Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1914-10-07
Observation-Disclosures 'S..ss.S.sS..S..S..f.oS..f.
Ss REMEDIES FOR =.
's' POTASH SHORTAGE. J.
'i''' '''''''''S'.' .t..S.s..S..S.S. .f,.l..S..s.
[ BY Fl. A. HouSton.)

tBy Fl. A. Houston.)
Various suggestions have been
made i'll regard to the steps TO be
taken by farmers in reference to the
shortage Of potash in their fertiliZ-
ers, caused by the greatly reduced
shipments of potash from Germany
since the first Of August. Most Of
the fertilizer companies have ell
deavored to make the potash on hand
go as far as possible by selling, for
the present, brands of complete fer
tilizers containing only 2 or 3 per
cent Of potash and withholding from
sale brands containing larger
amounts.
The suggestion that some or all of
the potash be replaced by phosuhoric
acid is absurd, for every school boy
knows that one plant food cannot
take the place Of another. There are
some indirect fertilizers, such as
lime, gypsum and salt, that can re-
lease a limited amount Of potash
from soils that conta in hydrated sill
Gates of alumina and potash. But If
these soils have already been treated
with lime or have received repeated
dressings of the usual forms Of fer
tilizer containing soluble phosphate
with its accompanying gypsum, then
the potash in the hydrated silicates
70 ln 81,
replaced, and the use Of more lime Or
gypsum or salt could not be expected
to release such additional potash
Ground limestone or oyster shells act
too slowly to be used as potash re-
leaSCrS.
The residue OF soda left in the soil
by nitrate Of soda is more effective
in releasing potash than is gypsum,
and hence goods in which the nitro
gen is largely in the form Of nitrate
of soda, may have a special value in
the present emergency.
1t is often stated that decaying or
ganic matter releases potash from the
soil, but there seems to be no direct
evidence Of this. ON the contrary,
DR.. S. Peacock states, in the Ameri-
can Fertilizer Of September ;, 1914:
Several thoroughly competent re-
searches have shown that dccaying
organic matter has little effect on
converting inert mineral plant food
in the soil into available form"
Iii any soil the amount of potash
capable OF being released by these
indirect means is a very small frac-
ton of the total potash in the SOL,
most of which exists in form about
as soluble as window glass. There is
no known profitable method for rem
dering this inert potash OF the soil
available fast enough to provide for
profitable crops. Whatever tempo
rary eXpedients we may employ in
the present emergency, we must
keep in mind that the potash thus
removed from the semi-available soil
reserves must later be replaced if we
are to maintain the soils productive-
ness.
There is danger in the statement
that farmers have been using an cx-
cess Of potash. Crops use on the av-
crage about two and one-half times
as much potash as phOsphoric acid
while the average fertilizer sold con-
tains one half as much potash as
phosphoric acid; yet no one claims
that we are using too much phosphor-
ic acid. The potash remaining from
a previous fertilization is practically
nothing except in the limited areas
where a ton or more of fertilizer has
been used per acre on truck crops.
Very rarely is half as much potash
applied to the wheat, oats, corn or
cotton crop as the crop removes.
The potash mines are so numerous
and the stocks on hand so large that
supplies can be promptly sent for
ward as soon as European conditions
permit freight shipments to be re-
sumcd
STOP SICK HEADACHE
OR NEURALGIA PAIN.