FIELD CORN IN MASSACHUSETTS 7 



Manuring the Corn Land. Liberal use of manure on corn land is suggested. 

 The corn benefits, and the greatest value from manure and its organic matter 

 is obtained when it is applied in the soil. It makes little difference to the crop 

 whether manure is disked or plowed under, the decision being largely a matter of 

 convenience and ease of handling. For this reason, plowing under is quite com- 

 mon, especially when using straw>' manure, to facilitate later seed bed prepara- 

 tion and possibly to reduce weed infestation from the manure. 



Fertilizing with Manure, Phosphorus in the Row. Rather liberal use of manure, 

 16 tons or more, to which superphosphate may have been added in the stable, 

 provides excellent fertility to grow the corn. A row application of 100 to 300 

 pounds of superphosphate or of a mi.xed fertilizer high in phosphorus is also 

 valuable to start the crop. Young seedlings seem to require phosphorus and 

 plenty of it near the seed to start a good root system. Rows so treated on the 

 college farm grew faster and matured grain a week earlier than rows on the manure 

 alone. Starters other than superphosphate often used include: ammo-phos 

 11-48-0, or mixtures such as 4-12-4, 4-16-4, or 4-16-8, in these or higher grades. 



A 12-ton yield of silage corn removes almost 90 pounds each of nitrogen and 

 potash — approximately all that is contained in 8 to 10 tons of stable manure. 

 Because there is a considerable drain of soil nutrients in growing corn and 

 because manure is commonly estimated to yield only about half its fertility for 

 crop use the first season, farmers use manure liberally. In many cases, appli- 

 cations of 16 tons or more of manure are made on land for corn. The fertility 

 remaining after the removal of the corn thus benefits succeeding crops. 



Fertilizing without Manure. Corn occasionally is grown without manure. 

 Adequate amounts of commercial fertilizer ordinarily produce good yields. 

 Calculated simply on the basis of nutrients removed in cropping, again, the 

 12-ton yield of corn removes twice the amount of nitrogen and all the potash 

 that would be furnished in 1,000 pounds per acre of 4-8-8. The cost of this 

 fertilizer treatment will not greatly exceed the probable value and labor cost of 

 the ordinary manure and superphosphate practice. And since sweet corn growers 

 commonly apply 1,000 to 1,500 pounds or more of similar fertilizer to effect early 

 maturity, important also in forage corn production, a 1,000-pound rate can 

 hardly be termed excessive for the bigger silage corns which produce the greater 

 tonnage. Adequate supply of phosphorus and potash tends to promote sturdy 

 plants and good ear development. 



The amount of fertilizer to apply depends on the residual soil fertility from 

 previous crop practice, the variety and size of corn to be grown, and the owner's 

 desire to maintain fertility. The use of 4-8-8, 4-12-4, or 5-10-5 grades of fertilizer, 

 600 to 1,000 pounds to the acre, is suggested. The same amount of plant food is 

 obtained from 300 to 500 pounds of the higher analysis grades, such as 8-16-16, 

 8-24-8, or 8-16-8, and it is often slightly cheaper and more convenient to apply 

 grades of this analysis. 



Directions for the home mixing of fertilizers are sometimes requested. The 

 following mixtures contain the same amount of plant foods as is contained in 

 1,000 pounds of a complete fertilizer of the indicated analysis. They should be 

 applied about the same day they are mixed; otherwise lumping will occur. 



1. 2. 



200 lb. Sulfate of Ammonia 100 lb. Sulfate of Ammonia 



400 lb. Superphosphate (20%) 170 lb. Ammo-Phos (11-48-0) 



160 lb. Muriate of Potash 160 lb. Muriate of Potash 



760 lb. mixture= 1,000 lb. of 4-8-8 430 lb.= 1,000 lb. of 4-8-8 



76 lb. mixture= 100 lb. of 4-8-8 43 lb.= 100 lb. of 4-8-8 



