Food for The most important material used to supply 



Nitrogen, in the composition of commercial fertilizers 



26 is Nitrate of Soda. Nitrate of Soda is particularly 

 adapted for Top-Dressing during the growing season, 

 and is the quickest acting of all the Nitrogenous 

 fertilizers. 



Dried blood, tankage, azotine, fish scrap, castor 

 pomace, and cotton-seed meal represent fertilizers 

 where the Nitrogen is only slowly available, and they 

 must be applied in the fall so as to be decomposed and 

 available for the following season. Nitrogen in the 

 form of Nitrate of Soda is available during the growing 

 and fruiting season, possessing, therefore, a decided 

 advantage over all other Nitrogen plant-foods. 



The following table shows the number of pounds 

 of Nitrogen removed in one year from one acre by the 

 crop specified: 



Crop. Nitrogen. 



Wheat 35 bushels. 59 Ibs. 



Rye 30 bushels. 51 Ibs. 



Barley 40 bushels. 46 Ibs. 



Oats 60 bushels. 55 Ibs. 



Corn 50 bushels. 67 Ibs. 



Buckwheat 30 bushels. 35 Ibs. 



Potatoes 200 bushels. 46 Ibs. 



Sugar Beets 15j^ tons. 69 Ibs. 



Mangel-wurzel 22 tons. 150 Ibs. 



Meadow hay 2^ tons, dry. 83 Ibs. 



Green corn llj^ tons. 85 Ibs. 



Alfalfa 8 tons. 113 Ibs. 



Hops 600 Ibs. seed. 84 Ibs. 



Tobacco 1,600 Ibs. 89 Ibs. 



Grapes ". . . . 2 tons. 32 Ibs. 



Cabbage 31 tons. 150 Ibs. 



Oranges 10 tons. 24 Ibs. 



In the following tables the quantities given are 

 merely selected to express the average equivalent 

 amount of Nitrate of Soda which may be removed by 

 the average crops taken from any soil in one season. 

 It is not intended to thereby recommend that the 

 same amount of Nitrate of Soda should be put on the 

 soil each season, but merely to show the great rate 

 at which soil exhaustion of Nitrates proceeds. 



