Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1907-05-16
PROF, HOPKINS ON FARM Waste

In his discussion of Illinois soils at
the State Farmers institute, Professor
Cyril c. Hopkins of the university gave
the following definite information about
the waste and the value of farm ma
nurc when used in different ways.
PROFESSIONALLY the greatest loss to
American agriculture today is the enor
nous waste of farm manure. Careful
estimates by the U. S. department Of
agriculture show that the 1S0,000,C00
domestic animals produce annually
two and one-third billion dollars worth
of manure. The average corn crop for
the past ten years has been two and
Ione-fourth billion bushels, and this
would have to be worth S105 per bushel
to equal the value of the manure.
Ten Times the Commercial Fertilizer.
Farmers will agree that at least one
third of the manure produced is vast
ed on the average American farm. If
this is true, then the IS million dollars
worth of commercial fertilizer used in
the United States each year is equal to
only one-tenth of the annual waste in
farm manure.
Diligent inquiry in various parts of
the state leads to the belief that one
half of the land on 80 per cent of the
farms has never received a dressing of
farm manure. | have found only one
man who owns 100 acres or more of
land who has had manure, which was
made only from crops grown on that
farm, applied over the entire farm.
Three Kinds of Value In Manure.
The positive or intrinsic value Of
farm manure lies in the amounts o:
valuable plant food which it contains
1t also possesses an important indirect
value as a soil stimulent tits decay
liberating plant food from the soiD
Another distinct value is that the M,
nure makes the soil more porus an.
spongy. increasing it's power to Absorb
and retain moisture and to resist sur
face washing. This last named physi
cal value is frequently overestimated
while the value of manure for plan
food which it supplies and for tina
which it liberates from the soil, il
some times almost ignored
Both practical experience and exac
scientific investigation furnish vas
amount of information about thes,
different values of manure. Organi
matter from peat beds, hauled AM
spread on the land, has as great pow
er as farm manure for physical i'm
provement of the soil, but it produce
no such effect on crop yields as doe
manure. because the peat does not d.
cay readily so as to furnish plant fooj
Manure made from clover hay an
heavy grain rations has much create
value than manure made from whea
, straw, because of the great difference
in plant food and rapidity of decay
both affect the physical condition q
the soil alike.
: At the famous Rothamsted En.
land agricultural experiment STATIC
the average of field yields of wheat 70
a half century were: with no manur
}. and no plant food added, 1871 bushels
with heavy annual application of fart
manure, 35.7 bushels; with CONNIE
> cial plant food without organic matte
. 81 bushels. This shows that tn
physical effect of the manure was nc
so important as that of its plant foo,
showing the Physical Eject.
But the very important physical Q
feet of manure was shown at Rothan
sted the very dry season of 1898 whe
land treated with commercial plar
fod produced only PIT bushels {
wheat, while the farm manure pic
produced 34.2 bushels. In seminar
regions the physical condition of tn
soil and its power to absorb and retail
moisture may be the controlling factc
in crop yields, but in Illinois under no
NAL conditions the controlling factor
plant food.
The greatest problem in handlin