The Clio messenger. (Clio, Mich.) 1907-current, 1918-09-13

mel gain or So.3l more tnhn us uh-
fertilized neighbor. 1t Is well to re-
member. too, that these demonstra-
tions were conducted under conditions
as they are prevailing nj present
In the experiment In Lenawee all
the land was lined, making the cost
of lining the same on both plots, III
asnuch rs the acid phosphate is APP
piled but once in two years, only
one-third of It's cost was charged
against the rye.
The results of these demonstrations
are typical Of number that have been
run by the soils department of the
college 50 that farmers of Michigan
might be supplied with facts about
fertilizers from I'm unbiased source.
This information makes ii reasonably
evident that Notwithstanding prices
which four years ago would have
seemed barely short of piracy. the use
of fertilizers is more profitable today
than il was in 1914. while there is i'm
addition II consideration of still more
Importance To the patriOt-namely
harvest is just so much more aminu-
milton for battering down the bull
wnrks of the kaiser. The connection
may seem remote to some, but fer
tilizers do more than help our farms
they help our fighters.
Field experiments have shown that
fertilizers high in PHOSPHORUS con-
tent are best for wheat. particularly
on the heavy and medium soil types
commonly used for this crop.
By other experiments ii has been
just ~ inhsputably proved that fer
tiliZiny anCs to the quality Of the
grain. making ii a superior food for
man ana BEAST Often ii also com
mands Il higher price i'm the market
because Of this Improvement i'm quail
ty.
Here and there a man is encoun-
tered who has been led To believe that
only rundown lands respond protitably
to fertilizers. AS matter Of fact,
land of relatively high fertility, and
upon which a good rotation to main
tain production has always been fol-
lowed. and where a reasonable supply
of barnyard manure is used, acid
phosphate has given good returns
when used on the wheat crop. In case
clover does not do well. or where soils
have become somewhat depleted in
fertility b. grain cropping and lack
Of manure. many farmers prefer to use
4 fertilizer containing some nitrogen,
that is %. or 1-13 fertilizer. These
figures are not a secret code or set
of football signals. The first number
In the formula. in the % for example.
usually refers to the per cent Of nj
trOgen, such as ammonia, which the
fertilizer contains. while the second
number refers to the per cent Of phOs-
phoric acid. This Is also "a good kind
Of fertilizer to use on high-cOlOred up
land soils that have been farmed for
some time.
But no man should allow himself to
| fall into the error of thinking that
fertilizers will take the place Of good
seed or of thoroughly fitted seed
bed. Good food will help II cow to give
more milk-but good food will not
make a record-breaker, or even
profit Garner out of scrub animal.
The best results with fertilizers are
obtained not with scrub seed, but
with the pedigreed varieties.
Neither must the importance of the
seed bed be overlooked. A good seed
bed for wheat is one in which the
upper three inches Of soil are fine,
mellow and in good tilth, while the
suD-surface should be fine and well
cOmpacted, with good connection es-
| tablished between the sub-Surface and
the unplowed sub-soil Early prep
aratiOn Of the land is best, especially
in dry season, to obtain the kind Of
seed bed that will enable the wheat
crop to yield up it's maximum returns.
Wheat sOwn after cultivated crop
often gives large yields because OF
the seed bed produced by the summer
cultivation. These conditions should
be stimulated as much as possible
when wheat follows spring crop.
Given a well-dtted seed bed. the best
Of seed and favorable weather condi-
tons. fertilization with fertilizers high
i'm phosphorus should increase the
yields even more markedly than on
| fields where conditions are the re-
verse.
In its last analysis. the question
of whether or not 1t is advisable TO
! fertiize Is q purely individual one
but irrespective of this fact, it is
one that 1t will be well for every far
mer to investigate.