Field Experiments on Clover-Seeds. 



483 



Table showing the Manures employed and Green Produce from 10 Plots of 

 Clover-seeds, Second Year's growth, at Woodhorn IManor, Morpeth, and 

 Produce calculated per Acre. 



10 



Quantity 



per ,_,g of an 



Acre. 



Nitrate of Soda 



Sulphate of Ammonia .. 

 Mineral Superphosphate (dis- 

 solved Bone-ash) 



Common Salt 



Left unmauured 



Muriate of Potash 



Sulphate of Potash 



Sulphate of Lime 



(Mineral Superphosphate 

 and 



[Nitrate of Soda 



(Mineral Superphosphate 



and 

 ' Muriate of potash 



22r' lbs. 

 901 



00 1 



09 I 



--2 >> 



1 cwt. 

 2-1^ lbs. 



001 



— 2 » 

 OOi 



Produce 

 per J_ of an 



*^ 2() 



Acre. 



Produce per Acre. 



lbs. 

 899J 

 1039A 



924 



726 



635i 



767| 



709i 



577^ 



1056 



6681 



Tons. cwts. lbs. 



8 65 



9 5 70 



8 5 



6 9 72 



5 13 49 



6 17 1 

 6 6 78 

 5 3 14 



9 8 64 



5 19 37 



On looking over the preceding results, the small produce on 

 Plot 10 must create considerable surprise. In the preceding 

 year the heaviest crop was reaped from this plot, and the result 

 in 1865 is the more remarkable. Mineral superphosphate alone 

 applied to Plot 3 gave nearly 2 tons and 6 cwts. more per acre 

 than the same quantity of superphosphate and muriate of potash 

 added to it. There is, however, generally a good reason to be 

 found for such striking anomalies as this. 



In the case before us the anomalous result obtained on Plot 10 

 is entirely attributed by Mr. Wilson to a bed of coltsfoot, which 

 sprung up at one end of the plot. The effect of the top-dressing 

 was very marked at the other end, where the crop to all ap- 

 pearances was very heavy. It is much to be regretted that the 

 failure occurred just on Plot 10, for there is strong presumptive 

 evidence that muriate of potash is most usefully applied to 

 clover in conjunction with superphosphate. Indeed the experi- 

 ence of the previous year seems to afford a substantial evidence 

 for the correctness of this view. 



The effect produced by muriate of potash, it will be seen, was 

 slightly better than that of sulphate of potash. In either case, 

 however, the increase over the unmanured plot is not sufficiently 

 great to repay for the outlay. It will, moreover, be seen that 

 chloride of sodium (common salt) gave nearly as great an 

 increase as muriate of potash, and slightly more clover than 

 sulphate of potash. 



Nitrate of soda, and, in a still higher degree, sulphate of 

 ammonia, produced heavy crops, but of the mixed clover and 

 rye-grass the latter predominated, and the grass was coarse, as 



