240 ANNUAL KICl'OKT OF THE Off. Doc. 



PLAN OF EXPERIMENT ON CULTURAL METHODS AND 



MANURES 



As shown in the figure, this experiment tests four methods of soil 

 management, viz., clean tillage, tillage and cover croi)S, sod mulch, 

 and sod. Each treatment occurs both without fertilization and 

 with it. The stable manure is applied annually at the rate of twelve 

 tons per acre; and the commercial fertilizer at the rate of thirty 

 pounds of nitrogen (N), sixty pounds phosphorus pentoxid (PgOj), 

 and 100 pounds of potash (K.Oj. 



On the mulch plot all herbage remains in the orchard, the first 

 cutting being raked to the trees as a mulch, and an additional mulch 

 of old straw, swamp hay or buckwheat straw at the rate of about 

 three tons per acre is ap])lied annually. In this latter respect it 

 differs from the so-called "Hitchings plan/' and as a conserver of 

 moisture it is undoubtedly very much better than that plan. On 

 the sod plot, the first cutting of herbage is removed from the orchard 

 and the second is left where it falls. The tillage plots are all cul- 

 tivated until early in July, when those receiving the cover crop are 

 seeded to crimson clover, hairy vetch or medium red clover and 

 alsike, either singly or in combination. The results to date are 

 from the unfertilized plots of the young orchards, and are shown 

 in Table V. These results and those in later tables on young 

 orchards have been obtained by combining the data from three 

 orchards, whose age as noted in Table I ranges from seven to six- 

 teen vears. 



