MANURE: 285 



When the animals are stabled on a wood or dirt floor with in- 

 sufficient bedding, a portion of the liquid excrement soaks into 

 the ground. The quantity depends upon the tightness of the floor 

 and the absorptive power of the manure or the litter. A similar 

 loss occurs when the manure is stored in piles on the earth. A 

 portion of the liquids sink in the earth. Cement floors prevent 

 such losses, and are used to a considerable extent in certain 

 localities. Clay when worked until puddled, and then tamped, 

 makes a fairly good floor. 



Loss by seepage may be decreased by using the proper quantity 

 of litter, and by collecting and preserving the manure on an im- 

 pervious floor. An excess of litter makes the manure too coarse. 

 The following table 1 shows the absorptive power of various 

 litters : 



Water retained by 



100 pounds material 



after 24 hours 



Wheat straw 220 



Oak leaves (partly decomposed) 162 



Sawdust 435 



Peat 600 



Peat moss 1,300 



Soil rich in humus . 50 



The amount of litter should depend on the character of the 

 food. Watery foods and those containing much nitrogen increase 

 the secretion of urine and so increase the amount of litter neces- 

 sary to absorb the urine and keep the animal clean. Manure pro- 

 tected from rain by a shed, according to Kinnard, produced 4 

 tons more per acre of potatoes, and n bushels more wheat, than 

 the same quantity of manure not protected by a shed during the 

 same period of time. 



When manure is exposed to rain, a part of the fertilizing con- 

 stituents is washed away, somewhat in proportion to the length 

 of the exposure and the amount of rain. The soluble ingredients 

 so lost are the more available and more valuable part of the 

 manure. Experiments have been made in which a quantity of 

 manure was weighed and subjected to analysis and after a certain 

 1 Herbert, Exp. Sta. Record No. 5, p. 144. 



