The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1892-04-01

FERTILIZERS.
How and When to Use Ground Bone.
Sulphate of Ammonia as Plant Food.

FEn IElZERS.
How and When to Use Ground Bone
Sulphate of Ammonia as Plant Food.
The New Jersey stations valuation
Of the year 1891 for the nitrogen ani
phosphoric acid in ground bone of The
different grades Of tineness is about II
per cent. lower than in 1890. Ground
bone is in good repute among farmers
and many when buying complete fertil
izers reject those brands in the prepara-
tion of which bone has not been the chief
material used. The reasons for this are
ascribed to lack Of familiarity with the
phosphates from other sources, the de-
velopment and use of which have been
comparatively recent, and also to more
permanent effect observed from the use
of bone. An important consideration in
the use of manures, especially on poor
lands, is permanent enrichment. Bone
is suited to attain this object, and other
materials cannot be well substituted for
it, although they may 10 called by the
same name and be quite as valuable from
commercial standpoint
When farmer is satisfied that ground
bone is a useful fertilizer for his condi-
tions of soil and methods of practice, it
is believed at the station that it is more
economical and satisfactory for him to
buy it as such rather than in the form
of complete fertilizer of which it forms
the base; first, because the same kind
and quality Of fertilizing ingredients are
much cheaper, and, second, because of a
reasonable certainty that what is bought
Is really bone. AS regards dissolved
bone and superphosphates with potash,
the samples examined at the New Jersey
station this year were of good quality
and with few exceptions fully up to
their guarantee, which in connection
with their selling price would seem to
make them valuable substitutes for COM
plete manures. So, in many cases (of
which wheat is given as one). according
to the station bulletin, the cheaper super
phosphates with potash may be quite IS
effective for certain crops as complete
manure containing low percentage Of
nitrogen.
Sulphate Of ammonia is Of special in
terest to the agriculturist, as, with the
exception Of Peruvian guano, it is the
only commercial source of ammonia
within the farmers reach. 1t is prepared
from the ammoniacal water, which is
obtained in the manufacture Of gas from
coal. The sulphate, not being com
plete manure, is seldom if ever applied
alone, not even when in a course OF rota-
tion it follows d phosphate manure. 1t
is very useful when employed as an as
Junct to the slow acting manures, it in
creases the vigor of the plants and enables
them to take up more of the other kinds
of food in a given time than they would
or could otherwise do.
SGlphate of ammonia may be applied
either as a top dressing or it may be
worked in tho soil just previous to the
seeding of crop. 1t is usually applied
at the rate of 100 to 125 pounds per acre.
Many farmers mix the ulphate with
three or four times its bulk of loam in
order to insure Il more even distribution.
Sulphate of ammonia is most largely
employed on grain crops Progress
i've farmers also use light dressings of
the sulphate with fine effect on their
grass lands, not only after the growth is
well started in the spring, but again after
moving. Some farmers claim that it
pays to top dress mangolds and similar
crops with sulphate. Messrs. Lanes and
Gilbert, in their famous field expert
ments, proved the efficiency of suiphate
Of ammonia as an adjunct Of slow acting
manures and ia inviting plants to utilize
quickly and more fully the manures
within their reach. Their most note
worthy results were gained when the
sulphate was applied to land that had
been previously enriched for several
years by the accumulation of mineral
and other manuring. Their largest crops
were obtained when mineral and nitro
genized manures were employed to-
gether.