New York Agricultural Experiment Station. 57 



of nitrogen and potassium fertilizers in such cases. A comparatively 

 small increase in crop due to their use would more than pay for the 

 fertilizer. However, if fair amounts of phosphorus and lime car- 

 bonate are used in these cases, and if liberal supplies of nitrogenous 

 organic matter are kept up, the needs for commercial nitrogen and 

 potassium are very much reduced. Also sixteen years of experi- 

 ments in the fertilizing of an apple orchard at this Station indicates 

 that much of the land devoted to commercial apple growing in the 

 State does not need any commercial fertilizers for the apple crop. 



In building up a run-down farm it may often be advisable, as has 

 been suggested above, to make use for a while of a certain amount 

 of commercial nitrogen and potassium, restricting their use largely 

 to grass and small grain. For potatoes some nitrogen will be used. 



Because of the legitimate use in many cases for a fertilizer con- 

 taining all three of the common fertilizing elements, something may 

 be said here regarding so-called complete commercial fertilizers and 

 the practice of mixing the different materials on the farm. 



Buy fertilizing materials. — There are decided advantages in 

 buying the separate fertilizing materials and mixing them according 

 to one's need rather than purchasing some brand of mixed goods. 



(1) A mixed fertilizer usually sells for a higher price than 

 ingredients which go to make it up can be bought for separately. 

 This is because of a charge for mixing and bagging and because of 

 the assumed merits of that particular brand. 



(2) A mixed fertilizer sometimes carries a part of its nitrogen 

 or phosphorus in comparatively unavailable forms, although these 

 are sold for as high a price as if they were of the best grade. Thus 

 nitrogen in peat used as a "filler'' may be sold for the same price 

 as nitrogen in dried blood. The analyses made under the State 

 Inspection Law do not entirely reveal the forms in which the elements 

 of a fertilizer are contained. 



(3) Mixed fertilizers seldom contain the three elements in the most 

 suitable proportion for the soil and crop in question. 



All this is well understood by many practical men, but the 

 enormous sale of mixed commercial fertilizers within the state is 

 proof that it is not appreciated by the majority of landowners. 

 At the Ohio Agricultural Experiment Station a comparison between 

 home-mixed and factory-mixed fertilizers was conducted on each 

 of three different fields for a period of eight years. The results 

 are so significant that they are republished here. 



For the purpose of this test four brands of mixed fertilizers were 

 purchased on the open market from four prominent fertilizer estab- 

 lishments. These brands were then duplicated by a mixture of 

 tankage, acid phosphate, muriate of potassium and a filler. The 

 commercial brands and their duplicates were then compared side by 

 side on three different fields for eight years, corn, wheat and clover 

 being grown in rotation on these fields. The fertilizers were all 



