26 POTATO CULTURE. 



and potash out to slowly evaporate ; just so if you put in 

 nitrogen or phosphorus. These substances will not evap- 

 orate in the form given above. Under no combination of 

 circumstances can you evaporate any mineral matter. But 

 if you pile up your manure and let it heat, thus changing the 

 nitrogen into a volatile gas, ammonia, and you spread this 

 manure out, the ammonia will go to wa^te at once. But you 

 will lose only the trace that was present when you spread it. 

 After manure is thinly spread, practically no more will be 

 formed. The slight amount you lose is of little account. 

 Doubtless you would lose as much every day if you lett the 

 manure in a heading pile, where ammonia was constantly 

 forming. But practically I keep my manure from heating 

 and forming ammonia, by having it spread all over the 

 covered yard, and tramped so as to pretty much exclude the 

 air. The manure does not rot. I do not want it to. I want 

 to use it on the surface. It has two values I am after, and 

 at the same time I do not want any loss. The first value is 

 the actual plant-food in it. This, I have shown you, I shall 

 get without any practical loss. Then by using it on the sur- 

 face I get a mulching value. Little by little the rains leach 

 the plant-food down among the clover-roots, where it will be 

 taken care of. Meanwhile the refuse portions, straw, etc., 

 shade and cover the surface between the young clover-plants. 

 It is a great law of nature, that bare land grows poorer and 

 shaded land richer. Our farming will become more and 

 more profitable as we learn to work in accordance with the 

 laws that are fixed by the great Creator of all. Do you think 

 this manuring will interfere with your having clean hay the 

 next year, if you want to cut the first crop for hay ? It does 

 not at all on my farm. The manure is so finely spread that 

 it decays so not a trace of it will rake up in the hay. I 

 feared trouble in this way, but have had none. But, re- 

 member, we have a manure-spreader, and it tears the 

 manure all into shreds, nearly, and the heavy growth of 

 clover furnishes moisture and shade, so it decays quickly. 



