COMiMKRCIAL FliKTlLl/.KKS 113 



profitable crops with applications of 200 pounds of commercial 

 fertilizer per acre, now require 400 to 600 pounds and sometimes 

 800 to 1,200 pounds to produce the same results. 



With the market gardener and trucker conditions are different. 

 The demand for vegetables in our large cities has caused the 

 market gardener in the north and the trucker in the south to use 

 heavy applications of fertilizers to produce profitable crops. 

 Many of these crops are heavy feeders and require to be 

 marketed or shipped as early as possible, as a few days often 

 means a great difference in the prices received, and so high 

 priced quick acting fertilizers are generally used. The truckers 

 are often located on sandy soils of low fertility that must have 

 plenty of fertilizer to produce money crops. The market gardener, 

 who usually lives near or in a city or town, produces crops on 

 lands that would bring a high price for building and other 

 purposes, and can hardly ever afford to allow his land to be idle 

 or to be sowed to some soil improving crop, but must have a 

 money crop growing continually. The market gardener cannot 

 afford to raise live-stock on such high priced land. So with the 

 market gardener and trucker the consumption of fertilizer will 

 increase with the demand for their products, and as the popula- 

 tion of this country is increasing every year we may expect more 

 artificial fertilizers to be used in producing market garden and 

 truck crops. With these farmers, and especially the market 

 gardener, the use of large quantities of commercial fertilizers is a 

 necessity. 



How the General Farmer May Lessen the Use of Commercial 

 Fertilizers. — The consumi^tion of commercial fertilizers may be 

 reduced a great deal by many farmers. A better system of farm- 

 ing should be adopted. A rational rotation system including 

 money crops and soil improving crops should be practiced. Leg- 

 umes should be included whenever possible in rotations to add 

 to the supply of nitrogen and organic matter in the soil. Live- 

 stock should be kept and the farm crops marketed through them. 

 In this way a two-fold or full value will be obtained, namely, the 

 feeding and fertilizer values. Farm manure should be saved 

 and preserved. It should be saved to supply humus and fertility 



