Mexico weekly ledger., 1908-04-09
Soil Treatment For Corn on the
Northeast Missouri Prairie

The experiments which are being
conducted by the Agricultural Ex-
pertinent Station on the experimental
feld at Monroe City have shown some
very interesting results with corn,
which are quite widely available. II
will be understood that these expert
ments are designed to determine The
best soil treatments for the various
farm crops on this land and they
include such matters as the growing
Of &C peas for their effect on the soil
together with the addition Of lime, Of
bone and OF potash in various COM
binations.
In 1907 the yields Of corn from the
various treatments we're as follows:
Cowpea treatment 44.2 bu. per acre.
Cowpeas, and lime 81 bu. per acre.
Cowpsas, lime and bone OLA bu. per
acre.
Cowpeas, lime, bone and potash
55.3 bu. per acre.
Soil receiving no treatment 3s bu.
per acre
1t will be seen that cowpeas In
creased the yield So bushels per acre,
cowpeas and lime Is bushels per acre;
cowpeas, lime and bone 1874 bushels
per acre; cowpeas, lime, bone and
potash 17.3 bushels per. acre.
From these results some very valu
able lessons may be drawn. In the
first place since this land needs nitro
gen the use Of cowpeas is OF special
value. They are best handled by SOW
ing them as a catch crop either In the
corn or after some other crop has been
taken of the land and pasturing them
with sheep or hogs. A number OF men
in this region are already sowing cow
peas in their corn for pasture In this
way and are reapiDg good returns 10
forage as we'll as improving their soil.
The cowpeas can DO grown very sue
cessfully on this land when properly
handled and especially on the fiatter
prairie where clover freezes out they
are TO be strongly recommended. A
little persistence In growing them
will bring success.
The use Of lime for corn while CIV
ing some results In this case, is re-
commended only In an experimental
way and then on the fiatter, wetter
phases OF the territory. The value OF
bone meal on this land is strikingly
brought out ny these experiments
while the value Of potash does not
seem to be so important. Since this
land lacks phosphates so very much as
shown Ia the analyses one would ex-
pect that the phosphates would give
results. Bone meal Is recommended
largely because 1T is ayaIlabls in most
parts Of this territory. For immediate
result the superphosphate may be
better applied at the same rate as the
bone meal, while for a long series OF
years rock phosphate will nndoubted-
ly give better returns than either.
II should be said in general regard.
ing the use Of either bone or potash
for corn that 1t seems to bring best
returns on the thinner, more worn
phases OF this soil on the whole.
While 1t always brings a crop return
1t is not usually accompanied by a
very large net income. The use Of a
complete fertilizer in the hill put In
with fertilizer planter at the rate OF
30 70 10 pounds per acre will ordinarily
bring q greater income the immediate
year. Such q fertilizer would be one
OF the grain growers OF ammOniated
bone and potash. Bone alone would
give result also In many cases Just as
good as q complete fertilizer. This
hill fertilization does not build up the
land, however, while it may bring
a good net return for a series OF years.
the wise farmer will depend upon 10.
guminOus crops like cowpeas and clio
yer and feeding his crop back on bis
land rather than upon the Temporary
use Of q fertilizer OF this sort.
M. +. Miller,
Agricultural Experiment Station.
Columbia, Missouri.