The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1899-05-18
HOMEMADE FERTILIZERS.
Agricultural Experiment Station of the Uni
versity Of Tennessee, Knoxville,
April 20, 1900.

versity Of Tennessee, Knoxville,
April 20, 1899.
Farmers should make their own ma
nure at home, by growing feed, feeding
it to milch cows or other stock and saw
ing the manure They should by all
means produce their OWE nihogenous
fertilizers by growing, leguminous
plants, which catch and fix the nitro
gen of the air, as explained in Press
Bulletin /. The good farmer will do
this and will thus never need to buy
any fertilizer unless it is phosphate and
potash.
If they will buy fertilizers there is no
mystery or difficulty about mixing
them at home. Nitrogen costs 12 to
Is cents a pound in fertilizers. Manu-
facturers prepare them by mixing with
acid phosphate some source Of nitro
gen, like tankage dried blood, or cot
ton seed meal, and a potash compound
like muriate of potash, or kanite. Why
may not the farmer fix them for him
self? is question frequently asked Of
the Tennessee Agricultural Expert
ment station. The station always
mixes fertilizers for its own use, and
any farmer can do the same as follows:
Use as the basis for your mixture
acid phosphate made from the Tennes-
see rock. 1t is the highest grade and
cheapest phosphate we have. 1t should
be had anywhere in Tennessee for
$12.0 90 a ton or less, and should contain
16 to IS per cent. phosphoric acid. For
potash use muriate of potash, contain
ing so per cent. potash. 1t costs in
Tennessee, $42 to $45.
Two classes of mixtures are sold;
/. Mixtures Of acid phosphate and
potash can be prepared thus: Take
150 pounds of Tennessee acid phos-
phate, $50 pounds muriate Of potash.
and mix thoroughly. At the above
prices a ton of the mixture will cost
about $14.25, and will contain at least
13.5.per cent. available phosphoric acid
and 3,5 per cent. potash. 1t is the best
fertilizer for cow-peas, grasses and for
age plants generally, corn, and wheat,
and makes a fine compost with manure.
II. So-called complete fertilizes
may be prepared by mixing proper
amounts of acid phosphates, potash and
"ammoniates, as the substances sup
plying nitrogen are called. Here is a
good mixture made with "tankage" or
dried animal matter from the slaughter
houses, which contain Z per cent. nj
trogen and 12 per cent. available phos-
phoric acid, and costing $50 ton;
Mix $50 pounds of tankage, 95C
pounds of Tennessee acid phosphate,
and 100 pounds of muriate Of potash.
At the above prices ton of the mix
ture will cost about $1700 and will
contain II per cent. phosphoric acid
3.5 per cent. nitrogen, and 2.5 per cent
of potash. A complete fertilizer hardly
as good as this will cost at least $25. 90
This mixture is for cereals and general
crops and soils requiring nitrogen
Why not use our own Tennessee made
cotton seed meal, however, in place 0
imported "ammoniates?" The Con
necticut Station says: "It is the cheap
est source of available nitrogen. Ex
periments indicate that it is as good a
the best forms of animal matter" Cot
ton seed meal contains about Z pc
cent. nitrogen, 8 per cent. Of phos
phoric acid, and 2 per cent Of potash
Cotton seed meal should first be fed t
stock and the manure used with mix
ture l, but if you are not prepared t
feed it and must buy ammonia, it is th
cheapest fertilizer you can buy.
Mix 9O0pounds of Tennessee cotto
seed meal, 900 pounds of Tennessee
acid phosphate, and 200 pounds Of mu
riate of potash with the cotton see
I meal at 800 ton, this mixture will cos
about $3.50 per ton, and will contai
about s per cent. phosphoric acid, g.
per cent. nitrogen, and per cent. c
9 potash. Being so rich in potash an
ammonia, it is fine mixture for poti
0 toes, beans, watermelons, garden veg
+ tables and truck generally, especial
s tomatoes, straw berries and other sma
t fruits, on poor soils. Such fertilizt
: would cost ut least $50 to buy,
r Any of these can be easily mixed 0
s the barn floor or smooth, dry plac'
I, by breaking all the Jumps, and sprinl
!, ling out, first thin layer of one an
. then of another ingredient until IL
whole is laid out. Shovel together III
til very thoroughly mixed and pl
through sand screen.
; Can you not afford to mix your ov
l. fertilizers for from So to $40 ton?
= Agents are running over the COUNT
} selling formulas for fertilizers not ha
q as good as the above. for $5 a recipe.
Chori+v 10 n oood thing 10 n