362 SOILS 



be compared with the methods of general 

 farming, often use 30 to 50 cords per acre. 

 A cord of fresh cow manure weighs about 

 three tons. 



Light Dressings Desirable. If a certain field 

 is in special neea of the mellowing and enriching 

 effect of manure, a heavy dressing may be given; 

 but usually it is more profitable to spread 30 cords 

 of manure over 10 acres, if 30 cords is all that can 

 be had, than to put ail of it on 5 acres. A moder- 

 ate increase in yield on 10 acres is better than a 

 heavy increase on 5 acres. The farther a field is 

 from the barn, the less likely it will pay to haul a 

 heavy dressing of manure to it; for manure is 

 bulky and expensive to handle. It may be 

 more practicable to put humus into such 

 fields by green-manuring, and perhaps commer- 

 cial fertilisers can be used there to advan- 

 tage. 



Although manure is a complete fertiliser, it is 

 not well (balanced since it usually contains much 

 more nitrogen than either of the other two plant 

 foods. An abundance of nitrogen promotes a very 

 vigorous growth of leaves and stems, but it is not 

 so valuable for developing seeds and fruits. Too 

 heavy applications of manure may make the wheat 

 lodge or the fruit soft. For this reason if only a 

 limited amount of manure is available, it is best 

 to use it most freely on the crops that are valued 

 chiefly for a very vigorous growth of stem or leaf, 

 as the grasses, clover, most garden vegetables, and 

 forage crops. Commercial fertilisers should be used 

 on manured soil to supply the plant food that 

 manure is deficient in and so balance it; as 

 by using superphosphate on land manured for 

 cotton. 



