28 



It will be noticed in the above table that some manufacturers' 

 goods show a high total nitrogen activity and a satisfactory total 

 organic nitrogen activity; while the percentage activity of the water 

 insoluble organic nitrogen is low. In some of these cases the manu- 

 facturers make no secret of the fact that they are using 200 pounds 

 of peat or garbage tankage as a conditioner. As a reason therefor 

 it is claimed that a large proportion of the fertilizer mixture is derived 

 from chemicals having a tendency to cake; hence, to insure a satisfy- 

 ing mechanical product, it is necessary to use a small amount of such 

 material. There can be no objection to this practice, provided the 

 nitrogen contained in the conditioner is not counted in the guarantee 

 and a statement appears on the tag that such products have been 

 used for this purpose. It is not, of course, absolutely necessary to use 

 these low grade products to insure a good drillable fertilizer. A 

 suitable amount of high grade animal and vegetable ammoniates will 

 prove quite as effective, but would have a tendency, perhaps, to in- 

 crease the cost of the fertilizer. 



Eighty-four percent of the total phosphoric acid found 

 Character of in all of the complete fertilizers analyzed was present 

 Phosphoric in available form, and forty-two percent of the avail- 

 Acid, able phosphoric acid was present in water soluble 



form. These figures compare favorably with results 

 secured during the previous season. As might be expected, the per- 

 centage of solubility and availability of the phosphoric acid in the 

 acid phosphate is considerably more than what is found in the mixed 

 fertilizers. This is undoubtedly due in part to the use of more or less 

 undissolved tankage and bone in the mixed goods. Ninety-five per- 

 cent of the average total phosphoric acid found in 19 samples of acid 

 phosphate was classed as available and seventy-two percent of the 

 available phosphoric acid was in water soluble form. 



In general it may be said that the character of the 

 Character potash found in the mixed fertilizers has been as rep- 

 of resented. Most of the brands furnished the potash in 



Potash form of muriate. In the tables of analyses, wherever 



the potash is in form of sulfate or carbonate, an aster- 

 isk (*) or dagger (f) has been used in the "found" potash column. 

 These characters refer to footnotes giving the proportion of each 

 form of potash. Analyses published without these characters in- 

 dicate that all the potash present is as chloride. The presence of 

 chlorine in tobacco goods is perhaps more undesirable than in any 

 other special crop fertilizer. It is not always possible to avoid a 

 small amount in any fertilizer, as the highest grades of agricultural 

 chemicals actually contain a little of this ingredient. This should 

 be looked upon as no worse than what actually happens when five or 

 six cords of manure are used per acre. It should, of course, be the 



