24 



SMITH'S CHRYSANTHEMUM MANUAL 



with manure, the strength of which is taken to the roots in liquid form by 

 the application of water. Second, by extracting the soluble parts of ma- 

 nure, diluting to the desired degree and applying in solution ; third, the use 

 of liquids made from soluble chemical salts. All three methods are equal 

 as far as producing the desired crop is concerned provided they are judici- 

 ously applied, but there is a marked difference in the cost of material and 

 labor involved. The present price of manure, the labor required to make 

 it accessible to the plant far exceeds the cost of chemicals. 



Stable manure contains 1*4 per cent plant food (by Government 

 Analysis), or 25 pounds per ton, while some of the highly concentrated 

 chemical fertilizers now on the market contain G5 per cent actual plant 

 food. It requires 2 3/5 tons of manure to supply the same amount contain- 

 ed in 100 pounds of such chemicals and when we consider the labor re- 

 quired to handle this quantity of manure when used as a top dressing or 

 reduced to a liquid, even the casual thinker is confronted with the ques- 

 tion why all this unnecessary expense? The experimental station have 

 taken up these matters in detail and set forth in their reports that chemi- 

 cals are equal to natural manures in the production of crops. 



We use a mixture known as Chrysaline, one pound of which is as effi- 

 cient as SO Ibs of manure. The former is prefect ly soluble while the latter 

 must be leached in some way before it is available, one is clean and odor- 

 less as so much salt, the other dirty and offensive .when manipulated In 

 any form. The strength of chemicals are known quantities and constant, 

 while manures are uncertain and variable. 



Chemical Fertilizers In the case of chemical fertilizers most of the 

 failures are due to too strong application. A few years ago we were using 

 Chrysaline at the rate of 1 ounce to (5 gallons of water, but recent observa- 

 tions indicate it should not be 

 used stronger than 1 to 10 and 

 when the soil contains consider- 

 able manure 1 to 20 or 30 gal- 

 lons gives far better results 

 when used before the buds are 

 selected. Some will consider 

 this a very weak solution, but 

 experience has shown it suffi- 

 cient and the old adage "better 

 be safe than sorry" will be ap- 

 preciated by those who use such 

 concentrated chemicals indis- 

 criminately. 



Once a week is as often as it 

 should be applied to most varie- 

 ties and never when the plants 

 show signs of dryness. A very good plan is to go over the benches and 

 v.-ater all dry spots before applying. It is a great temptation to those who 



FIG. 9. APPEARANCE OF 

 FOLIAGE WHEN OVERFED. 



