The progressive farmer and southern farm gazette., 1912-03-16
What 1t Takes to Make a Fertile Soil.

IN HE fertility of a soil is not to be measured
by the quantities of so-called plant foods
1t contains, as revealed by chemical an
alysis; nor by the amounts of commercial ferti-
lizers applied.
chemical analysis of the soil may reveal
valuable information, but it is not reliable in
dication of the productiveness of a SOIL nor of
the fertilizers that it may require. There are
two essentials to productive soil which chem
ical analysis, merely showing its so-caled plant
food constituents, do not reveal These are the
availability of the plant foods and the regulation
OF the soil moisture. No matter how large guam
titles of plant foods there may be in a SOIL or
how much commercial fertilizer may be applied
II these plant foods are not dissolved in the soil
moisture, or if there is at certain times INSULT
cient moisture to dissolve the fertilizers, large
crop production is impossible.
There soils which are rich in plant foods
that are unproductive. This may be due to the
fact that these plant foods are insoIuble in the
saltwater or that there is not sufficient moisture
in the soil, or that there is too much moisture
The first question that should be asked before
an intelligent attempt be made to increase
the fertility of soil is, how the plant foods
already in it, or that may be applied, to be made
soluble so that the plants can them There
are many measures which tend to accomplish
this end; but in few words, the answer may
be given, by bringing about suitable conditions in
the soil for germ life If the condition of the
soil is made suitable for bacteria to live and thrive
in, then general rule the most has been done
which it is practicable to accomplish towards
making the plant foods in that soil available for
the of other plants, crops. Until we
realize that soil fertility is not entirely ques-
tion of plant foods commercial fertilizers, that
it is not simply chemical problem, we shall
make slow progress in solving our soil problems
1t is important that the soil be supplied with
plant foods and We would much rather have them
there in an insoluable form, general rule,
than to have the soil deficient in plant foods, but
much is needed to produce fertile soil
Again, commercial fertilizers of the greatest
value, and should be used even more extensively
than at present but crop production is not ques-
tion of commercial fertilizers only. We have be-
fore us the analysis of a soil with the request
that state the fertilizers required this soil
to produce large crop OF course, can't do
it; neither any other person tell the ferti-
1izers required to produce crops from merely
chemical analysis of the soil.
1t is astonishing how many still labor under
this erroneous idea. If we could know how much
of the plant foods shown by this chemical anay-
sis was going to be available next season, and
that all other conditions were to be just right,
we might give satisfactory answer, but these
things are impossible for any one to know.
The analysis of a soil gives indication
to whether plant foods deficient abundant
in that soil. If they deficient then we know
fertilizers must be applied, but it is not at all
certain that crop will be produced even though
we apply fertilizers in abundance. On the other
hand, if plant foods are abundant in a soil and
it still fails to produce satisfactorily, know
that the plant foods are not soluble in the
soil water or that there other conditions
which prevent satisfactory yields
We must not lose sight of the fact that proper
mechanical condition of the soil, the right amount
r~1o~x n1r ell