122 Report of the Chemist of the 



While the claim is made that " Natural Plant Food " is " all 

 available to plants in the soil," we see that chemical analysis 

 shows that of the phosphoric acid only one to one and one-half 

 per cent is available, and of the potash only a trace. 



4. Real Character of " Natural Plant Food." 



Before considering further points in regard to " Natural Plant 

 Food," we will indicate more clearly what the material is. It 

 is undoubtedly a mixture of soft rock phosphate and the mineral 

 glauconite. This rock phosphate is more commonly known as 

 Florida soft phosphate. So far as experiments have been made, 

 the soft phosphates are entirely inferior to acid phosphates and 

 probably not in any way superior to the form of finely ground 

 phosphate known as floats. 



Glauconite, the mineral which furnishes the potash in " Nat- 

 ural Plant Food," contains potash and iron in the insoluble form 

 of silicate. This is more familiar under the name of " green 

 sand marl " of New Jersey. Potash in this form is about as 

 effective on crops as potash in granite, so far as we have evi- 

 dence. 



It is claimed that " Natural Plant Food " has remarkable 

 power as a seed germinator. This claim is made in the follow- 

 ing language, which bears a remarkable resemblance to the 

 phraseology so familiar to us in patent-medicine circulars: 



" Every intelligent farmer knows that fertilizer is the best 

 which can soonest start the seed to growing and cause the largest 

 number of seeds to sprout and grow, out of the whole number 

 planted. This, the Natural Plant Food has done in every case. 

 The Natural Plant Food makes more seed grow, out of the whole 

 number planted, than any other fertilizer on earth. It makes 

 these seeds come up much earlier and faster, grow more vigor- 

 ously, withstand a drouth much longer and finally produce a 

 much better crop than any other grade of fertilizer yet known, 

 as has been fully demonstrated and proven beyond all manner 

 of doubt by tens of thousands of witnesses to its marvelous 

 germinating and forcing powers. This all goes to show that a 

 Natural fertilizer is of vastly more benefit to the soil than an 



