Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1895-04-18
HOW TO MANURE CHEAPLY.
An Answer to This All Important Problem
as Given by American Cuitivator.

An Answer to This All Important Problem
as Given by American Cuitivator.
Virgin soil, after a few years oultiva-
ton, becomes untitled for the crops that
were at first successful, but at the same
time is rich enough to grow some other
crop that may pay as well or better.
The wet prairie soil of some western
states produced large crops of corn I'M
til cropping exhausted the excess of
vegetable matter, when suddenly these
same soils are found to grow good crops
of winter wheat, with draining and
some phosphate manure every year.
When wheat is sown. good grain crops
can be produced indefinitely.
The mineral elements of soil fertility
can be restored more cheaply and easily
than can any others by the use of COM
mercial fertilizers The prices, both of
potash and phosphate, are now so rea-
sonable that there ought to be no hest
fancy in buying them for every crop
where either is needed. But the nirrog-
enous elements of fertility in CONNER
cial form are so dear that except for
gardening purposes, and sometimes for
farmers who grow early potatoes and
peas for market, recourse must be had to
other means than purchase No one
should think of buying nitrogen to grow
crops whose growth is made mainly in
the summer. In hot weather stirring
any moderately fertile soil frequently
will develop heterogeneous fertility more
cheaply than any one can buy it or than
it can be made on the farm.
All the stable manure that can be ap-
piled without too much cost should be
used in growing such crops. The Guilt
walton with the manure will be more
effective than it possibly can be without
it. Part of the benefit of frequent Guilt
walton of crops that are cultivated in
the summer comes from its effect in de-
veloping latent fertility. That in coarse
stable manure comes under this catego-
ry. Stirring the soil over stable manure
brings to it more of the air and causes
it to decompose and thus give off its
fertility more rapidly. Though stable
manure itself has little mineral fertili-
ty, its decomposition in contact with
the soil liberates carbonic acid gas, and
that acts as solvent for mineral fertil-
ity that the soil contains
Where enough stable manure can
neither be made nor easily purchased,
manuring with green manures is a
cheaper way than any other. It ought
to be cheaper, for it takes more time,
and with land very valuable the waste
of a years use of it while growing a
renovating crop becomes TOO heavy a
loss. The market gardener only coca
sionally grows a clover crop, and then
only because the clover roots Tighten the
subsoil in way that heavy applications
of stable manure cannot do. For ordi-
nary cases the market gardener finds
green manure too slow. He uses COM
mercial nitrogen for the early crop be-
fore that from his rich garden soil can
be made available by warmth and cul
tivation.
The farmer who devotes much of his
land to fruit will find the renovating
crops, like crimson clover and peas. his
cheapest way of supplying nitrogen.
Most of his outlay in money will be for
the purchase of mineral fertilizers pot
ash and phosphate. 1t will require
much heavier applications of these min
erals to grow large fruit crops than are
needed for growing crops of grain.