The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1898-03-01

he could. / took pencil and paper and
with the analysis of both brands before
me began to reason thus: What do
you buy guano for, the name of it, Or
the ingredients contained3 For the
fertilizing properties, he replied. Then
let's see which is the cheaper of the
two brands. The Official contains, a C
cording to guarantee, q per cent. am
monia, that ie q pounds to each hun
dred pounds Of guano or 80 pounds
ammonia in a ton, which is worth ID
cents per pound at port. It also con.
tains 8 per cent. available phosphOric
acid, which is 8 pounds to the hundred
pounds of guano, or 100 pounds in a
ton. This is worth 4 cents per pound
at port. It also contains 8 per cent
potash, which is 8 pounds to the hun
dred pounds of guano, or 60 pounds in
a ton. Potash is worth 5 cents per
pound at port.
Now by a little arithmetic we can
see what it is worth at port in it's un
mixed state. Fifty pounds ammonia
at IA cents per pound is 81; 100 pounds
phosphoric acid at 4 cents per pound,
is So 40; 80 pounds potash at 5 cents per
pound ls So Add together and WI
have $40 40. This for the ingredients
of the Official Guano at port. Let's
: see what the ---- brand is worth:
It analyses only 2 per cent. of am.
monia, which is 2 pounds to each hun.
dred pounds guauo, or 40 pounds am
monia in a ton; 8 per cent. phosphoTic
acid, which is 100 pounds in q ton; 2
per cent, potash, which is 40 pounds
In a ton By the same process as ap-
piled to the Alliance Official, we find
the 40 pounds ammonia is worth IS 60;
100 pounds phosphoric acid, s. 40; 40
pounds potash, 81. Add and we have
port, or 50 40 less than the Official.
Now when you buy it for 81 less per
ton, you still are losing 81 40. He sa ~
the point and said he would buy Off
ciaI. The point I want to make is this:
We buy guano for the good it will do
us, and should endeavor to get the
greatest value for the money expended.
To do this figure on the minimum
guaranteed analysis, and not On high
sounding names, nor empty assertions.
A given per cent mean that many
pounds in 100 pounds OF guano and
twenty times that much in a ton. That
10 OIL nor 0onE mnnnc OIL ~rV1n1C IN n
hundred of guano, 8 per cent. NEAR 8
pounds to the hundred, 3 per cent
means 8 pounds to the hundred pounds
of guano. Multiply the number of
pounds by the price per pound, which
Is IA cents per pound for ammonia, 4
cents per pound for phoephoric acid
(available) and 5 per cent. for potash.
By doing this you can easily tell what
any brand Is relatively worth. As
farmers, we do not pay the attention
to analysis and values of fertilizers
that their importance suggests. GuaDO
is guanO, TO be sure; but it Is not alike,
nor of the same value. Shoes are shoes,
but they are not all alike nor of the
same value. We should use the came
business judgment in buying fertilizers
that we would in anything else.
There are a great many mysterious
looking things and terms in the chemi
cal analysis of fertilizers to many
farmers. But il we will study them, |
and get all the information that we can
on the subject, we will soon find that
an analysis is not as p~erplexing as we
once thought.
One other thought: Some of our
farmers use only acid phosphate, some
geld and kainit, OF as ia usually ex-
pressed, ''bone and potash" Neither
OF these is a complete fertilizer, and
unless your soil is deficient in the thing
you use and has a plenty of the other
elements, you are not getting best re-
suits from the money expended. tire
quires experimenting to determine
this. If you call for a meal you want
variety. II you are told you can get
only bread for dinner, you would not
think it a complete meal unless you
simply craved bread Or was not at all
hungry. Neither would meat alone or
cabbage alone satisfy a hungry person,
he would want all three; so with our
soils. If they are hungry they gener-
ally want ammonia, phosphoric acid
and potash. That satisfies them and
they are ready to do their best. This
is an inviting field for thought, and
will well repay us for the time given it.
I for n would, and am sure q large
CATARRH CANNOT BIZ CURED
with LOCAL APPLICATIONS as thew