No. 4.] KEEPING UP FEKTILITY. 115 



Question. Will it stand frost? 



Professor Brooks. No, it won't stand winter. It has 

 continued to grow until about the middle of November 

 That is the average for the last six years. 



Question. You say the seed can be readily obtained ? 



Professor Brooks. Yes ; most large seedsmen keep it. 



Question. What is the amount of seed sown per acre? 



Professor Brooks. We sow from twelve to sixteen quarts 

 to the acre, broadcast at the time of the last cultivation of 

 the corn. 



Dr. Twitchell. Is not the percentage of waste greater 

 when the manure is spread upon the fields through the winter 

 than if it is allowed to remain in the pile ? 



Professor Brooks. I do not think it is, for these reasons. 

 You will understand me that I am talkins; about fresh 

 manure, not fermented manure, and the percentage of sol- 

 uble materials in fresh manure is comparatively small. 

 Ammonia does not exist in fresh manure. It forms very 

 quickly if it lies in a loose pile, but spread out upon the 

 soil it forms very slowly, and moist manure can hold consid- 

 eral)le of it. I do not think it will escape into the air. 

 There is no evidence that it does, because every rain that 

 comes washes it out into the soil. Since you have asked 

 the question, it is perhaps desirable that I should relate a 

 little bit of experience in this connection. I should say that 

 most of our grass land slopes quite a little, and one of my 

 students asked me (they are very fond of catching a pro- 

 fessor when they can) if there was not a great deal lost by 

 this practice ; and one day when the manure was applied 

 there was some ice and snow in the field, and a sudden 

 change of weather with rain produced conditions in which 

 there was considerable water running off the field. Then the 

 student came and said, "There is a great waste here." I 

 said to him, " I am as anxious to know the truth as you arc. 

 Go and get a sample, and have it analyzed." He did so. 

 Without going into details, in order to make the result 

 impressive to the class, I calculated the value of a barrel of 

 such water, and I found that, allowing the full manurial value 

 of the constituents contained, a barrel full of material which 

 was washing over the surface was worth one-fifth of one cent. 



