The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1905-03-25
FARMER AND PLANTER.
coMMERcIAL FERTILIZERS.
Many Farmers Use Them wastfully
Because, in Many. Cases, UR-
suited to the Soil.

Many Farmers Use Them WasafuIly
Because, in Many Cases, UR-
suited to the Soil.
There is nothing connected with
farming which is less understood, or
rather more misunderstood, than is the
use of commercial fertilizers. Many
farmers use them extravagantly and
wastefu1ly;; this extravaganza consist
ing not as a rule in use of too large
quantities-very few Of them err that
way-but in the use Of fertilizer IN
suited to their lands or crops and in
dependence upon them as the sole
means of maintaining the fertility OF
the soil. Other farmers regard them
with something like suspicion and
seem to think that fertilizlng land IS
something similar to giving It dose
Of medicine Now the simple 5ruth OF
the whole matter is that when one
uses fertilizer of any kind on his land
he is merely feeding it-restorlng the
plant food that the crops remove from
it, and stable manure, nitrate OF soda,
or a crop of clover ploWed under, are
all fertilizers. This is not saying that
all Of them will answer the same pur-
pose. Corn fodder and bran are both
food for a COW. but they answer en-
tirely different purposes in the animal
economy. Yet as far as any certain
amount Of any plant food is con-
cerned it is all the same whether 1T Is
obtained from a bog, a COW stall. or q
clover plant. The only Questions are
as to its relative cost and availability.
Stable manures and green crops, how
ever answer one urpose-perhaps two
commercial fertilizers do not.
They improve the physical con 5..tion
OF the soil by the addition of humus
and probably make the plant food pres
ent more available by promoting not
only chemical but bacterial activity in
the soil. For it must be remembered
that the productivity Of any soil de-
ponds, first upon the plant food pPess
ent; secondly g.rs,aon the physical condi-
tfon of the sell as respects drainage,
ly upon the bacterial processes which
are taking place. Without the neces-
sary plant food it is of course impos-
sible for crops to grow; If the physical
condition of the soil is bad their growth
will necessarily be retarded; and while
bacterioiogy is as yet imperfectly I'M
derstood even by scientists, we do
know that these unseen organisms play
al important part in preparing the
plant food for use by the plants and
that some plants require the presence
Of certain bacteria for their best de-
A man who wastes his sta
BILE manure and buys fertilizers is GER
Lainly foolish; yet it has been demon
strated in thousands of cases that the
use of commercial fertilizers pays and
pays well. While we can draw upon
The exhaustless stores Of ATMOSPHERIC
nitrogen, there is no way of keeping
lp the supply Of potassium and phos-
1horus except by purchasing them in
fertilizers of some kind. Under any
system of cropping there is bound to /
De a gradual decrease in the total I
AMOUNT IN the soil, although proper |
method of cultivation may keep up or
ven increase the available supply for /
many years. The cheapest way to get
hese is in some of the forms in which I
hey are offered as commercial fertiliz-
rs: and it has been / think, fully dem
nstrated that the cheapest and most
ractieal method of fertilization is not [
ne dependence upon either CONNER !
ial fertilizers or stable and green
lanures alone but in a judicious COM
ination of all. When used this way
here is no foundation for fear that
hey may act upon the soil like NOR
hlne upon the human system. It is 1
artainly extravaganza to fail to care
or the stable manure; it is eytrava-
ance to neglec! the growing Of legum-
lous crops to maintain the nitrogen
lpply OF the SOIL it is extravaganza
use commercial fertilizers on your
nd without keeping it in good physic-
condition, it is extravaganza to use
rtilizers Of any kind that are not pro-
ortloned to the special needs of your i
vi and crop and for most crops on i
ost soils, stable and green manures
one are not a properly balanced ra- L.
On. The greatest extravaganza of all. .
,Wever, is in the cropping of land y
az after year without making any eff y
TT to keep up its fertility. To put it !
briefly: 1t is necessary if we would !,
lprove or keep up the soil to keep
in good physical condition and to re- .
enlsh the supply of plant food. Com II
arcial fertilizers will do the latter but !,
It the first. Stable manures and the
owing under of green crops will do
first and will partially do the sec
g. The ideal method is a combina-
N Of all these sources of fertility ae- s.
riding to the special needs of the soil 81
q the crop that is being grown; and it
oh combination can be made only
the farmer who has an acauaint- f
ee with the elementary principles of Lin
and with the particular OF
aud crop to be fertilized.-E. E.
Her. in Epitomist. vi
AGRICULTURAL STUPIDITY. b.