CARE OF MANURE 



105 



and poultry. There are a number of other conditions which help 

 to determine the real value of barnyard manure: the age of the 

 animals; kind of bedding used; whether the feed contains much 

 or little grain or other concentrates (Fig. 76); the age of the manure 

 and the care of it after it is made. 



Care of Manure. On farms where much manure is produced 

 improper care of the manure is frequently a very serious farm 

 loss. This is chiefly from two causes: heating and leaching. 

 When manure accumulates in large heaps in the barnj^ard the 

 chemical action and the work of anaerobic bacteria cause the 



ms 



~~ - . -. ,_._ ,^fci._ A. 



FIG. 77. When manure is left in piles in the barnyard the water may wash away the 

 richest part. Some pond or stream of water usually receives the drainage of the barnyard, 

 and the loss is very great. (U. S. D. A.) 



manure to heat or "fire fang." This results in loss of nitrogen 

 and much of the organic matter is burned out. 



When manure is left in open barnyards or, worse yet, is left 

 under the eaves where large quantities of water will fall upon it, 

 the loss from leaching and washing is a serious one. As the manure 

 leaches the most valuable parts of the plant food are lost first 

 (Fig. 77). 



Because of such losses as these it may be estimated that fully 

 one-half of the value of barnyard manure produced on American 

 farms is wasted. Under good management at least four-fifths of 

 all of the crops fed to stock, or used in the barn for litter, should 



