The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1913-05-22
Rotations Tested.
BY A. r. WOODS, Dean, De-
partment of Agriculture, Uni
versity of Minnesota.

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The work of the Experiment Sta
ton at University Farm during the
last twenty years has shown that a
reasonable rotation with diversified
farming and live stock and the use of
manure maintains high average Of
productivity, returning good profit
without depicting soil fertility. = = -
The best results were obtained
when a five-year rotation was used,
including wheat, timothy and clover
hay, pasture, oats followed by an APP
plication OF eight tons of manure on
the stubble, and corn. When this ro-
tation was followed 266 bushels of
wheat per acre were obtained, as
compared with 20.6 bushels lin the
case of three-year rotation without
manure and. 1876 bushels in the case
of continuous cropping of wheat with
out manure. The three-year rotation
included wheat, clover and corn.
The hay yield was SO tons per acre
in the case of the fve-year rotation,
as compared with % tons in the
case of a three-year rotation, and 1.73
tons per acre in the case of continu-.
GUS cropping. The greatest difference
was in the yield of corn, which was
sos bushels in the ffve-year rotation,
45.2 bushels in the threeiyear rotation
and 26.4 bushels in the case of con-
tinuous cropping. Many farmers fol-
lowing a similar rotation secure as
good results as this and on more ia
,sorable soils they may excel them.
A farm organized on this basis and
feeding the grain and the wheat bran
with the hay and roughage, returning
the manure to the land, selling wheat,
dairy products, beef, pork, mutton and
poultry products is highly conserv-
alive type of farming, There is, how
ever, in all of these products an out
go of phosphate in excess Of what is
returned. The amount is not large
and as the soil phosphates are read
lily available under such conditions
the effect on yield may not be OBJ
served for many years: When the
sale of such products rs practiced
phosphate, in, addition TO- what is in
the manure, should be returned to the
land. This may be accomplished by
the purchase of bran, oil cake, and
other feeds containing this element.
In this way the additional phosphate
may be obtained practically free of
cost. Otherwise it may be secured
as ground phosphate rock, which when
spread with the manure becomes
readily available. In soils not well
supplied with manure or decaying Or
ganic matter the ground rock is value
less, as it is not available. In, such
cases the rock must first be treated
with sulphuric acid and is then known
as acid phosphate. Sometimes in,
very intensive methods both practices
are followed. "A little of the acid
phos phate Is used as q starter for
the young plants and the ground rock
or bone mexl furnishes the latter sup
ply. AS stated above, however, the
most favorable results. are secured,
by returning to thessoil. through the
use of manure, the elements of Ter
tlity and organic matter removed in
the crops produced. -
In this way we shall approach the
nearest to nNintaining virgin fertil-
fly that it il; possible to reach under
intensive agriculture. sS