158 



EXPERIMEKTAL FARMS 



5 GEORGE v.. A. 1915 



COMMERCIAL FERTILIZERS. 



In 1913 there were completed five years of experiments designed to supply informa- 

 tion concerning the relative fertilizing merits, in regular farm rotation, of: — 



1. No manure or fertilizer of any kind, but pastured one year in four (records 

 kept in 1913 only). 



2. Barnyard manure. 



3. Complete commercial fertilizer. 



■i. Barnyard manure, together ^vith commercial fertilizer. 



To carry out this work, four areas of land were selected, " N," in 1912, and " X," 

 " Y" and 'Z' in 1909. Each area was divided into four equal-sized plots, and placed 

 under the following rotation : — 



First year. — Hoed crop. 



Second year. — Oats. Seeded down with 8 pounds red clover, 2 pounds alsike and 

 12 poimds timothy per acre. 



Third year. — Clover hay. 



Fourth year. — Timothy hay on rotations " X," " Y " and " Z,'" and pasture on 

 rotation " N." Land ploughed shallow in early autumn, top worked and ribbed up in 

 late autumn. 



Fertilizer Treatment Given Rotations " N," " X," " Y " and " Z." 



Crop, 



Rotation N. 



Rotation X. 



Rotation Y. 



Rotation Z. 



Mangels. 



No fertilizer. 



Oats No fertilizer. 



Clover hay |No fertilizer. 



Timothy hay. . . iPastured 



Manure 15 tons. 



No fertilizer. . . 

 No fertilizer.. . 

 No fertilizer. . . 



No manure 



Superphosphate, 300 lb.. . 

 Muriate of potash, 75 lb. . 

 Nitrate of soda, 100 1b... 

 Nitrate of soda. 100 1b... 

 Nitrate of soda, 100 lb... 

 Nitrate of soda, 100 1b... 



Manure, 7j tons 

 Superphosphate 



Muriate of potash, S/f 



150 lb. 

 _ lb. 

 Nitrate of soda, 50 lb 

 Nitrate of soda, 100 1b. 

 Nitrate of soda, 100 lb. 

 Nitrate of soda, 100 lb. 



The five years' results for this experiment supply rather interesting data. 



Rotation " X," which was fertilized with barnyard manure alone, cost the least 

 to operate and produced the largest returns. The average profit per acre for the period 

 was $7.88. 



Rotation " Z,'' which received a mixture of barnyard manure and commercial 

 ; fertilizers produced equally as well as rotation " X," but cost slightly more to operate 

 with the result that the net profit was just $6.77 per acre. 



Rotation '" Y.'' receiving commercial fertilizer alone was the lowest in producing 

 power and cost as much to operate as " X." The profits therefrom have averaged only 

 %'t.^-)^ per acre. 



These results .show a distinct advantage of barnyard manure alone over com- 

 mercial fertilizer alone for this soil, but point to the possibility of combining the two 

 to good advantage when barnyard manure is scarce or high in price. 



In calculating the returns from these rotations fixed values as given on page 9€ 

 of this report were used. Fertilizers were valued as follows: — 



Muriate of potash v $2 50 per 100 nounds. 



Nitrate of soda 3 00 



Superphosphate 90 " 



Ottawa. 



