36 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



at large. His daily life is expended in his endeavors to edu- 

 cate and build up the farmers of Massachusetts. Let us be 

 in closer communication with him, and accept the knowledge 

 obtained through science as our guide and helper. This 

 some of us have neglected to do, owing to the strong dispo- 

 sition on our part to condemn and ignore the advanced ideas 

 and principles of scientific farming. 



I feel that dealers in commercial fertilizer, whether deal- 

 ing in manufactured, mixed or unmixed goods, have done a 

 great work in endeavoring to bring to the attention of the 

 farmers the benefits to be derived from the use of commer- 

 cial fertilizer, and for it they should receive the thanks of 

 every cultivator of the soil in New England. 



The Chairman. Have you any questions, gentlemen, to 

 ask the lecturer ? 



Mr. Bartlett (of Montague). The lecturer says he used 

 700 pounds of fertilizer. Is that on an acre or on the whole 

 eight acres ? 



Mr. Parker. On an acre. 



Dr. J. B. LiNDSEY (of the Massachusetts Experiment 

 Station) . I woukl like to ask what you mean by commer- 

 cial fertilizer ; that is, do you speak generally of commercial 

 fertilizers as mixed goods which you bought? 



Mr. Parker. Mixed goods or unmixed goods. I buy 

 the chemicals and mix them myself. 



Mr. L. ^y. West (of Hadley). What do you buy, and 

 how do you mix them ? 



Mr. Parker. I buy dissolved bone-black, blood, bone 

 and meat, muriate of potash, sulphate of potash, nitrate of 

 soda, sulphate of ammonia and ground bones. 



Mr. West. In that 700 pounds how many pounds do 

 you use ? 



Mr. Parker. I could not give it to you in the 700 pounds 

 exactly. In one ton on that piece of land I used 750 pounds 

 of dissolved bone-black, 750 pounds of blood, bone and 

 meat, 200 pounds of muriate of potash, 200 pounds of sul- 

 phate of potash, and 125 pounds of nitrate of soda. 



Mr. West. Ground bone ? 



Mr. Parker. No. Ground bone I found was too slow 

 for the crop ; but in re-seeding in the fall I could use ground 

 bone with good success. 



