
quantities. If applied as a top dressing at
| the rate of fifty-siX to 112 pounds per acre,
according TO the needs of the soil and crops
| after the crops have appeared above the
4 rrOund III will ba of great h0nptik A
| larger quantity than this is fatal to growth.
| If applied dry it should be put on right after
| a rain. 1t may be applied in solution, or
| finely powdered mixed with ten times its
| own bulk of sand.
In handling the manure, heap properly
| through the winter. Farmers can learn
lesson or two from market gardeners, who
of all tillers of the soil, apply the best and
latest methods to their work. Successful
market gardeners, while using great deal
of artificial fer tilizers, lay great stress upon
their home made manure heap. The manure
heap is damaged by having it too large or
| too small. If very small continuously cold
weather will lower its temperature so that
| fermentation will be checked. On the
| other hand, if it is too large, then fermen-
| tation may go on so rapidly that the inside
| of the heap will be literally burned out.
| Nitrogen in the form of volatile ammonia
will escape II overwhelming goes on, and this
is one of the greatest losses that can hap
pen to the heap. Over-heating can be de-
| tected by the sense of smell and by the
smoking of the pile. As soon as these signs
are manifested, the pile should be broken
down and the inside of the heat brought
out on the surface. When forking the pile
over, it is well to break up all the thick,
| lumpy masses, as this will greatly help for
ward the mechanical processes OF its decom-
| pnaitiOn