Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1912-09-10
AN IMPORTANT QUESTION,
7. y. w. outtman. Ca. writes:


will prove profitable practice.
AN. IMPORTANT QUESTION.
T. j. w, Quitman. Ca, writes:
have been appointed buying agent OF
fertilizers for my farmer neighbors.
1t has been stated here that we do not
need acid in our soil, but need more
lime. Now is il possible for us to
use raw ground phosphate, and get
all we would get by using the acid
phosphate in the way of phosphate
and yet leave out the acid. l think
we can get the raw rock phosphate
for half the cost of acid phosphate
delivered. 1 would like advice from
you in this matter.
The subject of your inquiry is an
important one. and has been rsceiving
our attention here for some time past.
Unfortunately, only the results for
one year are available as yet, and it IS
difficult TO base definite opinion.
upon them, for varying seasons ana
soil conditions win no doubt affect
the results obtained from the same
applications in different years. This
has been our observation in fertilizer
tests made up to this time. hence. IL
would not be advisable to draw radi-
cal conclusions from the data fur
nished in this letter.
Last year in our demonstration field
SIX plats of land were selected as
nearly uniform as possible and sys-
tematically prepared and planted 20
corn. On three of these plats no lime
was used; on three of them lime was
applied at the rate Of 1000 pounds Ie'
acre To the second and third plats
in each series 400 pounds of raw rock
or floats and 400 pounds of high
grade phosphate were applied respec-
lively. On the no-lime plats the
yields we're 10, 35.3 and SS bushels
respectively. Note that the use OF
both floats and acid phosphate in THE
instance gave a decided increase over
no fertilizer and no lime. Where .he
lime was applied the yields were As,
SIS and 51.3 bushels respectively. In
this instance the lime seemed to have
exerted most salutary effect en-
crop yield. and there was also good
increase from the use of the floats
and the acid phosphate. Our chemi
cal examinations up to this time indt-
cate that many of our Georgia soils
are low in lime, and we would judge
from the soil formation predominant
ing in your section of the state he
use of lime would be. beneficial In
this particular instance the floats APP
parently gave as good returns as the
acid phosphate but the concensus OF
opinion of the investigators up to
| this time indicates that the best re-.
suits secured from floats occur whom
there is a plentiful supply of organic
matter in the soil, and We do not
think this would be true of your sec
ton of the state. However, wheTs
floats are applied it is probably best
to put on two or three times as much
as where acid phosphate is used. De-
cause when acid phosphate is applied
the phosphorus is in a readily availa-
BILE form of plants. + When put on IN
the form of raw rock comparatively
small amount of phosphorus is read
lily available to plants the first year.
Where green crops have been ploweo
under or yard manure is available raw
rock may often be used with. consider
able advantage. In the absence OF
these conditions we hardly feel justi-
fled in recommending farmers anan-.
doning the use of acid phosphate UNI
til more definite knowledge concern
ing its. value under Georgia condi-
lions has been obtained. Under the
circumstances we would advise the
farmers in your community to secure
some of. this material and test it fer
themselves in a limited way.
A SOUTH GEORGIA FARMERS
NJ w. Eastman, Ca. writes: 1 would
like to know the best way of restoring
land that has been in cultivation for
seventy-five years. 1t has been poorly
fertilized and badly cultivated. Has
clay subsoil but is inclined to be sandy;
lies high and is well drained. For sew
eraI years it has heen plowed very shall
low Can you tell me why it is that
most of the cotton in this section ma
lures and commences to die about Au-
gust /? Many years ago this was not
the case.
Land that has been treated as you de-
scribe can not be brought up at once.
/ II must be a gradual process for nature
was preparing the land and making 1t
ready for the receipt of the Anglo
Saxon civilization for thousands upon
! thousands of years before the discovery
of America and its occupation and cult
walton by our forefathers, In some in
YES tigations which have recently been
made at the college it has been shown
that some of the original type soils of
the state contain $500 pounds OF nitro
gen, and now they often contain less
than half this amount though they have
probably not been in cultivation more
than fifty years. To put back 900 or
5000 pounds of nitrogen in an acre of
soil would require the blowing under of
at least twenty to thirty crops. of cow
peas. You can see. therefore, that soil
restoration can not be effected immedi-
ately. but that in order to secure good
crops we must go about this matter sys-
tematica1ly and with forethought and
persistence. -
The first thing for you to do with this
land is to break it reasonably deep,
though sandy soils. and especially where
the subsoil is sandy, do not need to be
broken so deeply as in the case of clay
Soils The best time to break it will be
this fall. A two-horse pillow or disk
will be good implements to use, and the
sooner the land s broken the better.
Leave IT as rough as possible so it will
absorb as much of the water falling as
rain as it can hold.
The next thing is to institute a rota-