FERTILIZERS IN COLD CLIMATES. 



DT is well known that quick growing 

 crops, or crops grown in countries 

 which from their high latitude 

 or other causes, have a compara- 

 tively short season of growth, require 

 plant food in a form very readily assimi- 

 lated by the plant. An important mat- 

 ter in relation to this point is that with 

 a shortened growing season, maturity 

 closely follows actual growth. 



If a crop of potatoes, for example, are 

 grown in a northern latitude to be used 

 as seed for more southern sections, it is 

 very important that ample supplies of 

 the mineral manures, potash and phos- 

 phate, should be assimilated early in the 

 growing season. Only a fully matured 

 potato gives satisfactory results as seed, 

 and a dwindling supply of mineral fer- 

 tilizers, during the latter stages of growth, 

 is pretty sure to result in a crop of im- 

 mature potatoes ; of lessened value as 

 food, and of little value as seed. 



Canada-grown seed potatoes have for 

 a long time been used in the United 

 States for early potatoes, but of late 

 years have only too frequently failed to 

 give satisfactory results. It is very com- 

 mon for the " eyes " to fail to germinate, 

 though the tuber is fair and plump so 

 far as outward appearance goes. This 

 is very probably due to the exhaustion 

 of potash in many of the Canadian soils, 

 from constant cropping without adequate 

 restitution. Where wood-ashes are used 

 freely, the same result happens very 

 commonly ; wood ashes are a good 

 source of fertilizer potash, but they also 

 carry large quantities of lime which acts 

 to liberate the supplies of potash exist- 

 ing naturally in the soil ; as a conse- 

 quence, the soil readily becomes defi- 

 cient in potash. In the United States 

 farmers have a common " saying " to the 

 effect that lime enriches the father at 

 the expense of the son, meaning that the 



use of lime tends to exhaust potash 

 quickly. If sufficient supplies of wood 

 ashes were used to keep up the supply 

 of potash, there could be no damage 

 from the free use of lime, but to properly 

 supply the potash needed yearly would 

 require more wood ashes than the Do- 

 minion can supply in ten years. 



Potatoes are an exhaustive crop. They 

 are largely water and starch it is true 

 but a good crop of potatoes remove 

 more potash than nitrogen. Wheat 

 removes only a little more potash than 

 phosphoric acid, but oats much more 

 closely resemble potatoes. An acre of 

 oats will require more than twice the 

 potash than an acre of wheat. What has 

 been said of the influence of an ample 

 supply of fertilizer minerals for the pro- 

 per maturity of potatoes, applies with 

 equal force to wheat and oats, or other 

 crops. As seed, their condition for use 

 in the Dominion is just as important as 

 it is in the United States. 



To insure a supply of fertilizers at the 

 proper time, use them early as well as 

 in ample quantities. The mineral fertil- 

 izers, that is phosphoric acid and potash, 

 will lose little or nothing by being ap- 

 plied weeks or months before plant 

 growth begins, so long as surface wash- 

 ing can be prevented. With nitrate of 

 soda or sulphate of ammonia, the appli- 

 cation must be made only shortly before 

 seeding. With minerals, apply enough 

 and apply it early, is a safe maxim. 



R. Garwood. 



Note. — While we agree with our cor- 

 respondent in most of what he says, and 

 appreciate his remarks about the value 

 of fertilizers, we can hardly accept his 

 statement regarding the exhaustive ac- 

 tion of wood ashes, which we do not 

 think has been proven by fact, nor as to 

 the decrease in the germinating power of 

 Canadian potatoes, as the result of lack 

 of potash, which is a new statement to 

 us. Editor. 



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