The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1894-01-25

Eyer, SHOULD bt Gone IN NOYem Der. In
January bank fresh wood ashes around
the stems, and later draw the soil back
to TIE tree. IN supplying potash spread
around the tree for some distance, the
rains will carry it to the roots.
REPAIRS.
In former articles l have urged the
necessity of attending to needed repairs,
fences, bitches, terraces and buildings,
OF ''rlghting up matters on the farm
ready for the coming years work, of
clearing away, as it were, obstacles
which might hinder our success. Let us
take fresh courage. We have much to
be thankful for. In the almost univer-
sal distress, we find that the farmer, who
has his food supplies, and this is true in
much larger proportion than usual,
though he has little money, is in far bet
ter condition than the majority of labor
ing men. Besides a certainty as to food,
he has his house, his fuel, his garden and
hope, which seems denied to his less for
tunate brother of other avocations.
FARMERS MUST STUDY
All that relates to farming We cannot
afford longer to waste our capital. The
school Of experience is valuable, but it
sometimes takes more than half a life
~
price for our diploma. Subscribe to
some good agricultural paper. The low
price of subscription is returned over
and over again before the year is out in
valuable information.
The three great essentials are, first.
the theory-true plan of farming; Sec
ond, the art of controlling labor and of
executing all work to the best advantage
with least labor; third-Iast and best
success depends on quick perception,
wise Judgment, that seldom or never
errs. How is this to be acquired except
by the use OF books, in conjunction with
practice: r. 7. NEsBITT,
Commissioner.
FORMULAS FOR MATURING.
For general purposes, i, e.. for use on
corn, cotton and other summer crops, the
following is good formula:
No. /.
Cotton seed meal. $40 pounds
halnI'.'............ ............... 200 pounds
1otal. ..'..................... O. 600 pounds
If cotton seed be used instead of the
meal, then the following:
No. 2.
Cotton seed, 1878 bushels. ....... ], 600 pounds
kainit. ..................,...,. 1876 bounds
Total. Observation-Disclosures. 1900 pounds
If muriate of potash be substituted for
kainit, then
Cotton seed meal ,............... $40 bounds
Muriate potash. Observation-Disclosures. 60 pounds
Total ......................... 1900 pounds
If cotton seed be substituted in No. 3
for cotton seed meal, then
No. 4.
Acid phosphate. ...,........, 900 pounds
Sotton SEED ,......... .........lU 6U pounds
Murlate OF potash. ................. 40 pounds
Total. ................... ........ 9, 600 pounds
The foregoing formulas comprise the
commercial ingredients most generally
used In composing or mixing at home.
AS already indicated. these ingredients
when provided in the proportions given
may be mixed with stable manure and
other crude or bulky home materials in
any convenient proportions of the latter.
The larger the proportions of stable ma
nure, etc., the greater the dilution. or
weaker the resulting mixture, and cor
respondingly larger quantity should be
applied per acre.
EXPERIMENTATIVE FARMING,
The above formulas are given for gen
eral use. They may be varied accord
ing to the particular crop, or the charac-
Ter Of the land on which the crop is to be
produced. In reference to the particular
crOp,~we are better informed, both by
the known analysis of such crop and its
power of supplying itself from the plant
food already contained in the soil, or in
the air, than we are in reference to diff
ferent soils. The same plant, corn for
instance, always contains the same we'll
known elements, in substantially the
same known proportions, and always be-
HAYES exactly the same uUder the same
conditions. But Isoils differ very widely
from each other, not only in their physi-
cal condition and analysis, but also il
their chemical composition.
Even where a chemical analysis and
careful physical examination of soil
has been made and is before the eye, we
cannot say in Just what proportion the
elements of fertilizer should be mixed
in order to give the best results on a
given crop. The only absolutely relia-
BILE method of finding out what elements
and in what proportion they should be
applied, given soil requires in order to
produce the largest and best results in a
given crop, is to apply to the soil in COM
petitive plots, or test rows, the several
elements combined in different proper
tions, sometimes suppressing one alto
gether.
In this way, and in this way alone,
many farmer will find how to fertilize
his land so as to get the best crops and
the largest profits. 1t is the plan that
has long been adopted by the experiment
stations of this country and Europe, and
already much has.been learned in regard
to the wants of particular crops and the
requirements of different soils. Fortu-
nately this III ethod may be adopted by
the careful and intelligent farmer. Why
write<o an agricultural journal thous-
and miles away to ask if potash is re-
quired by your soil? Only a general an
swer can be obtained in majority of
cases.
The more obvious resort would be to
ask the soil whether it needs the addi-
ton of potash, by applying potash in
some form to one set of rows, and with
holding it from another set alongside of