The Tupelo journal., 1905-12-15
FARMER AND PLANTER.
THE VALUE OF COTTON SEED.
The Fertilizer Value Of Cotton Seed
and the Proper Basis of Ex-
change at the Mill.

their value as fertilizers.
Users of fertilizers know what acid
phosphate, kainit, other fertilizer ma
terials and mixed fertilizers cost. The
fertilizing value of cotton seed and
cotton seed meal can best be shown
by compar: son with the above fertiliz-
ing materials. In fact, it is with these
that they have to compete when they
are put ON the market for use as fer
t~ilizers, or when used at home as such.
In IA per cent. acid phosphate there
are IA pounds of phosphoric acid (the
valuable fertilizing constituent of the
acid phosphate) in each one hundred
pounds, or 2S0 pounds in n ton OF
two thousand pounds. At $14 per ton,
the p%hosphoric acid costs 5 cents per
pound. Kainit carries about 1875 per
cent. of potash, the fertilizing constit-
uent of value in this material. One ton
of kainit would contain $50 pounds OF
potash, which, at $3.50 per ton, would
make the potash cost ga cents per
pound.
Cotton seed meal in this state must
contain not less than 7h per cent. am
monia, or $50 pounds in the ton. When
meal of this grade sells for $25 per ton,
and the phosphoric acid in it is valued
at 5 cents per pound, the potash at
5.4 cents (the price of these materials
in acid phosphate and kainit), the I'M
monia would cost 1876 cents per pound.
On basis of this data:
One ton $4,000 pounds) cotton seed
meal contains and is worth:
Ammonia, $50 rb@13. soc ....S20.25
Phosphoric acid, Sc b@5c...... 2.So
Potas, SO 1b@5.4c............... 1875
Fertilizing value one ton cotton
seed meal .$25.0O
In the above calculation we have al
lowed 2.S per cent. phosphoric acid,
is per cent. potash, in the meal. These
constituents would have a value OF
81. rs, and the ammonia $20.25 one ton.
Allowing the same values for phos-
phoric acid and potash as given above,
when the meal sells for $26, the nm
monia would be worth 14.2 cents per
pound and one ton (2,000 pounds) cot
ton seed meal contains-and is worth
Ammonia, $50 & @14.2c.........S21.3o
Phosphoric acid, Sc fb@5c...... 2.S0
Potash, Sc @5.4c................ 1.95
Fertilizing value n ton cotton
seed meal .9Ao.oo
Using the same values for the three
fertilizing constituents as assigned
them above in cotton seed meal, selling
for $25 per ton, it will give:
One ton 600 pounds) cotton seed
as containing and being worth as fol-
lows:
Ammonia, rs fb@13.5c..........$1O.l3
%Phosphoric acid, % b@5c...... 1.3o
Potash, "a fb@5.4c.............. 1.3O
Fertilizing value n ton cotton
e e
When the ammonia in the seed is
valued at 14.2 cents per pound (the
price which is paid for it when meal is
sold at $26 per toni, one tom 2,O0O)
pounds) of seed would contain and be
worth
Ammonia, 75fb @14.2c............$1O.65
Phosphoric acid, 26b @5c........ 1.30
Potash, "a fb15.4c.............. 1.3o
Fertilizing value enc ton cotton
seed .9lo.|o
II is thus seen that cotton seed.
pound for pound, have a little o
than cne-half the fertilizing value OF
meal. When the meal is h~igh-grade,
containing eight or more per cent. OF
ammonia. it has more than double the
fertilizing value of the seed.
For seed. $13.25 per ton is about the
same as twenty cents per bushel, n
s12.73 corresponds to 1871 cents per
bushel. .
It therefore follows that the farmer
who sells cotton seed at twenty cents
per bushel and buys meal at $26 per
ton is getting the fertilizing materials
contained in the meal at the same
price as that he carried to the mill in
the seed. In like name 1871 cents
per bushel for seed corresponds very
nearly in fertilizing value to $25 per
ton for meal.
When seed are sold for 1871 cents per
bushel and meal bought at $26 per ton,
the farmer actually gives the Oil mar
over fifty cents more in fertilizing
value in the seed than he gets back in
the meal. With seed at sixteen cents
per bushel, the difference is even
greater and no farmer can afford to
sell seed at these prices and buy meal
even at $25 per ton.
Considerable quantities of seed are
exchanged for meal at the oil mills, the
rate of exchange being usually LOO to
1,40O pounds of meal for a ton OF seed.
1t has been seen from the above that
the one ton of cotton seed contains
s12.73 worth of ammonia, phosphoric
acid and potash on basis OF what is
paid for these three constituents l n
acid phosphate at $14, kainit at $3.50,
and cotton seed meal at $25, per ton
each.
What quantity Of meal will contain
these constituents to the same value
as one ton of cotton seed?
One thousand and nineteen pounds OF
meal, containing seven and a half per
cent. ammonia, will contain and be
worth
Ammonia, 76.4 lb q 13.5c......$10 30
Phosphoric acid, 28.5 lb q &c.,. 1 AZ
Potash, 1873 lib @ 5.4c.......... 80
Fertilizing value of 1.019
mounds of cotton seed meal. 12.73