110 TALKS ABOUT THE SOIL. 



what we must do in nearly all business ; and no doubt 

 the dealer is a good and honest man, and knows what 

 he tells us. Dishonesty never pays in the long-run, 

 in any business ; and the real question before us is, 

 which of all these various kinds of fertilizers we shall 

 buy for our particular piece of land. 



Experiment is our only guide. We have a field or 

 garden in which crops have been growing for many 

 years, and the soil is worn out. It wants something, 

 but what it wants we do not know. Our first step 

 must be to find out which element is missing. Per- 

 haps the hills about our land are full of limestone. 

 It is a limestone country, and there may be enough 

 lime or calcium already in the soil. However, we may 

 not be sure of this, and we must find this out by 

 experiment. If, after we have tried it once, we find 

 it is not needed, we can omit it after that. 



We now proceed to lay off a level place in the field 

 where the soil is to be tested, and mark out ten 

 squares, each measuring one rod on each side. We 

 place these in two rows, leaving spaces three feet wide 

 between the squares. These empty spaces or walks 

 are to be kept clear and free from weeds as long as 

 the experiment continues. Each square should be 

 marked by stakes at the corners, and properly num- 

 bered as in the accompanying diagram. 



These squares are to be planted with the same crop, 

 and cultivated through one season ; and each square 

 is to be a testing-place for fertilizers. Two of these 

 squares Nos. 2 and 9 are to have no fertilizers. 



