The Bozeman courier. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1919-1954, 1921-08-10

mated that including absorbents, one
ton Of average mixed manure holds
about 10 pounds Of nitrogen, five
pounds Of phosphoric acid, and ten
pounds of potash.
Yet the farmers of this country
throw away thousands of tons of this
best of all fertilizers every year. In
fact, according to figures which have
appeared in the Farmers Bulletin, is
sued by the United States department |
of agriculture, the annual value of |
this waster manure if we include its !
use for improving the mechanical con-
ditions and drainage of soil, reaches |
close of 100000.
There are many ways in which ma
nure is being waster. Let US consider
few specific examples, and the
methods by which much of this vast
age can be stopped.
Many farmers seem to overlook the
fact that the urine of animals is scar
cely less valuable than the solid ex-
crement. Now the most valuable ele-
ment in manure is nitrogen, and from
two-fifths to one-half of this nitro
gen is contained in liquid manure.
And furthermore, because of its prac-
tically immediate availability, each
pound of nitrogen is worth more in
the liquid manure than it is in the
solid manure.
Suppose there are several flat piles
of manure, scattered about the barn
yard. This may lie there, perhaps
from Christmas time until the last
week in March. Apparently no great
shrinkage has occurred. But as a
J matter of fact, during these three
= months of exposure this manure has
: lost fully one-third of it's fertilizing
: value. For the soluble portions have
: been steadily teaching away. And
: if you originally had three tons of
manure containing 80 pounds of nj
trogen, 1 5pounds Of potash and so
: pounds of phosphoric acid, you have
5 lost 10 pounds of nitrogen, five
2 pounds of potash and ten pounds of
: phosphoric acid.
5 But not only are heavy losses in
5 Cured by exposing manure to the
elements during the. winter months
! This is also true during other seasons
e of the year. The heavy rains OF
spring, for instance, cause an enor-
4 nous amount of teaching of both the
). solid and liquid manure. Then, too
Y especially during the scorch;ng
: months of summer there is a great
S deal of fermentation. In the case OF
g fermentation, the phosphoric acid anC
potash are not affected, but the los:
of nitrogen, due entirely to fermen
tation, has been proven by numerous
experiments to run from one-fOurtl
s to three-fourths.
: Yet merely placing the manure I'm
l, der cover does not prevent lasses IL
e fertiliz'ng values. Very few stable
/ are tight enough to prevent the urin
&c from constantly draining away. Il
= this connection it lis worthy of not
that some farmers have gone so ia
as to drill holes in their barn floor
in order to drain off horse and GOV
Ut ne. Others with barns locate
ncar small streams nave dug dltcne
for the same purpose. And vct-w
believe this point cannot be 30
| -t~Cngiy enthusiastically most va
liable rart of barnyard manure is tn
urine.
Let US now consider some of tn
methods by which at least consider
able percentage of both the liquid an
u solid manure can be saved.
The best way is to haul the mar
ure out to the field when it is fresl
for even under the most favorab
conditions there can not help bein
a partial loss in stored manures. b
- of course it is not always possib
to apply the manure to the soil In
mediately after it has been mad
And so we offer the following SUI
gestions:
If you must store manure in vol
barn see to it that the floor is abs
20 lutely tight. One certain way of a
sur:ng this is to lay concrete floo
&c ing. This naturally involves son
5c expense, but it unquestionably pay
1t is also advisable to provide enoue
DC litter so that the urine will not DIR
DC when the manure is removed. Al
:. the bedding should not be too coars
" 1t is decidedly worth while to cut
DC into small pieces. Very short stra'
5c for instance, has about three tim
: as much power of absorption as lor
DC starw.
sc Not all of the loss from barn-sto
ed manure is caused by teaching. I
small part of it is occasioned by fe
&c mentation of both the dung and t
5c urine. The only remedy for this
the use of good pureservative. T
'C most economical and efficient pr
sc servative of stable manure is unique
sc tionably agricultural gypsum. Va
ious experiments indicate that e
NC nitrogen preserved by gypsum, VIII
DC it is properly used on manure,
: worth at least two times the CO
'S of the gypsum when both are figur
BE at current market prices One d,