216 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



soil is permeable to the air. The nitrates leach rapidly from the 

 soil, while the other compounds of nitrogen are not so subject to 

 waste from this cause, and the compounds of phosphoric acid and 

 potash suffer scarcely any appreciable waste. 



Hon. James J. H. Gregor3' was much pleased with the essay, 

 which dealt with the fundamental points of fertilization, and 

 brought in one rescuing fact, — that we can use commercial fertili- 

 zers to raise cow peas or clover, and can make humus b}' plowing 

 these under. Barn manure is what has passed through the animal ; 

 the part of the food retained has become a portion of the animal, 

 and manufacturers ultimately make fertilizers of him. Dung 

 differs in its composition from the fertilizer made from the flesh 

 and bones of the animal only in the fact that it is diluted with a 

 larger quantity of water. 



A. W. Cheever remarked that ploughing in green crops as fertil- 

 izers is practised more in the State of New York than here. A 

 neighbor of his applied commercial fertilizers to a piece of ground, 

 and sowed winter rye, which when neai'ly ready to blossom was 

 ploughed in as a fertilizer for corn, but proved a failure. The 

 speaker accounted for it bj- supposing that the rye had absorbed 

 all the immediately available plant food, and did not decay soon 

 enough to feed the corn. 



Professor Caldwell thought Mr. Cheever's explanation probably 

 correct. It would have been better to put on a crop later in the 

 season. 



William H. Bowker was much pleased with the essay, as well as 

 with other writings by Professor Caldwell, and felt no fear that his 

 occupation as a manufacturer of fertilizers was in danger. It made 

 little difference to him whether he sold the materials of fertilizers 

 for mixing, or mixed them to suit the wants of farmers. There 

 must be a margin of profit, and formerly there was a greater profit 

 on manufactured goods than there is now. It has cost a great deal 

 to work up the use of fei'tilizers to the present point. No one not 

 in the trade has any idea of the increase ; and the speaker could not 

 tell what it would come to in the future. He saw no wa}' to pro- 

 cure the materials that will be wanted for fertilizers, especially 

 nitrogen. He advised that farmers keep more stock and feed 

 better, using artificial fertilizers only as supplementary to barnyard 

 manure. They should study the feeding of animals in connection 

 with feeding the soil. He recommended cotton-seed meal as feed 

 for stock where rich manure is desired. 



