FARM MANURES 51 



warm, ''heats," and ferments. This fermenting causes the 

 production of ammonia which contains nitrogen. This 

 escapes into the air and is lost. All of these ways are more or 

 less careless, and on nearly every farm better methods could 

 be used. It is better to allow the manure to accumulate in 

 the stable and be trampled under foot by the animals, pro- 

 viding plenty of bedding is given, than to throw it out in a 

 pile to ferment and burn. The tramping in the stable keeps 

 the manure solid and thus keeps it moist and from heating. 

 In some cases, for instance, where calves, colts, sheep, or 

 steers are fed loose in a stable or shed the manure might be 

 allowed to collect during the entire winter. As soon as the 

 animals are taken out of the stable or shed the manure 

 should be hauled to the field and scattered at once. Or, if 

 the stable is cleaned out during the winter, the manure should 

 be taken to the field at once. Where animals are kept in open 

 yards the droppings should be gathered every day and thrown 

 into a pile which should be hauled out every few days. Some- 

 times the ground is too wet to drive over, or the field on which 

 the -manure is to be spread is in a crop. In such cases it may 

 be desirable to keep the manure for several weeks. It should 

 then be stored in a heap where it will not get wet enough 

 to produce drainage, but where, if necessary, water can be 

 applied to keep it from getting hot. The pile should be made 

 solid and as deep as possible. A basin-like place with the 

 bottom and sides cemented is a good place to store manure, 

 and if it has a roof over it all the better. 



It should be remembered that if manure must be kept in 

 a heap for a time, the pile should be deep, solid, and wet, but 

 not wet enough for drainage. It has been found by experi- 

 ment that where manure was exposed in loose, shallow piles 



