CHEMICAL FERTILIZERS ON CORN. 39 



containing eleven rows, had received no mannre. This por- 

 tion gave US sixty-eight bnshels to the acre. The yield of 

 the whole field I cannot give yon yet, because it is not yet all 

 husked ; but the upper portion of the field, where we planted 

 the best seed, has certainly given a large increase of yield 

 over the lower portion, where the other seed was planted. 

 Off of three-quarters of an acre and one-sixteenth, w^e har- 

 vested, by actual count, one hundred and sixty-five piled 

 baskets of ears. 



The second field to which I refer contained exactly 8^^^ 

 acres, and it was manured with the chemical fertilizers, 

 according to Professor Stockbridge's formula. We applied 

 to the field enonsrh fertilizers to give us 60i- baskets of 

 increase. It was cultivated similarly to the manured field, 

 although it was planted later, and the seed did not germinate 

 for a long time, on account of the drought. It was some 

 three weeks before the rows could be seen through the 

 germinating of the corn. It was, thei-efore, later than the 

 manured field throughout the whole season, so that we felt 

 very solicitous in regard to the vield. The same conmiittee 

 of the Middlesex South reported the yield of this field at 

 82|^ Ijushels to the acre. Two unmanured rows, seventy-two 

 rods long, gave a yield of twenty-two bushels, leaving an 

 increase of 60^"^^ bushels per acre, — differing two-tenths from 

 what Professor Stockbridge stated . These, however, are cattle- 

 show measures ; that is, the product of a square rod, multi- 

 plied by IGO, and divided by 72. We have, however, har- 

 vested this eight-acre field, and have the corn all in bins ; 

 and, by iiieasuring the bins, we are enabled to get at the 

 exact bulk of corn. The actual yield in bulk — calling two 

 bushels of ears equal to one bushel of corn — is 67^ bushels 

 per acre. 



Having given these statements in a brief manner, I will 

 proceed to analyze the crop in reference to what we learned 

 from it. The first and most marked observation is the 

 influence of seed. I have no question in my mind but that if 

 all the seed had been of the first quality, the yield would 

 have been from ten to fifteen, and perhaps twenty bushels 

 more to the acre. The second observation that I refer to, is 

 the influence of the nearness of planting and the number of 



