DEPARTMENT OF PLANT AND ANIMAL CHEMISTRY. 



J. B. Lindsey, Chemist. 



INSPECTION OF COMMERCIAL FERTILIZERS 



FOR THE SEASON OF 1912. 



By H. D. Has KINS, Chemist in Charge. 



Assisted by 



L. S. Walker. C. P. Jones and C. L. Beals.* 



The 1912 fertilizer inspection has been 



Abstracts of Fer- carried on under the new fertilizer law 



tilizer Law. which became operative December 1,1911. 



The full text of the law was printed in last 



year's fertilizer bulletin, hence only its essential features are given 



at this time. 



The law requires the proper branding of all goods, including 

 lime products, with the name and principal address of the man- 

 ufacturer, the number of pounds which each package contains 

 and a guarantee of composition. 



The latter must include a statement of nitrogen, water soluble 

 potash, soluble, available and total phosphoric acid, and, in case 

 of lime products, the percentage of total lime and magnesia and 

 the combined percentage of carbonates of these two elements. 

 In all cases where any part of the nitrogen is derived from pul- 

 verized leather, raw, roasted or steamed, or from untreated hair, 

 wool waste, peat, garbage tankage, or from any inert material 

 whatever, the label shall state the materials from which the inert 

 nitrogen is derived. Goods offered in bulk must also be guaran- 

 teed and a statement made of the available phosphoric acid in 

 basic slag phosphate based upon an analysis by the Wagner 

 method. 



The payment of an analysis fee of $8.00 for each ingredient, 

 nitrogen, potash and phosphoric acid, contained in each brand of 

 fertilizer, must be made annually on or before January 1st, and 

 must be accompanied by a certified copy of the label which is to 

 appear on each package. A certificate signed by the director of 

 the experiment station is issued to parties complying with the 

 above requirements. 



Provisions are made for securing duplicate samples of all 

 fertilizers : one of the duplicates to be held intact by the station 



*Mr. Beals assisted in the work from July 1 to November 10. 

 Mr. W. A. Turner assisted in the work from July 1 to September 1. 



