130 Bukeau of Farmers' Institutes. 



acid phosphate, 200 pounds of nitrate of soda per acre will be 

 found good. 



Question. — What effect has potash on fruit trees? 



Mr. Bice. — Potash makes a hard, stocky growth of wood, and 

 gives color to both leaf and fruit. Nitrogen, if too much is applied, 

 makes a soft, unhealthy growth, while phosphoric acid perfects 

 the seed. If I had an orchard that was making a good, healthy 

 growth, I should keep nitrogen out of it. It is quite easy to 

 ascertain what element of plant food is most needed by a plant 

 or tree by observation. If the tree or plant is making a feel tie 

 growth and looks pale and " puny," nitrogen is needed; if the 

 grain or grass falls down, or the wood of the tree is soft and over- 

 grown, there is too much nitrogen available in the soil. If the 

 leaf, fruit, grass or grain lacks in strength, potash is needed; if 

 the fruit prematurely falls, or does not make a full growth, the 

 seed has not perfected. In that case phosphoric acid is required. 



Question. — When an apple or potato rots on the ground, does 

 it carry back the same plant food it took away from the soil ? 



Mr. Rice. — Yes, in a way. If the apple were to rot, the min- 

 eral element in it would go into the soil, while some of the nitro- 

 gen in it might turn to ammonia and escape into the atmosphere. 



Question. — Give value of good hard-wood ashes? How should 

 they be applied, and what crop is most benefited? 



Mr. Smith. — Good hard-wood ashes, if they have five per cent, 

 potash in them, are worth about $6.75 a ton. The potash will be 

 about 100 pounds, worth five cents per pound, and 30 or 35 pounds 

 of phosphoric acid, worth $1.75. But there are many so-called 

 Canada ashes that will not analyze more than three per cent, of 

 potash. But there is a little more value, which is the lime in 

 them. The lime promotes a certain chemical change in the soil 

 by releasing plant food locked up. As a rule, potash and phos- 

 phoric acid are more cheaply obtained in another way. Buy 200 

 pounds of muriate of potash, 200 pounds of treated South Caro- 

 lina rock and 1,000 pounds of slaked lime. Apply half a ton per 

 acre on ordinary soils for ordinary crops. I do not know what 

 crops will be most benefited by their use. 



Question. — Are ashes good for corn, and when and how should 

 they be used? 



Mr. Smith. — Yes; their value is in the potash and lime con- 

 tained in them. Corn does not require as much potash as some 

 other crops; but, for a crop of 00 bushels per acre, 100 pound* of 

 nitrogen is required. The lime in the ashes sweetens the soil, if 



