298 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



A cord of ordinary stable manure weighs from two to three 

 tons and will carry, roughly speaking, a half a per cent of nitro- 

 gen, a third of a per cent oi phosphoric acid and a half a per 

 cent of potash. That is, a cord of manure will carry about 25 

 pounds of nitrogen, 17 pounds of phosphoric acid and 25 

 pounds of potash. 



WOOD ASIIKS. 



Of all the sources of potash natural to Maine, wood ashes 

 are perhaps the most important. Wood ashes carry potash and 

 lime. The amount of potash varies greatly with the kind of 

 wood, the temperature at which it is burned, and the subsequent 

 treatment of the ashes. Good hard wood ashes will carry in 

 the neighborhood of five or six per cent of potash. They will 

 also carry pretty nearly 50 per cent of lime. The most of the 

 ashes of commerce, even though they are branded "Unleached" 

 have lost considerable of their potash in one way or another. 

 One brand of so-called "Canada Unleached Ashes" was of- 

 fered in New York last year with a guaranty of only one per 

 cent of potash. Ashes come under the requirements of the 

 fertilizer law, and in buying ashes one should insist upon having 

 them sold under guarantees of potash and of lime. The phos- 

 phoric acid Which they carry is unimportant. 



SEA WEEDS. 



The ordinary deep water and shore sea weeds are valuable 

 natural sources of potash and of nitrogen. Winter collected 

 sea weeds, both rock weed and kelp, carry about 80 per cent of 

 water and 0.4 per cent nitrogen, o.i per cent phosphoric acid, 

 0.6 per cent potash and 0.5 per cent lime — considerably more 

 than is contained in farm manure and equally available. Like 

 farm manure, on account of their large water content sea weeds 

 cannot be economically transported far from the point of origin. 

 The ashes of sea weeds are rich in potash. Eel grass has no 

 agricultural value. Mussel mud has value but will not warrant 

 large amounts of paid labor. 



LIME. 



Lime is still a cheap product, and under some conditions it 

 is a valuable addition to the soil, both to liberate the plant food 



