The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1906-04-26
Nitro zen.

Just what amount Of nitrate Of soda
Is used in this country for fertilizins
purposes we DO rot know, but the
amount is certainly very large. The
whole output has been In the hands OF
a combination. which is composed Of
English capitalists. who. on a capital!
iZat.on Of 100000 have cleared 81
10000. Now we are informed that
the combination is about TO break up.
and it may result In lower price for
the nitrate. The Chilean Government
gets 50. 10000 annually from the ex
port duty on nitrate Of soda. Now We
are sure that very large part of the
enormous amount Of money that has
been spent on nitrate OF soda has
been wasted. by reason Of bad
farming. 1t is doubtless that It is
early truck crops. but its economical
use in general farming is not so GER
tain. Farmers annually buy nitrate
and other forms Of nitrogen merely to
get little more TO sell at once from
the land. when by the use Of the
lecumes. and q proper rotation Of
crops, they could improve their soils
without the purchase Of nitrogen III
any form. And Of late many have
been deludcd with the notion that they
can. by Il few bacteria on dried cotton.
induce the greater accumulation OF nj
trOgen by The lcgumes, and they have
paid - per acre for what cost less than
ten cents 10 make, and at that gener-
ally worthless. There is no doubt that
IL the sol! is well supplied with the bac-
terra suited TO the lC%ume being grown,
there will be greater nitrogen fxa-
ton by the Iogumc. But where the
bacteria already exist in the soil, the
further inocuation could do no good.
And then. no matter how we'll the soil
may be inO"ulated with the bacteria
that live on the roots Of the iegumes.
IL it is deficient in phOSphOric acid ana
potash. no amount OF incubation will
avail much. Now, If instead Of buying
so much Of the cvanescrnt nitrate Of
soda, and paying So for vest pocket
package Of raw cotton, farmers would
devise rotation of crops that will
bring the lcgumc crop generally grown
in their section, and would literally
supply That lcgumc crop with ph0s-
phoric acid and potash. they could get
oil tie nitrogen which farm crops in
general need, without cost. In the
large section Of the country where
clover has been the legume crop, there
is seldom any need for inoculation with
IN cIn -,
where the COwpea has been grown for
generations, 10 incubation is needed
for it, and if there was, no amount of
incubation will be of much use unless
the soil is supplied with the mineral
elements Of plant food. The fact is
that there arc few of the icgumes that
will not finally inOculate the soil with
the germs carried. on the seeds. and
there are millions Of acres more in
need Of the plant foods that the
leguncs need than of incubation.
Some years ago German bacteriOlo-
gist sent out under the name Of Mira
gin a laboratory culture of soil bacteria.
and little vial Of this as large rs ones
little finger was to put all the nitrogen
needed on an acre OF land. In field
practice it was found entirely useless,
just as the last vest-pOcket packages
Of cotton have proven. The fact re-
mains that we can get all the nitrogen
we need through the agency of tho
icgumes, il We supply them literally
with the plant food they require. phos-
phoric acid and potash. When this is
done, there may be some good done
in many cases by soil taken from a
field where the particular legume has
been long grown. and the soil better
inOculated than the one sown last. A
bushel or two Of this. scattered over an
acre, will beat the cotton wads every
time. but will not atone for any lack
of phosphoric acid ana potash in the
sOil.-W. f. Massey.