296 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



this state, analyzed by conventional methods, will carry pretty 

 nearly a quarter of a per cent of nitrogen, a quarter of a per 

 cent of phosphoric acid and three-tenths of a per cent of potash. 

 Small as these percentages are, it means enormous total weights 

 of ingredients in an acre. A good fertile soil will carry to the 

 depth of a foot upwards of four tons of nitrogen, four tons of 

 phosphoric acid and over five tons of potash — obviously enough 

 for hundreds of crops if this supply could only be made avail- 

 able for the use of crops. 



A ton of farm manure carries only about twice as much plant 

 food as a ton of good soil. But in the manure the plant food 

 is all or nearly all available, while in the soil it is for the most 

 part beyond the reach of the plant. It is one of the aims of 

 good agriculture to render available as much of this plant food 

 of soil as is possible. And this is of unusual importance under 

 present conditions. 



In general, light sandy soils contain less potash than heavier 

 soils. Hence, in 19 16, for most money crops it is advisable to 

 use only the better soils. In general, only soils that are in good 

 tilth and good state of cultivation can probably be profitably 

 used with the type of commercial fertilizers that will have to 

 be employed in 19 16. Of course the value of the crop must 

 be taken into consideration, for with some crops, such as 

 onions, that have a high labor cost and where the fertilizer 

 cost is relatively unimportant, it may be advisable to buy potash, 

 if it can be had, even at the present high prices. 



It is so important as to bear repetition. In Maine, only the 

 best soils should be used for money crops in 1916. 



STABLE MANURE. 



A year ago the speaker called attention at this convention to 

 the high value of farm manures which were largely wasted in 

 the state. According to the State Assessors' Report for 1913, 

 there were in the State of Maine, in round numbers, 130,000 

 horses, 250,000 head of neat stock, 40,000 swine, 120,000 sheep, 

 and 2,000,000 hens, ducks and geese. If all the manure was 

 saved from these animals it would amount in a single year to 

 nearly 4,000,000 tons, and would carry approximately 19,000 

 tons of nitrogen, 12,000 tons of phosphoric acid and 18,000 

 tons of potash. This plant food in the world's market at nor- 



