The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1907-06-27
WALDO COUNTY CROP REPORTS.
Hoard of Agriculture Bulletin. !

| Board of Agriculture Bulletin.
| BELFAST. Straw makes as good bed
ding as anything, although sawdust has
us advantages and where convenient
may be used with profit. Almost any
material that will absorb the liquid and
keep the stock clean will answer the
purpose. Where the manure is hauled
out as often as twice yearly there will
| be little loss from teaching and none
from fermentation except in the case
of horse manure. This can be kept
from fermenting by wetting down or
by firm y treading. Where convenient,
1t should be mixed with the COW
| manure. As to whether the manure
should be plowed in or applied to the
surface, would say that it must depend
on the nature of the soil and the crop
to be grown. But it is more important
to get it there than to decide which
way to use it. Applied either way it
Will give good account of itself.
L use some commercial fertilizer
every year, but have not practlced home
mixing as l cannot see the advantage
to the man who uses limited amount.
Where the amount used is large, five
tons or more, it may pay to buy the in
gradients and mix, provided the facili-
ties are such as to make a uniform
mixture. AS rule it is better to feed
the stock and use the manure than to
try to enrich the farm by blowing un-
der green crops, although this is profit
able under some conditions. Those con-
dltions, however, are not general.-E.
G. Dow
THoRNDIKE. Manure should be ap-
pied as soon as possible after it is
made. 1t will waste less by evaporation
or washing if spread Immediately than
| it will if left in heap either out.of-
doors or in shed or cellar In few
months of warm weather the nitrogen
destroying bacteria will rob pile of
barn dressing of larger per cent of
this valuable ingredient than the rain
| or atmosphere. The potash, nitrogen
and phosphoric acid go directly into
the soil by teaching if spread on the
surface, but if left in heaps in cellar or
out-of- doors large per cent soaks into
the ground or is destroyed by bacteria
and larvae Of flies. We can tell that
bag of meal largely infected with worms
is not of much value. So a pile of
manure subject to such ravages is
largely injured, but we cannot compre-
bend it by observation. l think it is
safe to say that manure, however
stored, will depreciate 40 per cent in
six months time.-C. E. Smith.
SEARsMoNT. My practice has been
to mix my manure with the surface
soil for any and all crops; preferably,
to spread on the furrOw and cut it into
the soil with disk harrow. If disk
is out of the question, use the next
best Implement; always bearing in
mind that the purpose is to thoroughly
| pulveriZe the soil and mix the manure
| with the surface soil When it can be
done, [ believe that it is better to do
this in the fall, for the next seasons
| crop. On dry land, that can be worked
early in the spring, it can be spread on
the furrow late in the fall, and remain
on the surface until spring before har-
rowing. Some contend that they get
greensward and blowing it under. For
some hoed crops, in some seasons, this
| may be so, but after more than 20 years
experience and observation l should
say, for grass and grain and think for
most other crops, keep the humus at or
near the top of the soil, it is natures
method of manuring. When using
special fertilizers for any crop, the
more thoroughly they are mixed with
the soil the better results.-Otis d.
| Wilson,
BELMONT. l practice blowing the
land in good shape, then if | am going
to lay it down or seed to grass harrow
it very lightly, then spread on good
coat of barnyard manure, and give it a
thorough narrowing. # | am to plant
it to corn | spread a good coat of ma
nure on the burrows and then harrow
thoroughly, and the same with my gar
| den, using on both about 600 or 700
pounds of Stockbridge fertilizer to the
acre. For potatoes | use nothing but
Stock bridge Potato Manure, about one
ton to the acre on newly broken sod
land.-L. F. Allenwood.
! BROOKS. | think the best way to use
manure is to pillow it under. Barn ma
nure will enrich the land for future
crops, while with commercial fertilizer
one or two crops take it all out of the
land. l think the basement in the barn
is the place to keep manure. AS to
the absorbents, straw is the best but
in the absence of straw l would use
sawdust or anything most available. |
do not like meadow hay it takes so long
to decay. To prevent fermentation /
would keep hogs on the manure l
think that in blowing in manure you
get the whole strength of your manure,
while in putting it on top you lose a
part of it and you have more weeds to
contend with. My experience in plow-
ing in green crops for manure has not
been satisfactory to me.-Joseph Ellis.