312 Bulletin 179. 



The results were that the headlands and the narrow strip across the 

 field that were plowed early, and had re-adjusted the capillary action 

 before planting-time, yielded a large crop that even lodged consider- 

 ably. The rest of the field was scarcely worth harvesting. 



The object of the experimental work. — This work was under- 

 taken for the purpose of helping the farmers of the State to detect 

 and improve some of the low-grade conditions of their iields. 

 Experimental work with fertilizers, which is the subject of this 

 bulletin, was taken up. It was the plan of the Station to send to 

 such farmers as would agree to do the work, a sufficient quantity 

 of the three plant-foods, nitrogen, phosphoric acid and potash, sepa- 

 rately and in combination, with directions for a series of experiments 

 for the purpose of determining whether any separate plant-food or 

 any combination of them would increase the crops to which they 

 were applied. The results of such experiments, carried out accord- 

 ing to directions, should assist the farmer to decide what plant-foods 

 his soils need, if any, for the production of satisfactory crops. 



If the series of experiments proves to be a failure, that is, if it 

 gives no marked or definite results, it is still valuable. It at least 

 shows the farmer that his soil is not in a condition to respond to the 

 use of fertilizers, which means either that it is already well stocked 

 with availabl^e food or that some one or more of the essential con- 

 ditions other than plant-food conditions need looking after and 

 improving before much money or time is spent on fertilizers. 



Extent of the experimental work and the results in gen- 

 eral. — During the past three years 371 sets of fertilizers have been 

 sent to farmers in various parts of the State. (See map, page 308.) 

 The time at which the appropriation for this work became available 

 in the spring was so far advanced, that in some cases the fertilizers 

 were received by the farmers much later than they should have been 

 applied to the soil ; the results may therefore have been less satis- 

 factory than might otherwise have been the case. 



A majority of the experimenters have been visited by a Station 

 representative ; in some cases photographs of the crops have been 

 taken ; in other cases samples of soil have been sent to the Station 

 for analysis. In general the farmers manifested much interest in 

 the work and most of them took great pains with it. A few were 



