No. 4.] FIELD CROPS. 335 



It will be noticed that there was a large excess of phos- 

 phoric acid supplied. This is in part due to our plan to 

 enrich the soils in this element with a view to future crops ; 

 but was in part furnished with a view to hastening the 

 maturity of the crop, or, in other words, to make it earlier. 

 It is well known that the usual effect of an abundant supply 

 of available phosphoric acid is in that direction. I should 

 state that we did not get the desired results this year, pos- 

 sibly because there was too much available nitrogen present 

 in the soil. 



I desire to call attention to the fact that the sulphate was 

 used as the source of potash. Experiments which have been 

 repeated many times on different soils and extending through 

 five years have convinced me that this form is much superior 

 to the muriate, giving larger yields of better quality. The 

 details of these experiments will be found in reports and 

 bulletins by Dr. Goessmann and by myself, and I will not 

 detain you by presenting them at this time. Suffice it to say 

 that the yield where sulphate has been used has been far 

 more than enough greater than where the muriate was used 

 to cover the higher cost of the former. I wish to make 

 emphatic the expression of my belief that all potato fertil- 

 izers should contain sulphate and not muriate as the source 

 of potash. 



Experiments at Amherst indicate that where the amount 

 of fertilizer used is moderate, it is best to scatter widely in 

 the drill rather than broadcast. Where the amount is large, 

 a combination of the two methods seems to be preferable. 

 It is perhaps unnecessary to add that the portion applied in 

 the drill should include the more readily available materials. 

 With such a selection as that used last year, I should put in 

 the drill the nitrate of soda, the dried blood, one-half the 

 superphosphate and one-half the potash. The balance of the 

 materials I should mix, spread, after ploughing and harrow 

 in. 



Preparation of the Soil, Planting and Culture. 



With medium loam I prefer to plough in the fall, and 

 then to plough again in the spring and make fine with the 

 harrow. I prefer to plant as early as the soil can be brought 

 into suitable condition, and use tubers of merchantable size 



