Soils, Fertilizers and Irrigation 173 



There is no ill effect. Sea kelp has been dragged from the beaches 

 at low tide, partly dried and used, for centuries perhaps, as field fer- 

 tilizer for all sorts of crops in Europe, and for decades, to some 

 extent, on the New England coast. The dangerous substance in it 

 would seem to indicate that that is not present in sufficient quantity 

 to cause trouble. The great difficulty lies in securing and transport- 

 ing the substance, for less than its fertilizing equivalent can be 

 obtained by purchase of other more concentrated manures. 



Applying Thomas Phosphate. 



When is the best time to apl^Iy I'lionias phosphate slag on orchard 

 land? 



As Thomas phosphate is slowly soluble, it can be applied at any 

 time during the rainy season without danger of loss, and for the 

 same fact, it should be applied early during the rainy season in order 

 to be available to trees during the following summer's growth. It 

 ought, perhaps, to be added that other forms of phosphate have 

 largely displaced slag during the last few years in the United States, 

 other forms being more available. 



Sugar Factory Lime for Fertilizing. 



Is the lime from a sugar factory a good fertiliser for either oranges 

 or walnuts; if so, about luhat amount to the acre would you recommend? 



If your land needs lime or if it is heavy and needs to be more 

 friable, or if you have reason to think that it may be soured by 

 exclusion of air or by excessive use of fermenting manures, the 

 refuse lime you speak of will do as a corrective just as other lime 

 does, though, perhaps, not so actively. Beyond that there is nothing 

 of great value in it. You can use two or three applications of 500 

 pounds to the acre without overdoing it — if your land needs it at 

 all. 



Nitrate With Stable Manure. 



/ am going to plant about 2000 phi)ifs of rliubarb. I intend to put 

 some cow and horse manure under the plants as a fertiliser, but I do 

 not think I zi'ill have enough for all the plants, so I bought some nitrate 

 of lime, with the intention of mixing the coiv and horse manure with 

 the lime nitrate, which I thought would allozv me to spread the manure 

 much thinner and I could cover more surface. Now I am not sure but 

 the nitrate of lime zvill burn the manure if mixed with it. 



You can mix either nitrate of lime or nitrate of soda with the 

 stable manure as you propose; in fact, it is frequently done. These 

 nitrates are neutral salts and do not act on manure as caustic lime 

 or wood ashes would do. They are quite content to keep along 

 without kicking their neighbors. But, of course, the more nitrate 

 you add the more careful you must be about using too much of the 

 mixture, and as for putting manure under any plant, at spring plant- 

 ing particular, it is dangerous business. 



