98 iSTATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



life. The man that drags his dead horse or cow off into the woods there to 

 rot aud pollute the air of the neighborhood, or teach the dogs the easy lesson 

 of helping themselves to a free lunch, whether of dead cow or living sheep, is 

 a fool. If these animal remains are composted with muck, no offensive odors 

 are given off, aud a large amount of very valuable and inoffensive manure is 

 made. Here is a specimen of dead horse aud muck entirely odorless. 



Animal remains are valuable because they are so rich in combined nitrogen, 

 aud because they decay so rapidly that they benefit the crop speedily. But 

 even those which decay slowly, such as hair, leather, woolens, etc., may be 

 made available and active by composting with wood ashes slightly moistened, 

 and valuable manure secured. Any waste material that gives off the smell of 

 burnt feathers during combustion should not be burned up, but converted 

 into manure for the nitrogen they contain. 



Bones of all animals have a high manurial value because so rich in nitrogen. 

 Dry bones contain on an average one-third their weight of organic matter, 

 and two-thirds mineral matter. The organic matter contains about eighteen 

 per cent of nitrogen, and the mineral matter contains eighty per cent of phos- 

 phate of lime. If we allow the bones to contain in their natural state one- 

 third their weight of water and fat, and compute the value of the remainder 

 at commercial rates for nitrogen and phosphoric acid, we sliall find that a 

 ton of bones is worth 816 for nitrogen and $16.83 for the phosphoric acid, or 

 $32.83 a ton for ordinary bones. If perfectly dry, the value will be propor- 

 tionately increased to make up for our allowance of water. 



Bones act slowly in the soil because they decay slowly in consequence of their 

 compact structure. They are liable to be brought to the surface of the soil by 

 the plow and cultivator. If they are ground into a bone meal, like the speci- 

 men before you, they easily incorporate with the soil and act promptly as a 

 manure. They can readily be ground in a bone or plaster mill. 



If no mill is at hand, tlie fresh bones may bo reduced to a fine state by 

 composting them with twice their bulk of wood ashes, slightly wetting the 

 ashes so that the potash may act on the organic matter of the bones; shovel 

 over the pile once a month, for three mouths, when the bones will readily 

 crush under a blow of the shovel and may readily be beaten to a soft mass. 

 If the organic matter has been removed, by boiling, for glue, the ashes will 

 have no effect upon them, and the value of such bones for manure is reduced 

 by the withdrawal of the nitrogenous matter. 



SUPERPHOSPHATE. 



Bones can rapidly be brought into the active condition by the action of 

 sulphuric acid, making sulphate aud superphosphate of lime, like the sample 

 before you, but it will not pay the farmer to make his own superphosphate 

 because the acid will cost so much. The manufacturer can make his own 

 acid for $5 a ton, while you cannot buy the acid for less than $40 a ton. It 

 is better and cheaper to buy superphosphate ready made, when you can get of 

 the Michigan Carbon Works, in Detroit, this bone black, dissolved in acid, 

 containing 10 per cent of soluble phosphoric acid, for 835 a ton, and the 

 Homestead Fertilizer for 840 a ton. For giving crops an early and vigorous 

 start in the spring I regard superphosphate valuable. Its effect varies with 

 the soil and season. 



NEED OF A PUBLIC ANALYST. 



Before you can safely buy commercial fertilizers you need some guarantee 



