CHAPTER V 

 STABLE MANURES 



75. Extent used. Stable manures are universally re- 

 garded as the most valuable fertilizing materials for the 

 growing of all classes of vegetables upon all types of 

 soils. This is a very broad statement, but it is not likely 

 to be challenged, since the most successful vegetable 

 growers in all parts of the world place their main de- 

 pendence upon stable manures. In many instances appli- 

 cations of special fertilizers have a more marked effect 

 for the season or possibly for several seasons, but their 

 long-continued use without additions of vegetable mat- 

 ter to the soil is always disastrous. It is true that ex- 

 amples can be cited of gardening operations that have 

 been conducted for many years without any increase in 

 the supply of vegetable matter, but in all such cases the 

 supply of humus is very large to begin with. Muck soils 

 are often farmed for a long term of years without manure, 

 but even upon these soils stable manures are highly 

 beneficial. 



Market gardeners are especially dependent upon the 

 use of stable manure, because there is no interval be- 

 tween crops for the growing of green manures. Near all 

 our large cities immense quantities of manure are used 

 by growers following intensive methods. In trucking 

 or farm gardening, however, growers are learning to rely 

 mainly upon cover crops and green manures, so the de- 

 mand from this class of producers is not quite so great, 

 perhaps, as a few years ago. But there are many in- 

 stances of manure being shipped hundreds of miles. One 

 very extensive grower on the eastern shore of Maryland 

 declares that he could not be successful in producing 



