50 VEGETABLE GARDENING 



but it is without doubt an advantage in the thinner soils, 

 because it secures greater concentration of plant food in 

 the immediate region of the roots and results in a more 

 economical use of the manure applied. 



The spreading of stable manures on truck farms and 

 on market gardens is generally done with an -ordinary 

 four-tine manure fork. This is the most economical 

 method when the manure is spread from the wagon as 

 hauled from livery stables. Manure spreaders, however, 

 should be in more general use among commercial vege- 

 table growers, because they save labor and secure a much 

 more even distribution than is possible by hand spread- 

 ing. 



89. Rate of application. The rate of application varies 

 with the character and the supply of available manure, 

 the character of the soil and the kinds of crops to be 

 grown. In field trucking with such crops as sweet corn 

 and cabbage the applications often do not exceed 10 tons 

 an acre, while in market gardening the amount varies 

 from 25 to 100 tons an acre. More than 50 tons to the 

 acre is regarded by some as wasteful, or at least not eco- 

 nomical. Twenty-five tons is a medium application in 

 market gardening, while many claim that maximum 

 profits cannot be obtained with less than 50 tons an acre 

 applied annually. In the most intensive .garden opera- 

 tions manure is often spread to the depth of 3 inches. 

 When supplementing with commercial fertilizers it is 

 possible to succeed with less manure, although the land 

 may suffer in its physical composition. By using com- 

 mercial fertilizers and a good system of irrigation the 

 grower can unquestionably economize in the amount of 

 manure. 



90. Night soil is a term applied to the human ex- 

 crements, used extensively in the gardens near Philadel- 

 phia and for truck crops near Baltimore. At Baltimore 

 it is taken from vaults and transported on barges to 



