The Carlisle independent., 1907-03-21
HOW MUCH FERTILIZER TO
 APPLY.

The question, 'How much fertilizer Should be used per acre?" cannot be an- swered definitely, but only in a general way. It is sometimes put in this form: ''What is the most profitable amount that may be applied per acre?" Neither can the question in the amended form be exactly and accurately answered The soil, It's character, condition, preparations etc, may be well known, or controllable factors, but we know not what the sea- sons may be, says Hon. R; ,. Bedding. Director Georgia Experiment Station. De- partment of Agriculture, in the Virginie- Carolina Fertilizer Almanac.
 We know that some crops will bear larger amounts of fertilizers with reason- able assurance or profitable returns than may be expected Of other solB. A crop that occupies the soil from the fall season until spring, or early summer, will bear heavier fertilizing than will a crop that is planted in the spring and ripens for harvest in midsummer. The first casa Is Illustrated by oats, wheat, or other small the fall of the year.. Such crop occu- pies the soil during the late fall and wtn- ter, and early spring-during which pe- riods the rains are usually abundant very early summer, before the burning summer heat and possible drouths of June and July. Oats and wheat therefore are ideal crops for liberal fertilizing.
 Corn Is rather an uncertain crop on the ordinary dry uplandS of the South. It has but a short period in which to devel- op its f1owers-tassels and silks-cover- ing but a few days. If very dry weather ehall prevail when this critical period is approaching, and for some time after 1t is passed, the crops may prove a greater or less failure. There can be no second effort, no second period of blooming. which commences to bloom and make fruit in June Cor even earlier) and con- tinueS throughout the summer until checked by a severe frost in November. 1t has a number of "chances."
 Cotton is therefore another ideal crop tor liberal fertilizing. A small amount of fertilizers applied per acre will no doubt yield a larger percentage profit on its cost than will a larger amount To illustrate: An application of g worth of fertilizer per acre may cause an in- creased yield of cotton Cat 10 cents per pounO of the value of $6 to SS. or a profit of 200 to 300 per cent. on its cost. I have frequently had such results. But 1t does not follow that twice as heavy an appli- cation will produce twice as large re. suits, or that three times as much would cause three times as great an increase in the yield. In other words, the rate of increase in the yield of cotton will not be in proportion to the increase in the amount of fertilizers applied Two dollars worth of fertilizer per acre may yield an increase in the crop of s6; but s6 worth would not therefore bring an increase of SIS.
 But careful obseryat tion has shown that an application of s to $6 worth of fertil- iZers (properly balanced) is safe amount 10 apply per acre on cotton. Many farm CTS In Georgia have secured satisfactory returns from an application of so much as 800 pounds per acre.
 think 500 pounds a perfectly safe limit on upland in fairly good condition, well prepared and properly cultivated in cot ton: For corn, l would limit the amount lands,