Heppner gazette. [volume] (Heppner, Morrow County, Or.) 1892-1912, 1911-07-20
SON ChEMLSTRY.

that all substances are made up of Ger
tain simple forms of matter, such al
iron, aluminium and carbon, which are
called elements. In most substances
these elements are combined in a more
or less complex form. Although some
eighty of these elementary forms OF
matter have been discovered, only
about dozen of these are found in
any quantity in plants. Carbon, hy-
drogen, oxygen and nitrogen make up
about ninety-five per cent of the total
weight of all plants, i. e., their or
ganic portion, and are derived either
directly or indirectly from air and wa
ter, the nitrogen being assimilated by
the plant after fixation in the soil.
The remaining five per cent of the
plant consists of mineral matter or
ash, the portion left when the plant is
burned, and is composed mainly of the
elements of iron, aluminium, calcium,
magnesium, phosphorus, potassium,
sodium, silicon, chlorine and sulfur.
These are all taken up by the plant
directly from the SOIL Much investi-
cation and experience has proven that
only four of these elements are likely
to be deficient in soil, namely, nitro
gen, potassium generally expressed
as "potash") phosphorus, usually ex
pressed as "phosphoric acid'') and cal
cium, Tor ''lime," as it is generally
expressed These are often termed
the Critical" soil elements, and are
the actual basis of all direct fertiiz-
ers.
1t is singular to note that only very
small quantities of these plant foods
which are so essential to plant growth
are soluble even in strong acids. Rich
soils contain approximately 0.20 per
cent of total nitrogen. Analysis of
the acid soluble mineral substance
will show about O. 10 to 0.15 per cent
of phosphorus (phosphoric acid), 0.30
per cent of potassium, (potash), and
O.50 per cent of calcium Qime). The
figures show plainly that proper and
scientific methods of farming must be
practiced for the maintenance of the
fertility of even our richest soils.
The most important of these critical
soil elements is nitrogen. 1t is COM
bined with other elements in the soil |
humus (decaying animal and vegetable /
matter). In the free state nitrogen
is a gas and in this form constitutes
three-fourths of the air. The total
nitrogen supply in the air over each
acre of the earth's surface, if avail
able to plants, would meet the needs
of hundred-bushel crop of corn every
year for half a million years. Never
theless nitrogen in available form is
worth 18 to 20 cents pound in the
fertilizer markets. The organic mat
ter in the soil is the nitrogen store
house from which plants derive their
supply. Constant removal by crops,
oxidation of organic matter in clean
as well as waste through
eaching, all assist in depriving the
soil of this essential element. Exper-
ence has shown that under exhaustive
systems of farming the soil nitrogen
supply is easiest impaired. To add
available nitrogen to the soil in the
form of commercial fertilizers costs
from 18 to 20 cents pound, which
make it too expensive for use on a
general farming scale. Experiments
lave shown, however, that leguminous
crops, such as clover, vetch, and al
falfa, have power to obtain free nj
,rogen from the air through the inter-
1ention of certain microscopic organ
SINS which live in tubercles upon the
'oots of these plants. Such crops add
nitrogen to the soil, and hence rota-
ion with leguminous crop is an in
and efficient means of sup
llying this element to the soil and one
hat is applicable to general farming.
The mineral plant foods, potassium,
and lime, exist in the soil
n variuos forms: potassium often in
with quartz in the min
,ral feldspar; phosphorus in combna-
ion with iron, aluminium and lime as
and lime often in the
orm of silicate and carbonate 0ime-
tone). These compounds are by
hemical processes, which are encour-
ged by tillage, converted into soluble
r available forms which can be as
inflated by plants. The plant can
My obtain these mineral elements
rom the soil and when the supply be-
ONES deficient they must be furnished
trough the addition of appropriate
ertilizers.
The fact that ordinary wood ashes
re so rich in potash as to be valuable
s fertilizer indicates that certain
lants withdraw large amounts of this
lement from the soil. Six tons of
'ell cured alfalfa hay contain $50
ounds of potash, which would cost
bout $3.50 if bought in the form of
fertilizer in the open market. Pot
sh is usually stored in the seeds of
lants in relative abundance. During