ON EXPERIMENTS ON MANURES. 105 



ON EXPERIMENTS ON MANURES. 



The Committee on Experiments on Manures, Report : 

 That no claims for tlie premiums offered under this head, 

 have been made ; the terms of the offer being for " an exact 

 and satisfactory experiment in the appUcaiiofi as well as the 

 preparation of manures." The only communication received is 

 from Mr. David Wood, of Newbury, who, desirous of subserv- 

 ing the interests of agriculture, has favored the Committee 

 with a detailed statement of the materials used and the man- 

 ner in which he caused them to be mixed, in his compost heap. 

 Manure is the essential element in New England farming, and 

 the question, How can I obtain the greatest quantity at the 

 least expense 1 should interest every farmer. The cattle ordi- 

 narily kept on the farms in this vicinity, will not afford a suffi- 

 cient supply of this essential requisite of good crops. How 

 can this deficiency be supplied with the least outlay of money 

 and labor'? What materials are best adapted for compost, 

 and how shall they be compounded ? Mr. Wood's communi- 

 cation answers these questions by giving the manner in which 

 he prepared a large quantity of excellent compost. The sub- 

 ject of composting manure should be kept constantly before 

 the minds of farmers ; and regarding Mr. Wood's suggestions 

 as highly worthy of attention, we recommend that his letter 

 be published in the Society's Transactions. 



For the Committee, J. H. DUNCAN. 



December 15, 1845. 



DAVID wood's statement. 



To the Committee on Manures and Composts : 



Gentlemen, — At the request of several practical agricultur- 

 ists, I am induced to call your attention to a compost of ma- 

 nure, prepared on my farm during the present year. 



The heap is composed of materials as at foot, and placed in 

 layers of from six inches to a foot, according to the nature of 

 14 



