14 Fertilizers 



portance. Such would be the case in the growing of 

 market-garden crops near large cities, the location near 

 the consumer being of greater importance, in the case of 

 perishable crops of this sort, than the chemical character 

 of the soil. In the larger number of cases, however, the 

 natural fertility fairly measures the market price. At the 

 price to the acre, and for the quantity of constituents here 

 assumed, the buyer would pay at the rate of ij cents a 

 pound for the nitrogen, and J cent a pound each for the 

 phosphoric acid and potash, and it now constitutes his 

 capital stock. 



A comparison of the prices received for the fertility elements 

 in different crops. 



A comparison of the prices paid for the constituents 

 in land, with the prices received for the same constituents 

 when contained in the different crops (disregarding for 

 the moment the value of the "condition" of soil), will 

 make clearer this matter of rational sale of constituents, 

 which represents a reduction of our capital stock of fer- 

 tility. For example, if wheat is raised which contains 

 1.89 per cent of nitrogen, .93 per cent of phosphoric acid 

 and .64 per cent of potash or in round numbers, 38 

 pounds of nitrogen, 19 of phosphoric acid and 13 of potash 

 to a ton and is sold for 80 cents a bushel, or $26.65 

 a ton, the nitrogen sells in this form for 55 cents a pound, 

 and the phosphoric acid and potash for 18 cents each a 

 pound. That is, the 80 cents a bushel, or the 55 cents a 

 pound, received for the nitrogen, and 18 cents for the 

 potash and phosphoric acid, represent what has been 

 received for a pound for the capital stock of these ele- 

 ments, which at $100 an acre were purchased at the prices 

 previously mentioned ; 1 J cents a pound for the nitrogen 



