89 



phosphates to some of our soils which are already well sup- 

 plied with phosphoric acid is an extremely ill-advised pro- 

 cedure. 



DOMESTIC MANURES. 



Among the domestic mauurial supplies of importance the 

 manure of the more common farm animals first demands con- 

 sideration. 



Originally they found quite general employment in the 

 manurial economy of the farm, but since commercial fer- 

 tilizers have gained such extensive use, the supplies of do- 

 mestic manures have l3een either partially disregarded or 

 else not intelligently applied. 



The value and importance of farm manures can possibly be 

 better appreciated and understood when it is stated that the 

 value of the manure produced by a well fed horse per year 

 will be from $23 to $25, calculated according to our scale of 

 fertilizer valuations, while the value of manure per head 

 from our average full grown cattle will probably vary from 

 $15 to $18 per year. 



The value of farm manures is largely dependent upon the 

 kind and condition of the animal and the character and 

 quantity of food supplied, and even under uniform condi- 

 tions the composition is subject to slight variations. 



Young and growing animals excrete from one-half to three- 

 fourths of the total fertilizing ingredients in their feed and 

 this proportion is rarely exceeded for the reason that a con- 

 siderable percentage of these fertilizing constituents are 

 being constantly utilized in the formation of fresh quantities 

 of bone, muscle, tissues, etc., there being in consequence 

 much smaller amounts of waste materials than is the case 

 withf full grown animals. 



With'milch cows the amount of fertilizing constituents 

 excreted is relatively smaller than with other neat cattle on 

 acco unt'ofithe fact that a large proportion of these valuable 

 elements are important constituents of milk, thereby dimin- 

 ishing the amounts found in the excrement itself. 

 2 



