The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1893-03-22
Stable Manure, Compost and Com
mercial Fertilizers.

Ken gardening, discussing Cno SuDJecU O
fertilizers, composts and manures, says
"Stable manure OF good quality can
not be obtained in every locality, and il
may be practical to consider, first how
poor stable manure can be improved, an(
secondly, how poor grade may b'
mixed with other materials to form {
compost. Stable manure, in it's genera
designation, indicates all the refuse from
the stall and barny ard land, consequently
includes good, bad and Indifferent. Oh
course, the prominent material in stable
manure is straw of wheat, rye, oats OF
barley, with smaller proportions of hay
or fOdder-these mixed with the drop.
pings and urine OF cattle. The quality
varies with the proportion, in the mass,
OF the eXcretion of animals. Stable man
ure is best applied when we'll broken up
by fermentation. Ii not decayed but in
long strawy condition, or otherwise green
condition, it should be piled till fermen-
tation sets in to reduce it or it should be
cOmposted.
In strong fermented stable manure
there is often developed an immense
number of insect larva, the rich mass at
tracing the mature insects, in which
they lay their eggs; which dung also fire.
quently develops many varieties OF fun
gous growth, ready to affect Judgement
on such crops as may be naturally fitted
for their further development. The best
stable manure is that exclusively from
the stables of we'll fed horses, as such is
composed only Of hay straw, horse dung,
digested and half digested food Of for
age and grass; the richer the food given
to the horse the better the eXcrement.
This as taken from the stalls,i is known as
fresh manure, and is slow in fertilizing
action. To render it active agriculture
ally it must be piled, that fermentation
may proceed to break down the compo-
nent parts and bring them into condition
to afford quick nutrition to growing
plants. The fresh manure is suitable for
application in winter, or to crop re-
quiring slow fertilization, but to spring
and autumn crops in the garden it is too
slow, consequently if we use stable man.
ure to develop an early effect it must be
rotten, or short, as it is termed.
The value of stable manure of course,
varies in every locality. Farmers in New
York, Pennsylvania and Delaware pay
for stable manure delivered on railroad
cars eighty to one hundred miles out
from the city, from New York and Phila-
delphia, 81 per ton including freight.
The cleanings from stalls should be piled
as taken out. and this is best done under
a shed, as too frequent rains wash out a
portion of the most soluble ingredients,
though limited amount OF water must
be present in the pile all the time or the
manure will burn or grow white within
the pile, and it's value be Injured as much
as if subjected to too much water thus,
as in all things, there's ahappy medium,
Stable manure of Indifferent quality,
strawy, not rich in dung, containing
little digested or half-digested grain, not
putrefactive, may be started into more
rapid fermentation by densely piling it,
and, as it is piled, watering it with fer
menting solution.
FERNIENTNG LYE.-The solution, or