EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETINS. 334 



before the raiu, while a rain upon freshly jilowed ground is quite likely 

 to cause a crust to form. If seed has just been planted or if the young 

 plants are just up, such a crust will be very injurious. 



Fourth. — Earlj' plowing and frequent harrowing makes the plant food 

 in the soil available and plant food must be in solution before plants 

 are able to use it. The more finely divided a substance is, the more 

 readily will it dissolve. This clearly illustrates why a well prepared 

 seed bed has advantages over lumps and clods. Harrowing the soil 

 aerates it, that is, it enables the air to enter the soil more readily. Be- 

 sides, soil contains minute forms of plant life, known as bacteria, which 

 only thrive and multiply in the presence of air. These bacteria are bene- 

 ficial inasmuch as they break down complex forms of plant food and 

 make it more quickly available for the plants' use. 



Fertilizers. Cucumbers are not hard on the soil but to be a success- 

 ful crop the soil should be quite rich. They are quick growing plants 

 and have not the time to rustle for a living, nor can the grower afford 

 to have them do so. The tiling to do is to provide them with an abund- 

 ance of plant food so that they may grow, as it were, at high pressure. 

 On the average land, they should not follow sugar beets, cabbages, 

 potatoes or oats unless such land has, in the meantime, received a liberal 

 application of barnyard manure or commercial fertilizer. 



No fertilizer material gives better results than well rotted stable 

 manure. If it is plentiful it may profitably be spread broadcast and 

 plowed under, but if the supply is limited, it will be most economical 

 if applied in the hills. 



If commercial fertilizers are to be used, the ground should be plowed 

 early and the fertilizer drilled broadcast as early in the season as possi- 

 ble. When the cucumbers are to be grown for pickles, a fertilizer of 

 the following composition is recommended: 



Nitrogen 3 to 4% 



Available Phosphoric acid. 8% 



Potash 6 to 10% 



About one-half of the nitrogen should be in the form of nitrate of 

 soda and the remainder as readily available organic nitrogen, such as 

 dried blood or high grade animal tankage. A fertilizer of about this 

 formula can be readily obtained of any manufacturer. From 500 to 

 1000 pounds, depending upon soil conditions, should be used per acre. 



In using commercial fertilizers, it should be remembered that the 

 best results will be obtained when they are used upon soils that are in 

 good physical condition and well supplied with organic matter, 



"Some growers of cucumbers advise the use of a certain amount of 

 fertilizer in the drill a short time before the seed is planted but this 

 has not been found the best method and is only justifiable when the 

 amount of fertilizer available is very limited. If the soil is made ex- 

 ceedingly rich immediately around the plant and at a greater distance 

 left without suflflcient plant food, a rank vigorous plant is started, 

 which the soil at a greater distance is not able to support. It is from 

 the soil several feet away that the vine gets the greater part of its 

 nourishment during the bearing season. For this reason, we advise the 

 broad-casting of all fertilizers. After the soil has been thoroughly fer- 



