40 



CANADIAN FARM YEAR BOOK. 



Artificial Fertilizer Losses. 



Where a farmer's system of man- 

 agement does not provide suflBcient 

 stable manure to meet the require- 

 ments of the soil, or there are fields 

 where barnyard manure cannot be ap- 

 plied, the use of animal and chemical 

 fertilizers is to be recommended. 

 Such materials as dried blood, tank- 

 age and finely ground bone meal and 

 potassium fertilizers will benefit a 

 variety of soils and make valuable 

 fields that would be otherwise useless. 

 When bone meal is of a reliable char- 

 acter there is no cheaper source of 

 nitrogen and phosphoric acid. 

 Indirect Fertilizers. 



Indirect fertilizers are those which 

 do not in themselves supply plant 

 food, but whose chief value depends 

 upon the ability they possess of 

 changing the insoluble and unavail- 

 able potash and phosphoric acid into 

 available forms. 



Gypsum lime, common salt, are of 

 this nature- These should be used in 

 moderatioL. One to one-half tons per 

 acre at intervals of five to six years 

 would be a safe application of lime. 

 Direct Fertilizers. 



There are those which contribute 

 directly to the growth of plants. They 

 may contain either nitrogen, phos- 

 phoric acid or potash, or all or any 

 two of these. 



Nitrogen fertilizers, nitrate of 

 soda, sulphate of ammonia, dried 



■:»■- 



blood and calcium cyanamlde, are the 

 most important and pure. 



Potash, muriate of potash and sul- 

 phate of "potash. Former contains 

 50% and latter Z5"/o potash. Both 

 are soluble and immediately avail- 

 able. 



Phosphatic, ground rock and super- 

 phosphate are those most readily 

 available. 



Thomas phosphate, bone meal, 

 bone ash, bone black, meat scrap, 

 tankage, are materials containing 

 more than one nutrient and their 

 value, whilst not Immediate, will 

 spread over a fairly large period of 

 time when" made available by the ac- 

 tion of the soil acids. Therefore it 

 is reasonable to believe that an appli- 

 cation of fertilizers, giving different 

 sources of the same needed element, 

 and thus becoming available at a dif- 

 ferent period of growth, will have a 

 good and valuable effect on the grow- 

 ing crop. 



To obtain this result, the fertilizers 

 made up of the by-products of 

 slaughter houses, etc., in Canada will 

 produce favorable results. Purchased 

 from reliable firms, animal fertilizers 

 living up to the professed analysis 

 have good value for the purchaser, 

 and where their presence is needed 

 are to be lecommended. 



Mineral fertilizers such as potash, 

 nitrate of soda, acid phosphate, etc., 

 are all beneficial and reliable. 



::y ;\::-} ■■[:■■■■:]■■ •.■'■i^r^^^^;^^^ 



This Illustrates the value of using diff erent sources of same element needed 

 In fertility, thus giving plant food throu ghout growing season. 



