Polk County observer. (Monmouth, Polk County, Or.) 1888-1927, 1908-09-25
DRIED SWAMP MUCK.
It's Benefit In Chemical Fertilizers is
Greatly Exaaaerated.

, Its Benefit In Chemical Fertilizers 10
Greatly Exaggerated.
The practice of using dried muck
and peat In mixing chemical fertilizers
puts up a problem which farmers ought
TO understand. Thousands OF tons OF
such muck are used--sold as muck
tankage." We learn of one case where
man started growing celery in a
swamp and is said to have nearly fail
ed at it Then he conceived the idea
of drying and pulverizing the soil of
that swamp and selling it TO fertilizer
dealers This has brought him a for
( tune. Some samples of this dried peat
I are said 70 contain nearly 3 per cent
/ Of nitrogen: others carry less. This nj
/ trogen is in an inert form and is of |
I little value as a plant food. Expert /
neuts in Illinois showed that such nj /
trogen was worth about one-haif cent
pound as compared with that In dried
blood costing Is cents. Yet the fer
tlizer manufacturer who sells this
muck mixed with other chemicals un-
dertakes 10 charge Il cents a pound
for il when you buy H. For example.
!
guaranteed 70 contain in each ton 16
pounds OF nitrogen. 16o pounds avail
able phospboric acid ard 100 pounds Of
rotash. II would be possible 10 supply ,
the potash and phosphorie acid in 200
pounds Of nuriare and 100 pounds
Of acid phosphate. Then by using 100
pounds OF cOttouseed meal and 500
pounds % dried muck they could pro
viLs uorp nirrugen than they gusran-
teed- The object Of using the cotton
seed meal Is TO color the muck and
thus prevent. II possible the chemist
from detecting It. But see what a nice
game this is. The muck furnishes
ten or twelve pounds Of nitrogen. which
gives the fertilizer a valuation Of from
15O TO 81. but which costs perhaps
20 cents. A farmer might use such a
fertilizer on his wheat this fall. The
potash and phosphoric acid may help.
but it is doubtful if his grandchildren
will see any benefit from the nitrogen
n the muck.
The excuse given for using the muck
s that it makes good filler and dries
)ut the other chemicals. No serious OBJ y
lection can be made to its use as a "
lller, but the nitrogen it contains "
should not be valued in the fertilizer. - :,
or 1t is not worth the price, 1t is near =
Y impossible to detect the muck when =
'ottonseed meal is used with it. The N
,est way to avoid it Is to refuse to buy
ow grade fertilizers or those very low -
n nitrogen. 1t Is impossible to use .,
arge quantities Of muck in fertilizers -
per cent or more of nitro ~
zen, because materials containing more -
ltrogen must be used in order to reach ~
high per cent. You are most likely g,
o find the muck in the mixtures with 90
bout 1 per cent of nitrogen. II does
ot pay to buy them. Buy the higher
rade mixtures and use an equal value
l dollars per acre and you will be bet -,
n off We believe that farmers are
aging millions of hard earned dollars - -
selessly for this peat nitrogen, many -
them already having swamps on -
lelr own farms. The chemists must
nd some way to detect this peat nitro -
en-, and then we shall work for a law -
,mpelling the manufacturer to state 80
lat he uses it and that ii is not valued
lie same as other forms ~