VARIOUS MANURES. 131 



as in conversing Avith farmers we find their ideas so 

 greatly to differ. 



Bnt it is generally admitted that guano stimulates the 

 growth of the leaves, and at the period when the sugar 

 is forming ; this being the case, the latter is, as before 

 stated, greatly diminished. As a general thing we 

 cannot recommend any organic manure for beet cul- 

 ture, but, on the contrary, chemical compounds are 

 superior, and from them much is to be expected. 



Mineral Fertilizers. — As before stated plants require 

 for their development four elements. To suj^ply these 

 we have at our disposal various chemicals that form 

 within themselves four distinct groups : — 



a. Nitric fertilizer, y. Calcareous fertilizer, 



^. Phosphoric fertilizer, 8. Potassic fertilizer. 



a. Nitric Fertilizer. — There can be no doubt as to 

 the influence of nitric elements upon the growth of 

 the beet as well as other plants, but there is uncertainty 

 as to the advantage attributed in the formation of sugar. 

 A vast number of experiments have been made to 

 ascertain what relation if any existed between the 

 nitrogen contained in the root to that of the soil or the 

 fertilizer made use of, but none of these agree in a 

 manner that would convince those interested that they 

 had been executed in good faith. There is one fact 

 that cannot be doubted, and that is that any soil highly 

 manured either with organic or chemical — correspond- 

 ing to a nitric — fertilizer, will yield beets poor in sugar. 



