126 The Potato 



SULPHUR 



Sulphur is present in all soils and is not likely to be 

 deficient in any way. There is some ground for the belief 

 that part of the value of acid phosphate is due to the 

 sulphur contained in it. 



APPLYING FERTILIZERS 



The method by which fertilizers are applied to a soil 

 often determines the profit to be obtained from their use. 

 Nitrate of soda is so quickly and easily soluble in the soil- 

 water that it can be sown on the surface of the land at any 

 time with the certainty that the first rain will dissolve it, 

 or that it will quickly dissolve if mixed with the soil. 

 Other fertilizers require weeks, months or even years to 

 become available to plants. 



A gradual evolution is taking place in the ideas as to 

 the proper use of fertilizers. In the earlier days of their 

 use, when the quantity applied w^as limited to perhaps 

 100 to 200 pounds to the acre, it was rightly considered as 

 only a starter for the young plants. It was applied to the 

 soil close to the seed, being often dropped by hand. The 

 roots starting from the young plants were certain to find 

 a supply of readily available plant-food as soon as they 

 could use it. This would give a quick start to the young 

 plant, which would enable it to grow more quickly to a 

 size when it would be able to forage for itself. As the 

 profits from the use of fertilizers became known, the 

 amounts gradually increased. About the same time 

 machine-planters came into use. These applied the 

 fertilizer in the form of a strip several inches wide in the 

 bottom of the furrow-mark. This wide-strip application 



