Evening star., 1914-11-13
MINERAL FERTILIZERS,
By Frederic J. Haskin.

Among the little recognized but vital
facts with which citizens Of the United
states are becoming more familiar since
they we're forced to careful stock TAX
Ing by the sudden outbreak of the Euro
pean war is the past and present depend
ence Of this country on the outside world
for some of its principal mineral fertilizer
ingredients. OF the substance furnishing
in a mineral form the three elements
which are practically the only ones that
need to be supplied artificially to plants
nitrogen, potash and phosphoric acid-the
sources Of supply for the first two lie in
foreign countries. OF the third ingre-
dient, which is gotten for the most part
from phosphate rock the United States
has generous supply and figures as a
large exporter.
When the war in Europe first broke
out the greatest problem to those inter-
ested in fertilizers became how to obtain
supply of potash. The only deposits
Of potash salts in commercial quantities
in a form available for use as fertilizers
that have hitherto been known are near
Strassfurt. Germany. Since their dscov-
cry more than sixty years ago. these
beds have supplied the world, and the
sudden stop put to the export of their
product was considered a great blow to
our fertilizer industry.
At the same time, immediate indica
tions were that the war might result In
a shortage OF substances furnishing nitro
gen. England, from which most of our
imported sulphate of ammonia comes.
was at war; while Chile. the worlds
greatest source of nitrates. was so great
ly affected by the loss of its European
customers that all of its nitrate mines
were closed down.
third effect of the which
loomed large. though it affected another
side of the fertilizer business, was the
almost complete stop tn. was put
to the export from this country Of
phosphate rock. From a volume Of
business valued at about 100000 for
August and September. 1913. this ex-
port trade fell to approximately $780,
600 for the corresponding months of
the present year.
Fifty years ago these particular en-
barrassments could not have come to
US as the re-
Growth of Industry suit of gen.
in a Half Century. eftv years aeo M
the fertilizer industry practically did
not exist. Following the civil war,
however, a number of factors united
to bring about demand for fertilizer
and the development of its manufac-
ture, with the result that the industry
grew with remarkable rapidity. In
1853, the first year in which feitiliZer
statistics appear, forty-seven estab-
ljshments of unrecorded capital turned
out products valued at 1891, l,344. Ten
years later there were 126 establish
ments capitalized at more than $1,000
900, with annual products worth more
than S5,75O,000. BY 1909 the number
of manufacturing concerns had m
creased to $50, the capital to Sl2l,-
SOC, 900 and the annual value OF pro-
duction to S103,960.2l3. 1t is estimated
that the present capitalization OF es-
Establishments is not far from sl3o,ooo,-
0O0, and that the output for 1913 was
close to $125,000,000
Conditioned, as the fertilizer industry
largely has been. on the needs of the
Atlantic seaboard, it is not surprising
to find that most of the fertilizer plants
are situated there and that the bulk OF
the fertilizer consumed in TINS country
is made use of in the same territory.
The localization of the demand is even
greater however. 1t is estimated that
so per cent of the commodity Is used
east of the Allegheny mountains. and
that three -fourths of that amount is
consumed south of the Potomac river.
The manufacturing plants are also con-
centrated in the South Atlantic states.
In 1909 the first four states IN the order
of production of manufactured fertil-
izers were Georgia. Maryland, South
Carolina and Virginia. Georgia alone
produced 16 per cent of the total out
put.
Because the manufacture of fertilizer is
argely southern activity, the wiping
out of the cotton market at the begin
ming of the war contributed to the belief