COMMERCIAL FERTILIZERS 83 



The chemical composition of ashes varies considerably, ac- 

 cording to the plants, or parts of plants, from which it has been 

 derived; the smaller the wood, or the more of weeds or other 

 herbaceous material there was in it, the more valuable the ash ; but 

 taking a broad average, a bushel (say forty-eight pounds) of wood 

 ashes would, according to the ordinary valuation of the ingredients, 

 be worth about twenty-five cents counting on an average of five 

 per cent of potash and two per cent of phosphoric acid. In general, 

 ashes should be spread broadcast over the surface of the ground 

 and allowed to be washed in by rains or irrigation, and not 

 placed too near the plant. If plowed in shallow with stubble or 

 weeds, the latter decompose very quickly, and the effect of both 

 is thus improved and quickened. 



The greatest benefit may be expected upon sandy and porous 

 soils. On these "light soils" crops of every kind, but especially root 

 crops and corn, will be benefited by a dressing of wood ashes. 

 Thirty to fifty bushels to the acre of fresh ashes will be a full 

 dressing, and three or four times that amount of leached ashes may 

 be applied with permanent benefit. 



Bone Manures. To make bones readily available they may be 

 treated with sulphuric acid and rendered into superphosphate, which 

 is soluble. But sulphuric acid is a very dangerous agent to handle, 

 and can hardly be commended for farm or garden use. Burning 

 bones destroys their nitrogen and renders the phosphate even more 

 insoluble. The best home treatment for bones is to crush them if 

 it can be handily done, and then put them through the fermentation 

 of the compost heap. The bones which do not break down under 

 this treatment can best be buried deeply in the orchard to await the 

 slow disintegration by the tree roots. 



Commercial Fertilisers. A discussion of the value and avail- 

 ability of commercial fertilizers is beyond the reach of this treatise. 

 The vegetable grower should possess himself of a good recent book 

 on the subject.* In connection with the different vegetables there 

 will be mention of applications which have been serviceable, but a 

 general formula may be cited from Voorhees, as follows : 



A good basic formula for such market garden crops as aspara- 

 gus, cucumbers, early potatoes, early tomatoes, onions, cabbage, 

 cauliflower, celery, egg plants, melons, peppers, squashes, etc., may 

 consist of: 



Lbs. 



Nitrate of soda 100 



Sulphate of ammonia 100 



Dried blood 150 



Ground bone 100 



Superphosphate 450 



Muriate of potash 150 



From 800 to 1000 Ibs. of this formula can be used per acre. 



*Such a book is "Fertilizers," by E. B. Voorhees, Macmillan Co., New York. 



